The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Caribbean Business Enabling Environment Reform (CBEE-R) is a three-year $8.6 million activity implemented by International Development Group, LLC (IDG) that aims to improve the business enabling environment in the Southeast Caribbean region, contributing to stronger and more resilient businesses, and unlocking investment opportunities for economic growth. CBEE-R activities will improve policies that enhance businesses’ access to electricity, internet connectivity, digital financial services, and access to finance through improved private sector engagement, a more effective public-private dialogue, and inclusive and participatory public policy assessment, development, and implementation.
Mr. Luan Gashi is the Chief of Party for USAID’s CBEE-R Activity. He is an international development expert with over 25 years of experience working on economic growth and market development donor-funded projects including in conflict-affected countries. Mr. Gashi spent 18 years with USAID, contributing significantly to missions in Kosovo and Afghanistan, assuming diverse roles such as Contracting/Agreement Officer’s Representative (COR/AOR), Deputy Office Director of Economic Growth Office, Development Objective Team Lead, and Private Sector Team Lead. As COR, Mr. Gashi has designed and managed several multi-million economic growth projects. Through his experience, Mr. Gashi has gained strong management skills and developed expertise in business enabling environment, institutional strengthening, macroeconomic and public financial management reforms, fiscal and financial sector development, public-private partnerships, privatization, trade and investment reform, and capacity building.
A dual Kosovo-Albania national, Mr. Gashi holds a Bachelor of Science in Management and Informatics from the University of Prishtina, Kosovo; and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the Linnaeus University in Vaxjo, Sweden. He speaks Albanian, Serbian/Croatian, Macedonian, English, German, Swedish, and Turkish.
Mr. Gashi is married and has two daughters, Klesta and Elisa.
Dr. Jéanelle Murray, DBA is the Business Enabling Environment Advisor for USAID’s CBEE-R Activity. Dr. Murray has over eighteen years’ experience managing private sector development projects and brokering and providing training and technical assistance aimed at improving the competitiveness of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises and the service delivery of business support organizations across the Caribbean. Over the years, Dr. Murray has worked in private sector development as an Access to Finance Advisor at the Caribbean Export Development Agency, an Operations Officer at the Caribbean Development Bank, and a Training Specialist and Business Development Officer at the Grenada Investment Development Corporation.
Under the USAID CBEE-R Activity, Dr. Murray provides technical support for business enabling environment reform activities, such as strengthening legal and regulatory frameworks and building institutional capacity to support business reform priorities, with particular emphasis on improving access to electricity for businesses, increasing the use of the internet and internet connectivity, advancing the digital economy, and improving access to digital financial services for businesses.
Dr. Natasha Ward, PhD is the Private Sector Development Specialist at USAID’s Caribbean Business Enabling Environment Reform Activity (CBEE-R) where she focuses on access to finance, streamlining regulatory compliance and public-private dialogue.
Dr. Ward is an international trade and private sector development specialist with over 14 years of experience. She has collaborated closely with international development agencies, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, the International Trade Centre, the World Bank, and the Inter-American Development Bank. She has also worked with regional institutions such as the Caribbean Telecommunications Union and the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States Commission. Her diverse expertise has been honed through engagements in countries across Africa, Asia, the Pacific and the Caribbean, enabling her to bring a wealth of knowledge to her work.
Dr. Ward holds a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish, a Post Graduate Diploma in International Relations and a Doctor of Philosophy in International Relations from the University of the West Indies. She also holds a Master of International Law and Economics from the World Trade Institute in Berne, Switzerland.
If you would like more information about this topic, please visit the CBEE-R website or email the team at CBEER_Staff@internationaldevelopmentgroup.com.
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International Development Group, LLC (IDG) is a rapidly growing international development organization, serving the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), and other international donors. IDG works to reduce poverty around the world through sustainable, inclusive economic development. We provide evidence-driven, practical tools for policymakers and entrepreneurs to make a real and measurable impact for their communities and their countries. We build individual and institutional capacity in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, fostering synergies between local knowledge and international experience.
