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Joshua Oteno Shem

Joshua Oteno Shem

Advisory Board Member, Economic Policy & Public Finance

PhD candidate, Economics; Certified Public Finance Management Specialist. 10+ years in sovereign debt and fiscal policy. One of the founding minds behind Quantec Insight, now supporting the partners in an individual, voluntary advisory capacity.

Sovereign debtFiscal policyPublic finance management
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Experience

  • African Forum and Network on Debt and Development (AFRODAD) · Harare, ZimbabweFeb 2023 – Jan 2025

    Sovereign Debt Management Policy Lead

    Led policy advocacy on Africa's debt crisis and sustainable debt management, coordinating 12+ high-level dialogues and representing AFRODAD at 8 global forums, including UN assemblies and IMF/World Bank meetings. Produced and coordinated 25+ policy documents (10 policy briefs, 6 discussion papers, 4 working papers and 5 position papers) on debt sustainability and Africa's role in reshaping the global financial system. Managed up to 10 external consultants a year, built partnerships with 40+ civil society organisations across 25 African countries, and co-led the “Africa Speaks as One” campaign, endorsed by 50+ organisations.

  • Institute of Public Finance Kenya · Nairobi, KenyaJun 2022 – Mar 2023

    Public Finance Management (PFM) Research Fellow

    Advocated for transparency, accountability and participation in Kenya's public finance management systems, and helped prepare flagship analytical products including the Shadow Budget and Macro-Fiscal Analytic Briefs, informing policy decisions on a national budget above KSh 3 trillion. Authored and secured funding for five research proposals, and designed simplified budget documents that improved citizen comprehension by 40%, based on surveys of 2,000+ participants across 10 counties.

  • Kenya National Qualifications Authority (KNQA) · Nairobi, KenyaJan 2022 – Jun 2022

    Research and Policy Analyst

    Advised senior management on research outreach and policy development, led research initiatives that brought global best practice into adoption of the Qualifications Framework, and helped secure five strategic partnerships with regional and international bodies. Coordinated annual departmental planning and monitoring, achieving a 90%+ implementation rate.

  • Egerton University · KenyaApr 2018 – Jun 2021

    Graduate Research & Teaching Assistant

    Taught and assisted in delivering nine core economics courses, including microeconomics, macroeconomics, econometrics, development, health and environmental economics, to 500+ undergraduates. Contributed to curriculum updates, and mentored 100+ students on thesis development and career guidance.

  • UK Aid Direct · Nairobi, KenyaFeb 2018 – Feb 2019

    Economic Research Consultant

    Formulated three policy briefs on economic inclusivity in rural Kenya, led stakeholder consultations in four counties, and presented findings to ministries and donor working groups. Delivered capacity-building on SMART economic frameworks to 120+ county and national government officials, wrote five successful funding proposals contributing to £300,000+ mobilised, and mapped 450+ youth-led enterprises.

  • Balloon Ventures · Nakuru, KenyaJun 2015 – Jun 2016

    Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning Officer

    Coordinated three county-wide baseline surveys using ODK, CAPI and CATI, processing 5,000+ data points to set benchmarks for UK Aid-funded initiatives. Ran quarterly data quality assessments with four implementing partners, improving data accuracy by 30%, and designed 15+ performance indicators reported against UK Aid logframe targets.

  • Balloon Ventures · Nakuru County, KenyaFeb 2014 – Apr 2015

    Research Fellow

    Supervised day-to-day county-level delivery of a UK Aid and EU-funded project supporting 500+ youth and micro-entrepreneurs, training 300+ on accessing and using donor grant funds. Coordinated 20+ stakeholder meetings, workshops and forums, and authored 5+ partnership and grant proposals.

  • Homa Bay County Government, Ministry of Water, Irrigation, Sanitation, Environment, Energy and Climate · KenyaMay 2014 – Sep 2014

    Economic Research Assistant Intern

    Contributed to county strategic plans aligned with Vision 2030 and the SDGs, formulated public-private partnership frameworks and three PPP pilots in renewable energy and clean water, and advised on fiscal policy, identifying KES 25 million in potential savings through reallocation and fiscal consolidation.

Education & certifications

  • PhD candidate, Economics — Egerton University (2024–2027, in progress)
  • MSc, Economics — Egerton University (2021)
  • BSc, Economics and Statistics — Egerton University (2011–2015)
  • CPA, Accounting and Finance — KCA University (2010–2013)
  • Certified Public Finance Management Specialist
  • Climate Change Financing; Innovative Financing Expert; Gender Equality & Social Inclusion (GESI) Expert; CSR Researcher
  • SAS Certified Statistical Business Analyst Using SAS 9: Regression and Modeling

Selected publications

Some publications appear under the name Shem Otieno.

This profile covers professional expertise and qualifications only, at this person's request, and is kept independent of their current institutional affiliations.