Senior Technical Director, Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture

Susan Cantella is an international development professional with more than 20 years of experience designing and managing programs focused on food and market systems development, nutrition-sensitive agriculture, and economic growth. Cantella brings a strong academic and professional background to her role as senior technical director, with specialized expertise in food security, agriculture, and nutrition in the international development context. She also has an extensive understanding of private sector engagement and community-based natural resources management as well as in institutional capacity building and gender and youth inclusion. 

Before joining CNFA, Cantella was based for two decades in several African countries, including Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Mali, Senegal, and Uganda. During this time, she served in the roles of portfolio manager, contracting officer’s representative, senior technical advisor, deputy chief of party, and chief of party, providing management and technical oversight on a range of initiatives funded by USAID and the Dutch Government. Cantella most recently served as senior technical advisor on the global, multi-sectoral USAID Advancing Nutrition initiative, where she managed and coordinated nutrition-sensitive agriculture activities and supported the USAID Bureaus for Humanitarian Assistance and Resilience and Food Security as well as their implementing partners. While at this initiative, Cantella led efforts in assessing, designing, and building stakeholder capacities on nutrition-sensitive initiatives to enhance resilience and nutrition outcomes for populations in low- and middle-income countries. 

Cantella is driven by challenges and ready to solve problems through creative solutions and innovations. She holds a Master of Science in Management of Agricultural Knowledge Systems from Wageningen University and Research, a Bachelor of Science in Tropical Forestry from Van Hall Larenstein University of Applied Sciences, and is fluent in English, French, and Dutch.