Viviana Perego
Italy & Uruguay | School Nutrition
Viviana Perego is an innovative leader in agriculture and food security in Central America with a focus on linking smallholder farmers with markets for nutritious foods. In collaboration with the World Food Programme and the Guatemalan government, she spearheaded the development of a digital tool called Digitagro to link women farmers with local school feeding programs. By bridging the information gap between local producers and institutional markets, Perego was able to align the local supply with demand for healthy food. Overcoming challenges such as uncertain donor funding, Perego ensured strong ownership of the program by the school feeding program and Guatemalan government. Her work extends beyond market access to tackle systemic issues such as rural women’s empowerment and gender bias in data, collaborating on rigorous impact evaluations through randomized control trials. Perego works across government and international organizations to scale inclusive, resilient food systems and drive transformational change in agrifood partnerships and policy.