Professional Affiliation

Mission Director, USAID/Colombia

Expert Bio

Lawrence Sacks is Mission Director for USAID/Colombia. Prior to joining the USAID/Colombia, he served as Mission Director of USAID/El Salvador and as the Director of the Office of Justice and Citizen Security for USAID/Mexico. Mr. Sacks has 15 years of experience in international development and diplomacy, advising foreign governments and civil society on citizen security, justice reform, violence prevention, human rights, and other democracy issues. He has held multiple important roles such as Deputy Director of the Office of Democratic Initiatives for USAID/Peru and USAID’s Democracy and Social Sector Reform Director in Romania. Mr. Sacks joined USAID as the Latin America Coordinator for Elections/Political Processes. Prior to joining USAID, Mr. Sacks served in the National Labor Committee in New York and San Salvador, where he developed a methodology for calculating the living wage for maquila workers employed by foreign-owned factories operating in free trade zones and published a final report. Mr. Sacks also worked for the United Nations Electoral Assistance Unit. Mr. Sacks has a BS in Arts from the University of Texas at Austin, and an MS in International Affairs from Columbia University, School of International and Public Affairs, New York.