Board Member
Roland Fernandes
Roland Fernandes resides in Atlanta, Georgia, and is the General Secretary of the General Board of Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church (Global Ministries) and the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR). He was elected to this position effective September 1, 2020. Prior to that, he was the Chief Operating Officer and General Treasurer of Global Ministries as well as the Executive Director and Treasurer of the UMCOR. He was also the lead staff providing oversight of The Fund on behalf of Global Ministries. Fernandes has worked with Global Ministries since 1995 in various capacities starting with Area Financial Executive for Global Ministries in India and Philippines in 1995 and 1996 before moving to New York at the beginning of 1997 to serve as Comptroller of UMCOR and the Health and Welfare unit of Global Ministries. From the year 2000, Fernandes served as the Treasurer of UMCOR, the Health and Welfare unit, and UMDF. Since 2003, he has been serving as the General Treasurer of Global Ministries with financial oversight and responsibility for all entities within Global Ministries. He has also served twice as interim Treasurer of the Women’s Division of Global Ministries. In 2016, Fernandes was elected as the Chief Operating Officer in addition to being General Treasurer. As of March 2018, he is also the Co-Executive Director of UMCOR. Prior to working for Global Ministries, Fernandes was the Chief Auditor of the Methodist Church in India for eight years from 1988 to 1995. Originally from India, Fernandes attended St. Xavier’s College in Calcutta, India and graduated in 1985 with a Master of Commerce degree from Calcutta University. He has also been a Chartered Accountant, the British equivalent to a CPA, since 1987. Fernandes is currently the Board Chair for The Fund, and his term of office as an elected director will expire in 2023.