| Roberto Smith | |
|---|---|
| 10th Minister of Transport & Communications | |
| In office 26 July 1990 – 10 January 1992 |
|
| Preceded by | Edgar Elias Osuna |
| Succeeded by | Fernando Martinez Mottola |
| Venezuela Ambassador to the European Union | |
| In office September 1992 – October 2006 |
|
| Preceded by | Jose Antonio Gil |
| Succeeded by | Luis Xavier Grisanti |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1958 Barquisimeto, Lara State |
| Political party | Venezuela de Primera |
| Spouse(s) | Marina Pocaterra |
| Profession | politician, businessperson |
Roberto Smith Perera (b. 1958 in Barquisimeto, Lara State) is a Venezuelan businessman and politician.[1]
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Roberto Smith was born in Barquisimeto, in Lara State in 1958. He attended Colegio La Salle in Barquisimeto and Instituto Escuela in Caracas. He received a Bachelor's Degree in Mathematics from Universidad Simón Bolívar in 1981. He went on to obtain his Master's Degree and a Ph.D in Public Policy at Harvard University in Cambridge between 1983 and 1987. Roberto Smith is married to Marina Pocaterra since December 22, 1983; they met when they were studying at Universidad Simón Bolívar. They have three daughters: Maria Elisa, Maria Corina Smith and Maria Sofia.
Smith was president of the Students' Center and a student delegate to the Directive Council and Superior Council of the Universidad Simón Bolívar. He was also coordinator of the "Seminario Venezuela" at Harvard and member of the board of directors of the Fundación Universidad Metropolitana and the Instituto de Ingeniería.
During the second presidential term of Carlos Andrés Pérez, Smith was appointed Minister of Transportation and Communications on July 26, 1990, a position where he would remain until January 10, 1992. During this period, he created the Venezuelan National Telecommunications Commission (CONATEL) to promote private investments and modern government regulstion in this sector, and the Urban Transportation Fund (FONTUR) to promote the modernization fo publi transport in the country.
Roberto Smith served as ambassador to the European Union, Belgium, and Luxembourg between the years 1992 and 1996.
In October of 2004, Smith was a candidate in Vargas's gubernatorial election. He lost to the incumbent chavista governor, Antonio Rodríguez San Juan receiving 13,598 votes, or 19.3 percent. In 2008 he competed again, obtaining 46,000 votes.
After finishing his Ph.D., Roberto Smith worked as a management consultant with McKinsey & Co's energy group between 1987 and 1989. in Washington D.C. He the moved back to Caracas to work as national coordinator of the Eight National Development Plan in the Presidential Office for Coordination and Planning.
Roberto Smith served as president of IMPSAT Telecommunications in Caracas and the Sistema Satelital Andino Simón Bolívar. Smith helped create microjuris.com, an internet legal service for lawyers available in several countries in Latin America. He helped to establish Venezuela's third and largest cellular telephone company, Digitel in 1997. He served as its president between the years 1997 and 2002. He also founded Digicel, a cellular telephone company in El Salvador and Guatemala.
He is currently dedicated to found and develop new businesses in real estate and health services.
Smith was proposed to be the presidential pre-candidate for his Venezuela de Primera ("Venezuela First") political organization in the December 2006 election. On August 24, 2006, Smith withdrew from the presidential race and endorsed the unified opposition's presidential candidacy of Manuel Rosales.