Carlos Casamiquela

Carlos Horacio Casamiquela (9 June 1948 – 12 September 2020) was an Argentine agricultural engineer and public official. He was appointed Minister of Agriculture of Argentina in November 2013, replacing Norberto Yauhar.

Biography Born in Viedma, Río Negro Province, Casamiquela studied Agricultural Engineering at the National University of La Plata, graduating in 1973. He also held degrees in Local Economic Development from the National University of General San Martín and the Autonomous University of Madrid, Spain. He joined the National Agricultural Technology Institute (INTA) in 1974 as a topsoil specialist, and in 1980 returned to his home province by way of a transfer to INTA's Río Negro Upper Valley Experimental Station. His work as researcher focused on irrigation needs for the orchard-rich Upper Valley, and he went on to direct the facility between 1984 and 1990. Casamiquela oversaw the continued revitalization of INTA, which grew from 3,500 employees in 2003 to 7,200 by 2010, while focusing its efforts on the promotion of local agriculture and small farmers (who employ 54% of all agricultural workers in Argentina). INTA's Prohuerta program, launched in 2005, provided assistance to 630,000 market gardens and 148,000 small farms by 2013, as well as 19,000 rural families in Haiti. Other highlights during his tenure include an instructional program for intensive agriculture methods initiated in South Africa,