Kate Steel to Lead NRECA International

ARLINGTON, Va. - Kate Steel has been named senior vice president of NRECA International. In this role, Steel will lead the organization in its mission to power communities and empower people to improve their quality of life.

"Kate is perfectly suited to lead NRECA International and brings a transformative perspective to the role," NRECA CEO Jim Matheson said. "Kate's leadership will be essential as we look to build on decades of success and work to scale NRECA International for the future. I'm thrilled to welcome her to the team."

Steel will start with NRECA International on September 8. She most recently served as co-founder and CEO of Nithio, a financial technology platform created to address the need for investment in Africa's sustainable energy transition. She previously served as energy director for Power Africa and was a member of the Energy Access and Investments team at Google. Prior to that, Steel managed the World Bank-IFC's Lighting Africa Initiative.

"I'm thrilled to join NRECA International and its talented team who are working to bring electricity to communities and advance rural livelihoods around the world," Steel said. "I look forward to building on that legacy and working in partnership with electric cooperatives across the nation to unlock new opportunities for the future."

Since 1962, NRECA International has empowered more than 220 million people worldwide to improve their quality of life through access to safe, reliable and affordable electricity. NRECA International's advisory program serves as an essential partner for communities around the globe that are working to expand energy access in rural and remote regions.

Additionally, more than 300 NRECA member cooperatives contribute time, money and materials to dozens of rural communities served by NRECA International projects. Scores of co-op directors, linemen, engineers, managers and others spend weeks of their time every year to serve as volunteers in countries like Haiti, Guatemala, the Philippines, South Sudan and Uganda.

The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association is the national trade association representing nearly 900 local electric cooperatives. From growing suburbs to remote farming communities, electric co-ops serve as engines of economic development for 42 million Americans across 56 percent of the nation's landscape. As local businesses built by the consumers they serve, electric cooperatives have meaningful ties to rural America and invest $15 billion annually in their communities.

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