MINDS is excited to introduce Mr. Ian Mashingaidze in the newly created role of Programme Director. Ian joins us from SOS Children’s Villages International, where he was a Programme Director for their East and Southern Africa Region.
With over three decades of practical working experience in development planning and management for a number of organisations such as: Beyond 2015; the Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN); Oxfam America; UN World Food Program; and ActionAid International, Ian will be a tremendous asset as we grow our outreach through our Programmes.
“In this the centennial year of the birth of the iconic Nelson Mandela, I feel privileged to have been given an opportunity to lead the MINDS team at a time the Institute is seeking to realise its full potential as one of the six the legacy institutions Madiba established. MINDS is driving the necessary and critical dialogue on key issues impacting our growth and development as a continent. We need a new development paradigm rooted in our Africanness to create the Africa we all want, ensuring that we build on the foundations of those who came before and learn from our heritage, if we are to leave a good legacy for future generations.”
Ian holds an MSc degree in Rural and Urban Planning and a BA Honours degree in Geography from University of Zimbabwe, and several certificates in Management Development and Development Planning (Project Design and Evaluation) from international universities. He is an alumnus of the 1994/5 cohort of the Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship Programme, which takes mid-career professionals from designated countries to the United States for a year of non-degree graduate-level study, leadership development, and professional collaboration with US counterparts.
