Daniel FitzGerald Runde

Daniel Runde
Director of the Global Development Alliance, USAID
In office 2005–2007
Personal details
Born	Daniel Fitzgerald Runde (1972-01-21) January 21, 1972 Andrews Air Force Base Maryland, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Sonia Cavallo Runde ​ (m. 2001)​
Children	3
Parents	James A. Runde M. Barbara FitzGerald
Residence	McLean, Virginia
Education	Dartmouth College (BA) Harvard University (MPP)
Occupation	Senior Vice President, CSIS
Profession	Policy Advisor
Known for	International Development
Awards	Order of Isabella the Catholic
Website	Official Webpage DanRunde.com

Daniel FitzGerald Runde (born January 21, 1972) is a senior executive and strategist recognized for his expertise in U.S. foreign policy, national security, international development, international trade, investment, global business and organizational change. Runde is the author of the book The American Imperative: Reclaiming Global Leadership through Soft Power (2023).

Runde is a senior advisor at BGR Group and a senior advisor (non-resident) at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. From 2010 to 2025, Runde was senior vice president, director of the Project on Prosperity and Development, and holder of the William A. Schreyer Chair in Global Analysis at CSIS. He was also acting director of the CSIS Americas Program from 2020 to 2022.

Runde's professional work has been organized around great power competition in the developing world. He was an architect of the 2018 BUILD Act which led to a major reform of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and created the US Development Finance Corporation (DFC). He testified before the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives related to the BUILD Act. Runde also contributed to the reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) in 2019.

In 2017, Runde convened a bipartisan Task Force on the Future of U.S. Foreign Assistance in the context of a major review by the U.S. government of its foreign aid. He has chaired the Advisory Committee on Voluntary Foreign Aid at USAID (2018–2021), which coordinated relations between the U.S. government and private voluntary organizations (PVOs) engaged in relief, rehabilitation, and development abroad, and the EXIM Sub-Saharan Africa Advisory Committee (2019–2022), which guides the development and implementation of policies and programs designed to promote EXIM's engagement in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Runde has played a role in the election of several key multilateral posts starting in 2018. In 2019, Runde was a supporter of David Malpass for President of the World Bank. In 2019 and 2020, Runde supported Darren Tang as Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization. Runde also played a role in the election of Matias Cormann as Secretary-General of the OECD in 2021.

Runde has been cited as an expert on international political affairs and an advocate of American leadership in global economic development. He writes and speaks on global development and U.S. foreign policy at symposia including the World Economic Forum for which he also serves as a member of its Global Agenda Council on the United States.

At CSIS, Runde hosted several public and private discussions that sought to influence governments (both the United States and foreign) on various policy issues, including general capital increases for multilateral institutions, reorganization of the State Department and USAID and development projects such as Power Africa.

Runde was awarded the Order of Isabella the Catholic (Orden de Isabel la Católica) by the Government of Spain in 2017 for his support of Spanish unity. On November 3, 2022, at a ceremony at the official residence, Brazilian Ambassador Nestor Forster Jr. awarded the Order of Rio Branco to him. Runde also received a decoration from Colombian President Ivan Duque for Runde's dedication to the U.S.-Colombian bilateral relations. He was similarly recognized by the government of Ecuador for his contributions to US-Ecuadorian relations and efforts to expand U.S. partnerships in Latin America.

Support for Ukraine and Moldova

Runde has played an active role in mobilizing U.S. and international support for Ukraine and neighboring Moldova following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. From May 2022 until June 2025, Runde served as Director of the Ukraine Economic Reconstruction Commission at CSIS, a bipartisan and international project with the goal of producing actionable policy frameworks for a future Ukraine.

Under his leadership, the Commission produced a series of working groups and reports and remained active through 2024 and into 2025, anchoring high-level programming focused on Ukraine's postwar economic recovery. As part of the Commission's work, Runde convened the flagship CSIS Doing Business in Ukraine Conference in September 2023 and 2024 to discuss Ukrainian business and trade opportunities with the U.S. and G-7 allies. The Commission sponsored the first Congressional Staff Delegation to Ukraine after the full-scale invasion in August 2023.

Runde has advanced Ukraine's recovery agenda at global venues including London's Chatham House and Spain's Elcano Royal Institute. At the 2024 and 2025 World Economic Forum in Davos, Runde participated in two panels at Ukraine House Davos discussing views on Ukraine in Washington and the need to galvanize global support for Ukraine.

Since 2019, Runde has served on the board of the Ukraine-Moldova American Enterprise Fund (UMAEF), formerly the Western NIS Enterprise Fund (WNISEF), a $285 million fund investing in small and medium-sized enterprises active in Ukraine and Moldova. WNISEF was an investor in Horizon Capital HCGF IV Fund and Runde met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv for the official signing ceremony on April 28, 2023.

Career

Early years (1994–2002)

Runde began his career in financial services and corporate finance at Alex. Brown and Sons (now part of Deutsche Bank) in Baltimore, Maryland. Later, he worked as an assistant vice president for commercial banking at Citibank in Buenos Aires.

Bush administration (2002–2007)

Runde joined the USAID in 2002, under the Bush administration. At the USAID, he led the GDA partnership initiative by providing training, networks, staff, funds, and advice to establish and strengthen alliances. Under Runde, the GDA initiative was recognized by Harvard University as a runner-up for the Innovations in Government Award. 

World Bank (2007–2010)

In 2007, Runde joined the private-sector arm of the World Bank Group, the IFC, where he was the head of the Foundations Unit for the Department of Partnerships and Advisory Service Operations.

CSIS (2010–2025)

Runde joined CSIS in 2010, where he held the William A. Schreyer Chair in Global Analysis and served as Senior Vice President, director of the Project on Prosperity and Development, and acting director of the Americas program (2020-2022). He remains affiliated with the Center as a non-resident Senior Advisor.

Dan Runde, speaking at an event at the CSIS.

BGR Group

Runde joined BGR Group as a senior advisor in June 2025, supporting clients on challenges in Washington and issues related to foreign policy, development policy, national security, global finance, and international development.

Runde is on the boards of the U.S.-Ukraine/Moldova American Enterprise Fund (UMAEF) and Spirit of America. He was on the boards of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (2016-2024) and the Ashesi University Foundation.

Runde has been a commentator on foreign affairs, international development issues, and U.S. global leadership across media outlets. He was the longtime host of the CSIS podcast series, Building the Future: Freedom, Prosperity, and Foreign Policy with Dan Runde. He has appeared as a guest expert on podcasts, and was a regular contributor to The Hill, Forbes, and Foreign Policy. He has written for Newsmax, the National Interest, and The Jerusalem Strategic Tribune.

Role in policy design

Runde, in May 2017, during his congressional testimony on Global Philanthropy and Remittances and International Development.

Runde has been a frequent witness before the U.S. Congress and has contributed to the design and passage of development and export finance legislation.

In July 2016, he testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development. In November 2017, Runde also testified before the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, where he emphasized the role of development finance and U.S. federal agencies like United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) and Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) in securing American leadership in Asia.

In February 2022, Runde testified before the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Accountability, arguing that private-sector investment in Central America's Northern Triangle was essential to addressing migration drivers and advancing U.S. national security. In May 2023, he appeared before the House Financial Services Subcommittee on National Security, Illicit Finance, and International Financial Institutions, where he called for a more robust U.S. response to China's growing economic footprint in emerging markets. In May 2024, he testified before the House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party during a hearing titled "All Roads Lead to Beijing? The CCP's Global Development Offensive." He urged lawmakers to develop proactive, private-sector-driven alternatives to China's Belt and Road Initiative to defend America's strategic interests and economic influence in emerging markets.

During his tenure as Chairman of EXIM's Sub-Saharan Africa Advisory Committee, Runde played a key role in building the bipartisan coalition that secured the 2019 reauthorization of EXIM. He also drove the design of the Prosper Africa Initiative, advancing U.S. economic engagement across the African continent as a strategic counterweight to China and Russia. As an advocate for and architect of the BUILD Act, Runde was also instrumental in shaping the legislation that created the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), which consolidated and modernized the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and other U.S. development finance tools. In his 2018 testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, he framed the BUILD Act as a strategic response to China's global development push and underscored the importance of U.S. development finance in advancing American interests abroad.

In the international space, Runde has testified before the Canadian Parliament's Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development. He has also testified before the Australian Parliament. He has advised several governments, including the United States, Japan, Australia, Canada, South Korea and Denmark as well as the World Bank and United Nations.

Runde is a life member of the Council of Foreign Relations.

He is a member of the Bretton Woods Committee.

Politics

From 1999 to 2000, Runde chaired Republicans Abroad in Argentina. In October 2011, Runde was named as a member of Governor Mitt Romney's Foreign Policy and National Security Advisory team as co-chair of Governor Romney's International Assistance Working Group. Representing the Romney campaign, Runde joined a bipartisan delegation, led by Senator Norm Coleman and organized by the ONE Campaign, to visit Liberia and Ghana in 2012.

In the 2016 election cycle, Runde was a foreign policy advisor and fundraiser for Scott Walker's 2016 presidential campaign. Runde also chaired the international assistance working group within the John Hay Initiative (JHI), a network of foreign policy experts who advised many of the Republican candidates in the 2016 presidential election. Runde authored the international assistance chapter in the JHI book Choosing to Lead: American Foreign Policy for a Disordered World.

Following Donald Trump's 2016 election, Runde aligned with several major administration initiatives and held multiple politically appointed advisory roles. This included his chairmanship of both USAID's Advisory Committee on Voluntary Foreign Aid (2018-2021) and EXIM Bank's Sub-Saharan Africa Advisory Committee (2018-2022), as well as his support for the 2019 EXIM reauthorization and the passage of the 2018 BUILD Act.

Personal

Dan Runde is the son of James A. Runde (former partner of Morgan Stanley) and M. Barbara FitzGerald. Runde went to Dartmouth College, where he received his Bachelor of Arts (cum laude) in Government in 1994. He also received his Master of Public Policy from the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. He is married to Sonia Cavallo, the daughter of Domingo Cavallo, former Argentine Economy Minister and Foreign Minister. She has been proposed as Argentina's Ambassador to the Organization of American States. He and his wife have three sons.

External links

• Appearances on C-SPAN