Gulf Research Meeting
David Smith
David Smith AHI's founder, David A. Smith brings to bear 35 years' experience with complex affordable housing transactions, programs, and policies, and a global reputation for creativity, insight, adaptive innovation, passion and problem-solving. AHI seeks long-lasting positive impact, changing housing finance ecosystems permanently for the better, roles which David has played in the US and in a dozen countries around the world, fusing theory and practice into solutions that prove themselves and persuade by themselves. Among his activities and accomplishments are: International financing expertise. David has led AHI consulting work for the World Bank, USAID, South African Banking Association, Gates Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, and MacArthur Foundation. He has identified and adapted global ideas in Turkey (producing a comprehensive assessment of the country's housing finance ecosystem); Egypt (strategic plan for the Guarantee and Subsidy Fund), India (slum upgrading finance brainstorming); Brazil, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Kenya, Ireland, and the UK. Housing finance business and business model creation. David played a principal role in designing global-leading initiatives such as Slum Dwellers' International's Urban Poor Fund, a self-governed, self-managed, revolving fund – originally $5m, now grown to several times that – available to SDI member federations of national cooperatives of low-income savers for transformative initiatives. He has advised Mexico's Cemex on taking Patrimonio Hoy to the next stage of innovation and success, worked with Ireland's Affordable Homes Partnership to create its long-term Rental Accommodation Scheme; and advised the US Senate Housing Subcommittee on its 1996 mark-to-market program to restructure more than $10 billion of FHAinsured multifamily apartment mortgages. Housing finance innovation, education, and advocacy. Author of more than 200 published articles, including The Community Reinvestment Act Goes Global, David's work is read globally for insight into what public and private stakeholders can do to capitalize on emerging housing and financing trends. A co-author of AHI's landmark study, Mission Entrepreneurial Entities, he has spoken at or co-chaired more than a score of international conferences around the world, including Boulder Institute of Microfinance, World Urban Forum, World Bank's Global Housing Forum, and World Habitat Day. Brainstorming facilitaton. David has a knack for fast-paced, enjoyable, productive facilitation of C-suite executive groups to tackle challenging program-design problems such as banking innovations in response to South Africa's Financial Sector Charter (2003); Rockefeller's fivecountry Bellagio Housing Conference and Declaraction (2005); a symposium with Mexico City's Universidad Ibero-america on urban land irresolution (2009); the Istanbul symposium with Bogazici University on urban formalization and disaster risk mitigation (2010); and Ashoka's Barcelona Housing For All symposium (2010). Peer recognition. David has many times been recognized his peers, with awards such as the NH&RA's Vision Award for lifetime achievement, the Appraisal Instiitute's Robert H. Armstrong prize, and NAHRO's Lange Award for international work and accomplishment.
