On July 26, 2021, President Iván Duque swore in Juan Carlos Pinzón as Ambassador of Colombia to the United States. Ambassador Pinzón previously served as Colombia's Ambassador to Washington from 2015 to 2017. During his tenure, he oversaw the approval of “Peace Colombia or Plan Colombia II” ($450 million per year) that increased the U.S. funding package for security and development. Additionally, he helped establish the “CEO U.S.-Colombia Business Council” at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Atlantic Council's  "Colombia Task Force" with the report on the future of the U.S.-Colombia relationship. The accession of the avocado Hass to the U.S. market was an important highlight. While in office, the Colombian Embassy was recognized as the best diplomatic delegation in Washington by the World Affairs Council in Washington, DC.

Prior to that, Ambassador Pinzón served as Minister of Defense of Colombia for nearly four years. Under his leadership, the Colombian Armed Forces dealt the most severe blows in history to terrorist organizations – FARC and ELN – and Criminal Bands, highly degrading their logistics, structure and leadership. Ambassador Pinzón also strengthened all capabilities of the Colombian armed forces and established Colombia as a regional cooperation leader. By the end of his period, he left the Armed Forces at its historical peak in manpower, capabilities, welfare, technology and budget.

Throughout his career, Ambassador Pinzón has been a leader in both the public and private sectors. Between 2018 and 2021, Ambassador Pinzón was appointed President of the Foundation for the Progress of the Capital Region – ProBogotá, a private non-profit for the promotion of common good, public policy and long-term strategic projects for the capital region of Colombia. He is currently a member of several corporate advisory boards and NGOs.  

In July 2017, Ambassador Pinzón launched a bid for president with the support of the civic citizens’ movement “Colombia Above All.” In March 2018, he became vice presidential candidate.

Additional previous positions include Chief of Staff to the President of Colombia; Deputy Minister of Defense; Senior Advisor to the Executive Director at the Board of the World Bank; Vice President of the Colombian Banking Association; Assistant Vice President of Investment Banking at Citigroup; Private Secretary and Chief of Staff for the Finance and Public Credit Ministry; and Economist for Colombia at Citigroup.
Ambassador Pinzón received an honorable mention for his outstanding academic performance while earning his Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá. He also holds three Master degrees. A Master of Science in Economics from the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana. A Master in Public Policy from Princeton University (scholarship awarded). And a Master’s degree (honoris causa) in Defense and National Security from Colombia’s National War College. Ambassador Pinzón also completed advanced courses in international relations and strategic studies at Johns Hopkins University, in science and technology policy at Harvard University, and smart cities at Nanyang Technological University-Singapore.

Ambassador Pinzón was born in Bogotá on December 22, 1971. He is married to Pilar Lozano and has two children, Natalia and Juan Pablo.

Ms. Santoro is a lawyer from the Pontifical Xavierian University in Bogota and holds a specialization and a master's degree in Insurance Law from the same university. She has extensive experience in corporate and government affairs with the private sector, in strengthening alliances, and in strategic fundraising.   

Her professional experience covers various sectors, from information services consulting, insurance sales, and fundraising for non-profit organizations. She was Vice-President of strategic forums in the Center for Leadership and Management. She has actively participated in the recruitment and organization of important events for the country including Expogestion Caribbean 2012 and the first Latin American Women's Leadership meeting. Ms. Santoro has also served as Public Relations and Development Director of Funds for the League Against Cancer, and currently participates and supports various non-profit institutions, including YPO Colombia and Fundación Grupo Desarrollo y Vida.

Dr. Paola Buendía has a master's degree in international affairs from Columbia University in New York, has a specialization in Government Management and Public Affairs from the Universidad Externado de Colombia and Columbia University. She received her undergraduate degree at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana where she Studied Economics. 

Prior to joining ANDI, Dr. Buendía served as Director of Government Execution and Strategic Areas of the Presidency of the Republic, where her main objective was to advise and support government entities for the early execution of government priorities. Likewise, within its functions was to propose mechanisms of coordination and coordination between the different entities that are in charge of procedures that affect the structuring and implementation of priorities. 

She also worked as Deputy Director General of the Presidency of the Republic, as Director of Justice, Security and Government of the National Planning Department (DNP). The DNP's mission was to guide, participate and promote the formulation of policies, plans, programs, studies and projects, together with relevant agencies and entities in justice, security and government, as well as to formulate, monitor and evaluate Policy documents, which guide the actions of the government towards the articulation and coordination of public policies.

Samira Alkhatib is Director of New Business Development at AmCham Colombia. She is a bilingual economist with a Master's Degree in Government and Public Policy from the Universidad Externado de Colombia and a Master's Degree in Innovation and Entrepreneurship from the University of Barcelona. She has served as Director of Economic Studies of the National Federation of Cereals and Legumes, Advisor to the Office of the Vice Minister of Agriculture and Leader of innovation and projects at ProColombia. She has more than 10 years of experience in national and international market research and innovation strategies and project management for internationalization.