Rafael Tajra Fonteles
Governor
State of Piauí, Brazil
Speaker at:
- Hydrogen Horizons: Navigating Current Realities, Exploring Future Frontiers in Brazil
12:15-
Mr. Fonteles holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from the Federal University of Piauí (UFPI), a course completed at age 19 with maximum academic performance index (10.0) and Masters in Mathematical Economics from the National Institute of Pure and Applied Mathematics (IMPA-RJ), aged 21, with the highest degree (A). Still a teenager, Rafael took part in the International Chemistry Olympiad (Netherlands, 2002), the International Physics Olympiad (Indonesia, 2002) and the International Mathematics Olympiad (North Macedonia, 2004). He was awarded with honorable mention and two bronze medals, respectively. He began his career as a Mathematics teacher and, after completing his Master’s, he began to dedicate himself to a business career, having funded his first company at age 18. By 29, he had over 1,000 employees in the companies in which he was a partner, before dedicating himself to public life. He was nominated State Secretary of Finance of the Government of Piauí from January 2015 to March 2022, and Coordinator of PRO Piauí, the largest investment program of the state government. He was also president of Comsefaz (National Committee of Finance Secretaries of all the States and the Federal District) for two consecutive terms (April 2019 to March 2022), both unanimously elected. On October 2nd, 2022 he was elected Governor of the State of Piauí in the first round, with 57.17% of the valid votes, totaling 1,115,139 votes.