George Gitau (born 04 November 1964), is a Kenyan humanitarian. ^{[1] [2]}

George, who lived in South Carolina, worked for American Leprosy Missions (ALM) as their regional director for Africa from August 2017 to July 2021. ^[3] Prior to appointment, he worked for World Vision International as the Rwanda country director for seven years, from March 2010 to July 2017, while residing in Kigali. ^{[4] [5] [6]} George had previously worked for Compassion International for thirteen years in a row in a variety of roles, including director of grants for the Africa region from November 2006 to February 2010, country director for Burkina Faso from December 2003 to August 2006, and country director for Kenya from September 1997 to December 2003. ^{[7] [3]}

As an African humanitarian employed by numerous nonprofit global organizations, including World Vision, Compassion, and American Leprosy Missions (ALM), George oversaw on-the-ground initiatives to improve the lives of the impoverished in a number of African nations, including Rwanda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Uganda, Tanzania, Ghana, and Togo. ^{[8] [9] [10]}

Early life and education

George was born on 04 November 1964, he grew up and completed his elementary and secondary education in Kenya. George began his graduate studies in 1983 at the University of Nairobi, Kenya. He earned a bachelor's degree in Rural Sociology in 1986. George also enrolled in University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania, U.S. in 1994 to pursue a postgraduate degree, and he earned a Master in Public and International Affairs (MPIA) in 1995. ^[3]

Career

George started serving as a country director for Compassion International in Kenya in September 1997. The position he kept until December 2003, when he relocated to Ouagadougou, where he worked for the same organization as the country director for Burkina Faso until August 2006. George was promoted in November 2006 and appointed by Compassion International as the grants director for the Africa region. He held this role until February 2010. ^{[7] [11]}

In 2010, George left Compassion after 13 years of service, and he became the Rwanda country director for World Vision, a position he held until 2017. During his time there, World Vision Rwanda concentrated on empowering rural communities to advance development, particularly those affected by the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. ^{[12] [13]} George began working with American Leprosy Missions (ALM) in August 2017. ALM is a Christian global health and development organization that provides assistance to vulnerable individuals afflicted with neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). Based in South Carolina, he was their regional director for Africa until July 2021. George has been serving as Operations Director for East Africa at the Center for Leadership Excellence (CLE) since September 2021. ^[14]

Other considerations

While serving as country director of World Vision Rwanda, George Gitau introduced World Vision representatives led by former President Kevin Jenkins and East Africa regional director Margaret Schuler to President Paul Kagame at Village Urugwiro in June 2016. Paul Kagame was accompanied by his then-Minister of Foreign Affairs, Louise Mushikiwabo, and Local Government Minister, Francis Kaboneka. World Vision was promised ongoing government support and friendly working relations with Rwanda by President Paul Kagame. ^{[15] [16] [17]}

See also

• World Vision International

References