4 Salvadorans Among Bloomberg’s 2024 List of 500 Most Influential People in Latin America

Four Salvadorans, Carlos Calleja, Johanna Hill, Mario Siman, and Ricardo Poma, were named on Bloomberg’s list of the 500 most influential people in Latin America in 2024.

Bloomberg Online’s editorial team selected figures from Latin American countries for the 500 list. It included business leaders, entrepreneurs, philanthropists, athletes, and government officials.

Bloomberg highlighted that the list ranks individuals not by wealth or assets “but by the value they generate within their sectors, whether as job creators or promoters of relevant initiatives.”

Carlos Calleja

Carlos Calleja, a businessman and politician, serves as vice president and the public face of Grupo Calleja, which owns Super Selectos, one of El Salvador’s largest supermarket chains.

The conglomerate, which in recent months acquired Grupo Éxito (previously owned by Casino), allowed the businessman to become the CEO of this company in Colombia, thus adding to its parent company operations in four countries (El Salvador, Colombia, Uruguay, and Argentina). Bloomberg Online.

Calleja participated in the 2019 Salvadoran Presidential elections under the right-wing political party ARENA. He lost the election to President Nayib Bukele.

Johanna Hill

Johanna Hill is the only Salvadoran woman on the list; she assumed the position of Deputy Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in November 2023.

Hill is a specialist in international trade and foreign investment. Throughout his professional career, she has held various positions such as Executive Director of the Chamber of Telecommunications of El Salvador, member of the Board of Directors of Banco Azul.

She has also served as Deputy Minister of Economy, where she was responsible for the management and implementation of trade policy, the negotiations of bilateral free trade agreements, and multilateral negotiations.

Mario Siman

Mario Siman is a businessman and president of Grupo Unicomer, a multinational retail and consumer finance company based in San Salvador. “The portfolio includes more than 25 commercial brands and 1,100 stores in 26 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean,” reports the Bloomberg Online publication.

Last year, the company acquired RadioShack’s intellectual property assets and domains through its affiliate Global Franchising Corporation (GFC); a deal that gave it access to an operation spanning 70 countries, including the United States, Canada, Europe, and China. Bloomberg Online.

Ricardo Poma

Ricardo Poma is the president and face of Grupo Poma, a conglomerate with more than 100 years of presence in El Salvador.

The group includes Excel, Grupo Roble, Real Hotels & Resorts, Solaire, and Autofácil, with operations across Central America, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, and the United States.

The businessman has been investing in health, education and culture for more than four decades, through the Poma Foundation, the Salvadoran Foundation for Health and Human Development, the Higher School of Economics and Business (ESEN), the Renacer Foundation and the Luis Poma Theater. Bloomberg Online.

SEE ALSO: Exploring El Salvador Culture: Embracing Vibrant Customs and Traditions with Warm-hearted People

This is the fourth edition of the regional list of most influential people in Latin America, in which different figures from various sectors in Latin American countries have been selected.