Parag Mehta

Parag Mehta is the Executive Director of the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth. He leads a team of professionals who are dedicated to ensuring fair and lasting economic growth around the world and who work to leverage the core competencies and assets of Mastercard to achieve the same. As Executive Director, he is responsible for implementing the strategic vision of the Center and overseeing its global programs, data & research initiatives and strategic engagement.

For nearly two decades, Parag has been a leader in creating positive social impact. From shaping evidence-based public policies to organizing large-scale social change movements, he has worked with diverse groups of stakeholders to advance the common good. He joined the Center in 2017 as Vice President for Strategic Engagement and was charged with building a community of global influencers to support Mastercard’s position as the leading private sector voice on inclusive growth.

Prior to joining Mastercard, Parag served as Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor to the 19th Surgeon General of the United States, Vice Admiral Vivek H. Murthy. In that capacity, he organized a series of campaigns to address some of the most pressing public health issues of our time. Parag also spent more than four years directing communications for a civil rights agency in the U.S. Department of Labor and served on Barack Obama’s presidential transition team as a liaison to the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities and to LGBT Americans. Parag has been a member of the U.S. Government’s Senior Executive Service and held a number of leadership positions in advocacy organizations and political campaigns. He earned a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Syracuse University and a B.A. in Plan II Honors from The University of Texas at Austin.

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