Pradnya Desh

Recommendations

• ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ via linkedin

  I strongly recommend Pradnya Deshpande for positions in development and international trade policy. She worked for me during 2006-2008 at the U.S. Mission to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva while I was the U.S. Ambassador to the WTO. She was outstanding. Pradnya's portfolio was a diverse and demanding one that focused on a wide range of developing country issues. A major project at the WTO during her tenure was the revamping of trade-related financial and technical assistance to the least developed countries. She was the U.S. representative on that project, which required rigorous analytical skills and sensitive diplomacy with other countries and the WTO secretariat and UNDP. She exercised excellent judgement, patience, and effective negotiating techniques. As a result, the U.S. was seen as a constructive player in these negotiations. This was very helpful in our relations with developing countries on other matters in the WTO negotiations. Pradnya also was responsible for representing the U.S. in the Trade Policy Reviews (TPRs) . These reviews are comprehensive reviews of a WTO Member's trade policies, and involve public scrutiny and debate of a country's policies and its compliance with WTO rules. Each country is reviewed on a regular basis. She had to work with multiple agencies in Washington during the preparation of each review to develop the USG's list of advance questions to the country being reviewed. She also worked with Washington to prepare the formal U.S. written and oral statements at the review itself, along with any follow-up questions. This required her to become familiar with each country's trade policies and determine which policies were matters of concern to the U.S. Normally I delivered the formal U.S. statement in the TPR session, but on occasion Pradnya did that. The preparation of the U.S. materials for these TPRs was subject to very tight timetables. Often we would not get all of the materials from Washington until the night before the TPR session. Pradnya took that in stride and worked late into the night whenever it was required. Her written work always was very clear, accurate, and succinct. Even more than the superior quality of her analytical and written work, I most appreciated Pradnya's attitude. She was unfailingly upbeat, even in the face of very demanding work requirements. She was totally reliable in meeting deadlines with high quality work while handling multiple tasks. She always had a “can do” response to requests, even when a matter was new to her. She was universally liked and respected by her colleagues in the U.S. Mission and in the other WTO delegations. It was a joy to work with her. I can recommend her enthusiastically and unreservedly. I would re-hire her immediately. If you have any further questions, I can be reached at 202-747-4754 or at pallgeier@crowell.com. Peter Allgeier President, C&M International 1001 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC