Boris Cornejo Castro is a former president of the Esquel Ecuador Foundation, whose mission is to contribute to sustainable human development, the improvement of the quality of life of poor people and the construction of a more democratic and inclusive society in Ecuador.
In addition to serving as a Professor at the Central and Catholic Universities in Ecuador, Mr. Cornejo is a widely published author and currently an invited author at the Diario el Comercio. His activities as the Chief of Programming for the National Economic Planning Team of Ecuador, Chief of the Politics of Development division at the National Development Advisory of Ecuador and Coordinator of the Civic Network to Combat Corruption demonstrate his commitment to civic development. In addition, Mr. Cornejo has served as an International Consultant for such organizations as the Inter-American Development Bank, the World Bank, the United Nations Children's Fund, and the European Union.
Mr. Cornejo received his Bachelor of Arts in economics from the University of Central Ecuador in 1973, studied development administration at the University of Aláca de Henares in Spain, and returned to Ecuador in 1976 to continue his study of economics. In 1979 he earned a Master of Philosophy of Development at the University of Cambridge, England.
Through its work, Esquel has directly impacted more than 700,000 Ecuadorians and indirectly affected the lives of millions of others, especially children and youth, women and indigenous populations. To date, Esquel has distributed US $30million to local communities. Esquel collaborates with over 150 NGOs, 200 grassroots organizations, 180 youth groups and several organizations throughout Latin America and the United States.