Ms. Irene Karimi is an international development professional with more than 30 years’ experience in project management, organizational development and training. She has managed complex, multifaceted programs in Kenya, Somalia and South Sudan and has provided technical expertise in Liberia, Burundi, Uganda, Tanzania and Ethiopia. She has a proven track record of successfully implementing projects in challenging environments. Ms Irene Karimi is a veteran Chief of Party of USAID/KEA programming with extensive experience advancing locally led development, M

Ms. Irene Karimi has supported USAID and other donor-funded programs with budgets of up to $36M and managed and mentored county-level to multinational teams of up to 45 people in challenging and often volatile locations. Ms. Karimi has successfully spearheaded cross-sectoral multi-stakeholder programs focused on building local capacity and inclusion in Kenya and across the East African Community. She was a  Team Leader implementing a $36M (£29 Million) UK-funded Research and Innovation Systems Fund where she guided strategy development and implementation of research and innovation capacity building across East, South, and West Africa.

Ms. Karimi holds a B.A. in Business Administration from Andrews University, Berrien Springs, Michigan/University of Eastern Africa (Baraton)campus. She is a Certified Performance Technologist (ISPI, 2017) and holds certificates in Project Management, Project Analysis and Monitoring and Evaluation from the USDA Graduate School in Washington, DC.