Inter-American Institute forCooperation on Agriculture (IICA)
Director of Projects
Fernando Henrique Kohlmann Schwanke is the Director of Projects at the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), an international organization affiliated with the Organization of American States (OAS). In this role, he supports IICA’s 34 country offices across the Americas in mobilizing external resources to advance innovative technical cooperation initiatives.
Mr. Schwanke brings extensive experience in both the public and private sectors, particularly in planning and implementing agricultural and forestry projects focused on sustainable development. From January 2019 to June 2021, he served as Brazil’s National Secretary of Family Farming and Cooperativism at the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food Supply. His leadership focused on rural cooperatives, family farming, agro-extractivism, bioeconomy, and rural infrastructure.
He has also served as Superintendent at the Mineral Resources Research Company (CPRM), a consultant for the FAO, and currently contributes his technical and strategic vision to strengthening agricultural development in the region.
A Forestry Engineering graduate of the Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM), Mr. Schwanke also holds an MBA from Fundação Dom Cabral and completed executive studies at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.