Pete Ondeng is a strong proponent of the "pull" approach to development. We need to be more concerned with empowerment of people to chart their own destinies and use of  incentives, as opposed to the common "push" approach, which often attempts to push communities and societies to do or become what the pushers (often well meaning) believe is best, he argues.  Is aid helping or hurting Africa?  If there were no aid, would Africa be better off or worse?  What is holding Africa back?  Why has much of Africa failed to meet the so called MDGs?  These are some of the questions Ondeng will discuss using his rich international experience as well as his recent experience from The Millennium Villages Project in Kisumo, Kenya. Pete Ondeng will talk from the perspective of an African who has lived on both sides of the divide.

Pete Ondeng is an experienced manager, strategist and leadership consultant with over 25 years of international experience in business, government and the nonprofit sector. Educated in the U.S, he worked there for some years until he returned to Kenya in 1986. Between 2003 and 2006, he was CEO of E. Africa Secretariat of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), a pan-African economic development initiative of the African Union. His international experience includes a four years in the Netherlands as the Africa Director for Oikocredit, an international financial intermediary that provides debt financing to viable projects in developing countries. He subsequently worked as the East and Southern Africa Director for Millennium Promise, a New York based non-profit organization dedicated to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). He is also the founder of the East African Leadership Institute. Ondeng is a frequent keynote speaker at international forums and the author of the book, Africa's Moment.