Staff
Rafael de Jesús Callejas Calderón , Executive Director
Rafael de Jesús Callejas Calderón has been Executive Director of the Millennium Water Alliance since June 2008. Prior to this position, Mr. Callejas was the Regional Director for the Latin America and Caribbean Region of CARE USA overseeing relief and development in 8 Latin American & Caribbean countries, including Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Haiti for 7 years.
John D. Sparks , Director of Advocacy and Communications
John D. Sparks is the organization’s first Director of Advocacy and Communications. Sparks has more than 25 years of experience in Washington and New York in lobbying, coalition building, media relations, political campaigns, and nonprofit executive leadership. Most recently, Sparks was Director of Campaign Finance Reform at the public interest group Common Cause.
Susan M. Dundon , Director of Program Development
Susan Dundon joined the MWA as a Program Development Officer in 2010. Previously, Susan worked with Médecins du Monde (Medicos del Mundo) implementing community health programs in the Bolivian, Paraguayan and Peruvian communities near Buenos Aires, Argentina. She has also worked extensively implementing water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) programming in the peri-urban slums of Lima, Perú.
Peter N. Gichuru , Senior Accountant
Peter Gichuru joined Millennium Water Alliance as a Senior Accountant in December 2010.Prior to this position, Mr. Gichuru was the Corporate Financial Grants Manager for World Relief Corporation, an international nonprofit organization based in Baltimore, Maryland. Prior to joining World Relief, Mr. Gichuru worked for fifteen years in the United Nations World Food Program Kenya office as an accountant. Born and raised in Kenya, he holds an MBA in accounting from Washington International University.
Daniel Smith , Program Officer
Daniel joined MWA as a Program Officer in January 2013. He lived and worked in Honduras during the past three years as Program Coordinator for the AguaClara gravity-powered water treatment plant program, including a year as a Fulbright Scholar. An environmental engineering by training, Daniel has also worked on hazardous waste site management projects and has experience in Peru, The Gambia, and all countries in Central America.
Allan E. Elvir , Program Assistant
Allan Elvir joined Millennium Water Alliance in April of 2011. He has nine years of professional experience in the legal field working for the public and private sector in his home country, Honduras. He was the Commercial Counselor for the Embassy of Honduras in Washington D.C. in trade and development, and was an associate for the Central American law firm Lexincorp. Mr. Elvir has a law degree from the National University of Honduras and also holds a Masters in Business Administration from the University of San Pedro Sula, Honduras.
Melkamu Jaleta , MWA-EP Coordinator
Melkamu Jaleta became the Coordinator of the Millennium Water Program Secretariat office in Ethiopia in January 2012. Mr. Jaleta has over 24 years of experience working in development, including the WASH sector. Prior to this position, he was Ethiopia Country Program Manager for a UK-based WASH program called Partners for Water and Sanitation (PAWS) for three years, and later he was an Urban WASH Program Management Consultant for WaterAid Ethiopia for 1½ years. Mr. Jaleta served in government offices for more than 20 years in different positions. He has a Master’s of Engineering Degree in Hydraulic Engineering, specializing in Land and Water Development, from IHE, Delft-The Netherlands in October 1997.
Alemitu Golda , MWA-EP Operations Manager
Alemitu Golda joined MWA-EP in February 2012 as Operations Manger. Ms. Golda has eight years of experience in implementing integrated development programs in the southern region of Ethiopia. She began her career in 2003 with Wontta Rural Development Association, and was Capacity Building Officer under the Integrated Rural Development Program funded by Concern World Wide. She also worked for Vita/RTI-Ethiopia as MER Officer for Livelihoods Improvement, Natural Resources Management and WASH & HIV projects. From 2008 to 2010, Ms. Golda worked as Highlands Development Coordinator for VITA/RTI-Ethiopia’s Sustainable Livelihoods Development. She received her Master’s Degree in Management of Development from the Van Hall Larenstein University.
Doris Kaberia , MWA-KP Director
Doris Kaberia joined MWA in February 2013 as the Director of our Kenya programs. She has over ten years’ experience in food security & livelihood program management and administration, climate change adaptation, community managed disaster risk reduction, sustainable community development, grant writing/fundraising, grants management, program monitoring and evaluation. Doris is an expert in pastoral and agro-pastoral livelihood programming in drought prone Horn of Africa. She has experience leading and managing USAID, OFDA, ECHO, DANIDA, EC, AUSAID and DFID funded programs and worked previously for Care International and Save the Children. Doris received her undergraduate degree from Egerton University in Kenya and a Master’s degree in Natural Resources Management from the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point.
Violet Moenga , MWA-KP Grants Manager
Violet joined MWA in August 2005 as the finance manager for our first USAID funded program in Kenya and previously worked for World Vision Kenya. She currently serves as grants and finance manager for the Secretariat in Nairobi. She is a certified public accountant CPA(K) and received her undergraduate degree from Kenyatta University and her accounting degree from Strathmore University.
Prisca Alilio , Advocacy and Communications Intern
Prisca Alilio is an intern for summer of 2013. She is currently studying biochemistry and international development at the University of Pennsylvania. She is interested in working in the global health and public health sectors, pertaining to water in underdeveloped countries.