“Covid-19, like an X-Ray, has revealed the ways in which systems and institutions exclude people, and those people hurt the most. Drawing on examples from USA, Africa and India, I’ll suggest ways one can build back better by listening to those who have been left out”
As part of the continuing partnership between Leicestershire Cares and the UNAI SDG16 Hub at De Montfort University we are delighted to welcome Rakesh Rajani to give a keynote speech about international perspectives on #BuildBackBetter.
Rakesh brings three decades of experience in human rights, education, governance and philanthropy in his role as Vice President, Programs at Co-Impact, where he is based in New York City.
Until 2018, he served as the Director of Civic Engagement and Government at the Ford Foundation, responsible for US and global programs on democratic participation, taxes and budgets, and protecting civic space. Previously he founded and served as the Head of Twaweza, an East African organization that promotes citizen agency and open government, and led/’ the establishment of Uwezo, Africa’s largest program to assess basic literacy and numeracy. Prior to that he served as the founding executive director of HakiElimu, Tanzania’s leading citizen engagement and education advocacy organization.
Rakesh is also a founding member and past co-chair of the Open Government Partnership, which seeks to restore the social compact between people and governments in over 75 countries covering more than two billion people. He has played key roles in establishing several civil society and media platforms in Tanzania, and consulted on global development for Google.org, the Hewlett Foundation, Hivos and UNICEF, among others.
The session will be chaired by Kieran Breen CEO Of Leicestershire Cares