Rick Somarriba is the Chief Financial Officer of the Middle East Institute (MEI), where he leads the organization’s financial strategy, regulatory compliance, and enterprise risk management. A key member of the executive team, Rick is also charged with strategic planning and aligning MEI’s long-term financial sustainability with its strategic mission.
A highly decorated former US Agency for International Development (USAID) senior executive, Rick brings over two decades of global financial and policy leadership to MEI, with extensive experience in public and private sector finance, international development, and economic policy. Prior to joining MEI, he served as a career Senior Foreign Service Officer, where he held a series of high-impact roles. Most recently, he served as Deputy Assistant Administrator overseeing USAID’s global portfolios in trade and investment, finance, and economic resilience. Rick’s international leadership experience includes serving as Mission Director in Uganda, where he was responsible for the mission’s overall strategic, programmatic, and administrative management for half a billion dollars in lifesaving foreign assistance programs. As Senior Investment Officer in Colombia, he structured over $350 million in innovative debt finance transactions to expand financial inclusion in underserved markets. He has also held impactful overseas assignments in Egypt, Iraq, Israel (West Bank/Gaza), Afghanistan, Serbia, and Montenegro.
Earlier in his career, Rick worked as a Certified Public Accountant, providing financial consulting, auditing, and tax advisory services. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Rick holds a Bachelor of Science in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the University of Michigan, and an MBA and an MS in Accounting from Northeastern University.