Degan Ali is a global thought leader at the forefront of the movement to reinvent the international development system so that it is more just, humane, and effective. She is Executive Director of Adeso, an African-based organisation that is breaking down the barriers to locally led development by ensuring that communities in the Global South have the resources and power to drive their own destinies.

She pioneered the first large-scale cash transfer in Somalia in 2003, and her advocacy calling for a shift of humanitarian funds to local actors helped spur the 2016 World Humanitarian Summit’s “Grand Bargain” commitment to direct 25% of funds to local actors. She is the co-founder of the first global south civil society network for local and national humanitarian organisations, the Network for Empowered Aid Response (NEAR), which has been pivotal in driving how locally led development is defined and implemented. Degan’s work has been featured in The New York Times, Al Jazeera, and The Guardian.

She was named as one of the Most Influential African Women of 2023 by Avance Media and Nonprofit Leader of the Year by the Anthem Awards in 2024. She is a Rockefeller Foundation Global Fellow for Social Innovation, and a contributor to the Overseas Development
Institute/Humanitarian Policy Group and Global Food Security Journal. Degan holds an M.A. in international service from University of Roehampton and a B.A. from Trinity College. She lives in Kenya and brings together organisations and philanthropists worldwide in the global effort to decolonise aid and philanthropy.