A CIO East Africa report states that policy manager for sub-Saharan Africa with Google and co-founder & executive director of the mobile open source platform Ushahidi, Ory Okolloh, has joined philanthropic investment company Omidyar Network.
Ory Okolloh is a summa cum laude graduate of the University of Pittsburgh with a B.A. in Political Science. She went on to earn her J.D. from Harvard Law School. Okolloh is a frequent speaker at conferences including TED, World Economic Forum, Poptech, CGI, Techonomy, Mobile Web Africa, and the Monaco Media Forum on issues around citizen journalism, the role of technology in Africa, and the role of young people in reshaping the future of Africa.
Ushahidi is a famed crowd sourcing site dedicated to information collection, visualisation and interactive mapping. Ms Okolloh created Ushahidi in 2007 after Kenya was engulfed in violence following disputed presidential election results. Ushahidi is a Kiswahili word for ‘testimony’
She has also featured on ITNewsAfrica’s Most Influential Women in Science and Technology list.
CIO East Africa quotes Omidyar Network Partner Stephen King as saying, “Ory is a well-established leader in the technology and transparency communities. She will help spur Omidyar Network’s growth and impact by lending her voice and considerable experience in Africa.”
According to the publication Okolloh was also a co-founder of Mzalendo and a Chayes Fellow at the World Bank’s Department of Institutional Integrity. She is a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader, and sits on the board of the Africa Media Initiative.
Chris Tredger, Online Editor
