Aloizio Mercadante is president of Brazil’s National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES). An economist and university professor, he has had an extensive political and academic career focused on economics and public policy.

He served as a federal deputy and senator for São Paulo and held various positions in the administrations of Lula da Silva and Dilma Rousseff. Among other responsibilities, he served as Minister of Science, Technology, and Innovation; Minister of Education; and Chief of Staff to the President of Brazil. He also helped found the Workers’ Party and the Central Única dos Trabalhadores, Brazil’s national labor federation.