In Memoriam of Juan Felipe Yriart

An Uruguayan, member of the Board of the Esquel Group, and Chairman until June 1995 and President from 1984 to 1993. He had been a Senior Advisor to the Office of Strategic Planning and Operations Policy Department at the Inter-American Development Bank and a consultant to the President for orienting the IDB’s approach to civil society. Born in 1920, Ambassador Yriart had had a long career of public service with his own Government as Minister to Sweden and Ambassador to the Netherlands and the United States, as well as Director General of Uruguay’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He had been Assistant Director General, Regional Representative of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) for Latin America, headed FAO’s Development Department, and was responsible for field and investment programs until he was appointed Director General ad interim of the World Food Program. Amb. Yriart then directed an Uruguayan political party-affiliated research and advisory group, until the new government appointed him Executive Director of the IDB. After a year as Advisor to Uruguay’s President on international financial cooperation, he returned for one year to the IDB as Executive Director. In his conference and seminar presentations and policy papers, he brought to bear his experience in public service to develop pragmatic, workable approaches to strengthen civil society in the region and to foster cooperation among civil society organizations, multilateral institutions, government, and business.