Our second guest is Carolina Rojas-Hayes the former Vice Minister (Deputy Minister) of Mines at the Colombian Ministry of Mines and Energy. She was in charge of strengthening the contribution Colombia’s mining sector by improving competitiveness, transparency, and compliance of high social and environmental standards from large mining corporations to artisanal and small scale mining (ASM).

She also worked for the Colombian Ministry of Finance as Head of Multilateral and Bilateral Debt and in senior positions at the Minister’s cabinet office. Additionally, she has consulted for the World Bank and the Inter American Development Bank in Washington D.C.

Member of Board of Directors for several organisations such as ISA Interconexion Electrica and Pact, an international NGO whose mission is to improve the lives of communicates in issues such as health artisanal mining and governance through evidence and community based solutions. Board of Women in Mining Colombia and Origen.

Ms. Rojas has extensive experience in public administration and international development. Previously she was Senior Executive at CAF – Development Bank of Latin America defining country strategies and designing the bank’s development effectiveness framework. In the public sector, Ms. Rojas has worked for the National Mining Agency, Colombia’s mining authority, as Vice-president of Promotion and Development leading the domestic and international promotion of the country’s mining potential as well as implementing policies focused ASM.

Ms. Rojas holds a Masters degree in Public Policy from the University of Chicago – Harris School of Public Policy (USA) and a B.A. in Economics from Universidad de los Andes (Colombia).