Dambisa Moyo has written and lectured on topics ranging from global markets, the impact of geopolitics on the economy, the future of the job market, the outlook for growth in China, and the past and future paths of interest rates.

Dambisa Moyo was born 2nd February, 1969 to Orlean Y. Moyo and Stephen Moyo in Lusaka, Zambia. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry, an MBA from American University, an MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School, and a DPhil in Economics from Oxford.

She is prominently known for her economic theories on macroeconomics, international development, and global affairs.

A Woman of Great Feats

She became a regular columnist and contributor to many financial networks and multinational business publications, as well as a speaker at conferences and other venues worldwide.

Moyo is a world renowned public speaker. She has participated in several talks and won several debates. She holds more than one board seat. She worked with the World Bank for two years and with Goldman Sachs eight years. Soon after leaving Goldman Sachs she became a board member of the International brewer SABMiller in 2009. As chairman of the company’s Corporate Accountability and Risk Assurance Committee, she oversaw the company’s responsibilities in relation to corporate accountability, including sustainable development, corporate social responsibility, corporate social investment, and ethical commercial behaviour.

In 2010, she joined the board of directors of the Barclays Bank where she sits on three of the board’s committees: the Audit Committee; the Conduct, Operational ADHD Reputational Risk Committee, and the financial risk committee.

By 2011, she was on the board of directors of the international mining company Barrick Gold. There as with Barclays, she sits on three of the board’s committees.

In 2015, Moyo joined the board of directors of data storage company Seagate Technology.

On August 9th, 2016, Moyo’s election to Chevron’s board of directors was announced.

She’s a former board member of the charity Lundin for Africa, a former patron of Absolute Return for Kids (ARK), and a former board member of Room to Read.

New York Times Bestseller

By 2015 Dambisa Moyo had travelled to more than 75 countries, examining the political, economic and financial workings of economies.

The publication of her first book Dead Aid: Why Aid is not Working and how there is a Better Way for Africa (2009), brought together her career of investigative writing and analysis of economic conditions.

In her 2009 book Dead Aid, she discusses foreign aid and why African countries should not rely wholly on it for development. She is brutally honest about how “charity” is actually killing her country Zambia and other African countries.

According to Moyo;
Many Africans are now addicted to Aid. Foreign aid, in a way, brings up corrupt governments by providing them with freely usable cash. These corrupt governments interfere with the rule of law, the establishment of transparent civil institutions and the protection of civil liberties, making both domestic and foreign investment in poor countries unattractive. With fewer investments there is limited economic growth, which leads to fewer job opportunities and increasing poverty levels. In response to growing poverty, donors give more aid, which continues the cycle.

Moyo has three New York Times Bestselling books to her credit: Dead Aid: Why Aid is not Working and how there is a Better Way for Africa (2009), How the West was Lost: Fifty Years of Economic Folly – and the Stark Choices that Lie Ahead (2011), and Winner Take All: China’s Race for Resources and What it Means for the World (2012) 

A Celebrated Leader and Visionary

In 2009, Moyo was named a World Economic Forum “Young Global Leader”, one of TIMES’ 100 Most Influential People, and one of Oprah Winfrey’s “20 Remarkable Visionaries”.
On March 14th, 2011, Moyo spoke at the annual Observance ceremony marking Commonwealth Day in Westminster Abbey. She spoke on “Women as Agents of Change” in the presence of the Queen Elizabeth II, British Prime Minister David Cameroon and 2000 guests.

In the same month, she was selected by The Daily Beat as one of the “150 Extraordinary Women Who Shake The World” along with Hilary Clinton, Madeleine Albright  and others.

In 2014, she signed up for NYC Marathon.
“I wanted to do something about the school girls who had been abducted in Nigeria that year. I raised over $20,000 through Team for Kids. Thinking of their trauma was such a motivation for me.” Dambisa Moyo inspires through her work, writing and sport.

Dambisa Moyo is one of the 30 Extraordinary Voices featured in the Women’s Month Series by AWLO. Click on your favorite social media button below to share if you have been inspired by her.