POLICY WORK
I have managed national government projects on tech policy & regulation, economic development and data analytics in my current role. Building on my research on measuring digital development, I recently advised Research ICT Africa on the design of their detailed questionnaire on digital technology use to be administered in 10 African countries (funded by the Gates Foundation). At Oxford, I oversaw engagements on national digital economy planning working with national governments and think-tanks/consulting firms in several developing countries as part of Digital Pathways' Digital Economy Toolkit work. I also led more discrete projects on, for example, developing a national fund for tech-enabled firms in Ethiopia and a measurement toolkit for digital skills for the Indonesian government.
I also have experience with policy/operational work related to:
environmental sustainability
national infrastructure development
urban and regional planning
employment/labour market issues
industrial policy and firm location
private sector development
FDI promotion/regulation
SELECTED POLICY PAPERS:
"Determinants of the 4IR in Africa", chapter in UNECA report on "South-South Cooperation for Harnessing Digitalisation for Africa’s Industrialisation" (joint with Elizabeth Stuart and Tebello Qhotsokoane, Oxford) (forthcoming)
"Spatial Industrial Policy, Special Economic Zones and Cities in South Africa", background paper for the World Bank’s South Africa Urbanisation Review (joint with Thomas Farole, World Bank) (2016)
"Policy Framework for Foreign Direct Investment Promotion in South Africa: Operations, Effectiveness and Sustainability", SA Institute of International Affairs Occasional Paper 215 (2015)
"Social and Economic Inclusion in Cities", commissioned background paper for the State of the World Cities Report 2012/2013 ‘Prosperity of Cities’, UN-Habitat, Nairobi (joint with Prof. Susan Parnell, UCT) (2012)
POLICY/OPERATIONAL EXPERIENCE:
Consultant at McKinsey & Co
Consultant Advisor on questionnaire for nationally-representative surveys of digital inclusion in 10 African countries, Research ICT Africa
Senior Postdoctoral Associate overseeing policy work on national digital economy planning in several countries, University of Oxford
Consultant Economist for spatial economic analysis of firm behaviour and employment, The World Bank, Bangladesh
Research Assistant on FDI and regional resilience, London School of Economics and Political Science
Consultant Analyst on industrial policy and regional planning, The World Bank, South Africa
Senior Researcher for DFID/IZA project analysing low-income country labour markets, Development Policy Research Unit, Dept. of Economics, Univ. of Cape Town
Consultant Analyst for several national infrastructure projects related to slum upgrading, rural water and sanitation, disaster reconstruction and tourism, The World Bank, Indonesia (Jakarta)
Visiting Researcher on DFID-funded project on FDI regulation/promotion in South Africa, South African Institute of International Affairs, Univ. of the Witwatersrand
Intern for UNDP report on inclusive business development in Africa, Endeva, Berlin
Co-author for UN-Habitat report on inclusive cities, University of Cape Town
OP-EDs:
"The case for better FDI in South Africa", South African Institute of International Affairs op-ed (5 May 2015)
"Is South Africa neglecting the developmental role of other investment interventions?", South African Institute of International Affairs op-ed (31 March 2015)