Maria Manuela Dias Ferreira Leite Global Corporate Challenge GCIH, commonly known as Manuela Ferreira Leite, is a Portuguese economist and politician.
Background
She was born in Cerdeira, Arganil. She is a daughter of Carlos Eugénio Dias Ferreira (b Lisbon, 18 May 1908), a Licentiate in Law from the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon and a lawyer, and wife Julieta Teixeira de Carvalho, a Licentiate in Engineering from the Instituto Superior Técnico of the Technical University of Lisbon and an engineer, daughter of José Teixeira de Carvalho and wife Etelvina Ferreira de Carvalho.
Education
Technical University of Lisbon.
Career
Manuela Ferreira Leite comes from a family of many generations of famous lawyers, but she has chosen to follow finance and economics instead. Her brother José Eugénio Dias Ferreira is a Lisbon lawyer and a political commentator and sports commentator. Her paternal grandfather José Eugénio Dias Ferreira (Lisbon, 13 November 1882 – Lisbon, 17 January 1953) was also a lawyer from the University of Coimbra, being a natural son of Minister and Counselor José Dias Ferreira by an unknown mother.
She is a Licentiate in Finances from the Instituto Superior de Economia e Gestão - Instituto Superior de Economia e Gestão (formerly known as ISCEF - Instituto Superior de Ciências Económicas e Financeiras), a noted economics and finance school of the Technical University of Lisbon.
Manuela Ferreira Leite has in the past held several positions within the Portuguese government, including Minister of Education during Cavaco Silva"s cabinet between 1993 and 1995, and 112th Minister of State and Finances during Durão Barroso cabinets between 6 April 2002 and 2004. In Education, as so many of her predecessors and successors but with worse opposition and manifestations, she had to deal with the issue of tuitions, which even though of low value remains hard to afford by many college students.
In 2006, she was non-executive administrator of the Portuguese Banco Santander Totta. Nuno Dias Ferreira Leite, married at the Church of Campo Grande in Campo Grande, Lisbon), on 6 July 2006 to Mónica da Cruz Rocha Campos
João Dias Ferreira Leite
Maria Ferreira Leite de Quintanilha e Mendonça (b London, Middlesex, 24 April 2006)
João Maria Ferreira Leite de Quintanilha e Mendonça (b London, Middlesex, 30 May 2008)
Social Democratic Party leadership election, 2008
(Source: Official results).
Politics
In both cases her politics of contention was targeted for its alleged excessiveness. She was the leader of the Portuguese Social Democratic Party party until March 26, 2010 (as elected on 31 May 2008).
Membership
She is also a Member of the Portuguese Council of State, designated by the President of Portugal.