Joanne is a Senior Fellow of Agulhas. Joanne’s work with Agulhas includes supporting the African Development Bank with their thematic and country Development Effectiveness Reviews. She also undertakes programme evaluations, including for the Africa Governance Initiative. She brings high quality analytical skills and a deep understanding of global development policy, the international system and institutions, and development projects.
In the past, Joanne was a senior leader and economist at DFID. She managed large budgets, projects and teams and oversaw major organisational change. She delivered many project designs, appraisals and reviews and was accountable for the success of numerous projects and policy initiatives. In DFID, Joanne worked firstly as an economist on bilateral and multilateral programmes and then as a senior manager leading four departments responsible for programmes, sustainable development policies and global research. These roles involved communications and working alongside developing country Ministers, senior leaders, officials and local communities, as well as interactions with UK ministers, other Whitehall departments, UK research organisations and NGOs. She also worked alongside international development bodies, including the UN, EU and World Bank.
Joanne continues to coach and mentor women professionals across the public service and provides strategic advice through workshops. She is also an associate of WISE Development – Transforming Women’s Lives. Before joining DFID, she started her career in Tanzania as a teacher and then worked as an economist for the Fiji Development Bank as an ODI Fellow. She graduated from Oxford with a degree in Politics, Philosophy and Economics, is a trained teacher and has completed further studies in agricultural economics. She takes a close interest in political economy and governance issues.