NGOs Executive Secretary, Economic Commission for Africa, United Nations Under-Secretary-General Ghana
Description of Work:
Kingsley Y. Amoako obtained his B.A. (Hons) from the University of Ghana and his M.A. and Ph.D. in Economics from the University of California at Berkeley. In recognition of his contribution to Africa’s development, in 2003, he was awarded a Doctor of Laws degree, honoris causa by the Addis Ababa University, and a Doctor of Letters degree, honoris causa by the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana, in May, 2005.
Kingsley Y. Amoako played a key role in the design of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) and created several new forums allowing African policy makers to engage in productive dialogue, including the African Development Forum, which has been a dynamic force for ICT in Africa, gender equality, and for regional integration. He led the ECA in developing indicators to track Africa’s economic performance, promoted the need for donor policy coherence in providing concrete improvements in the delivery of aid, and backstopped and supported African negotiations in international trade.

Amoako has served alongside leading development experts and political leaders, on high-level international commissions and task forces, addressing the development prospects of Africa and many of today’s central global issues. He is Chair of the Commission on HIV/AIDS and Governance in Africa, convened by UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan and was a member of the Commission for Africa established and chaired by Prime Minister Tony Blair. He was also a member of the Taskforce on Global Public Goods co-chaired by former Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo, a member of the Global Information and Infrastructure Commission, and a member World Bank Institute's Advisory Council. Previously he served on the Commission on Capital Flows to Africa and on the World Health Organization's high-level Commission on Macroeconomics and Health chaired by Prof. Jeffrey Sachs.

Prior to ECA, Amoako worked in the World Bank since July 1974 for two decades, latterly in senior positions including: Director of the Education and Social Policy Department with responsibility for providing strategic leadership for the Bank's programs on poverty reduction, education, gender, labor markets and social protection (1993-1995). Before that he was Division Chief, Country Programs (Africa Region) and also Division Chief, Sector Programs (Latin America and Caribbean Region).

Amoako was a Distinguished African Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars from August to November, 2005. And currently with the support of a number of African leaders and leading development specialist he is setting up the African Center for Economic Transformation in Accra, Ghana to promote high-quality policy analysis and advisory services to assist African governments to prepare a vision for long-term sustained growth and transformation of African economies. (source wikipedia)