Prior to this he designed and manufactured high-end furniture in Nairobi, leading the second generation transformation of his family's business (www.woodcharmkenya.com), reengineering production processes and developing a strategy to expand into new customer segments and geographies. On the side, Aref also supported large regional economic development projects (www.competeafrica.org; www.trademarkea.com) as a competitiveness strategy advisor, and led pro-bono initiatives to develop a zoning plan for Kenya's South Coast and list buildings of architectural merit in Nairobi (which he continues to work on).
Prior to this, Aref spent over three years as a manager with OTF Group (www.otfgroup.com), advising governments and the private sector on export expansion and diversification, developing growth strategies and investment plans for leading business sectors. Aref worked with the Rwandan private sector to support its move into the specialized coffee market, supported the government of St. Kitts diversify its economy away from the loss-making sugar industry, and facilitated the reintegration of the Afghan carpet sector into the global economy. As part of these efforts, Aref has also guided the development of key cross-cutting business sectors, from finance to trade facilitation services.
Before joining OTF, Aref worked at the World Bank’s Global ICT Department (www.worldbank.org/ict/), spearheading the Bank’s engagement with clients in the development of national e-strategies, developing an analytic framework to guide the formulation of these strategies.
Prior to the Bank, Aref spent three years as a management consultant in KPMG Consulting’s Public Services Practice, based out of New York. At KPMG Consulting, Aref managed business process and IT re-engineering projects for large US-based non-profits and international NGOs. During this period he also conducted program assessments of post-conflict rehabilitation projects in South Sudan and Somalia.
Aref has also worked with a number of UN agencies, including the United Nations Development Program and UNICEF. His first development-related work experience was at the age of 18, when he lived in Nakuru National Park in Kenya working as a volunteer for the World Wildlife Fund.
Aref has a masters degree in Economic and Political Development from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) and an undergraduate degree from the London School of Economics (LSE).
His publications include:
- A. Adamali, “After God, It’s Customer Relations,” in In the River They Swim, Templeton, 2009
- A. Adamali, J. Coffey & Z. Safdar, “Trends in National E-Strategies: A Review of Forty Countries,” in World Information and Communication for Development Report 2006, World Bank, 2006
- A. Adamali, “Can the Afghan Carpet Sector Grow to Become a Global Leader?” in Economic Reform Feature Service, Vol. 1, Issue 3, Center for International Private Enterprise, 2005
- A. Adamali & B. Lanvin, E-Strategies Monitoring and Evaluation Toolkit, World Bank, 2005
