Food and AgTech: New Opportunities for French Businesses in the Middle East and Africa

Salvatore Lavallo is the Head of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) at the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO).

Salvatore and his team have been managing some of ADIO’s most successful partnerships and initiatives across key sectors, including ADIO’s partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS) and ADIO’s support of nearly USD 150 M to agriculture technology firms. He has been at the forefront of ADIO’s deals negotiations and client outreach mandates.

With over 12 years of experience in Economic Development, Salvatore started his career with
Invest in Bavaria before founding Trail of Seeds – an NGO promoting culturally inclusive development around the world. He then worked in development consulting with McKinsey and Company, Dalberg Global Advisors, and the Tony Blair Institute.

Salvatore also holds the distinct honour of having travelled to every country of the world – one of the youngest ever to do so – as part of his “193Journeys” project where he shared images and stories with over 110,000 social media followers. His project was featured in Conde Nast, CNN, Vogue, the New York Post and more.

Salvatore holds an International Baccalaureate from the United World College as well as a B.A. in Culturally Inclusive Development from New York University where he was the recipient of the Martin Luther King Jr. Scholar for Devotion to Service and the President’s Service Award.