Wongani Mugaba is a distinguished development specialist with 15 years’ expertise in programme leadership, management, fundraising, partnerships, and donor cultivation. His career began at ActionAid as a Project Officer on women’s land ownership in Mzimba before becoming Programme Officer for community-led development. In 2011, he was among the youth staff pioneering ActionAid Africa’s youth work, becoming ActionAid Malawi’s first Youth Coordinator. In 2014, he served as Acting Programme Coordinator in Mzimba, leading the programme to win the Annual Best Program Achievement Award, and was later recruited as District Programme Coordinator for Chitipa and Mzimba. As Programme Coordinator, Wongani was part of the seven-member team that developed ActionAid Malawi’s 5th five-year Country Strategic Plan. He later served as Acting Northern Region Manager before becoming Cluster Programme Manager for the Central Region during COVID-19, establishing informal vocational skills and access to finance programs for youth. Since 2022, Wongani headed the Programme and Policy Unit for ActionAid Malawi, providing strategic leadership for eight district programmes and seven major projects funded by donors including the EU, IFAD, Global Fund, Roger Federer Foundation, Hewlett Foundation, and ActionAid Italy and UK. In 2023 to early 2024, he served as Acting Executive Director for ActionAid Malawi, spearheading donor cultivation, fundraising, internal governance, and the development of the 6th Strategy Paper. Wongani has extensive experience in grant management, partnerships, impact evaluation, and stakeholder accountability. He has managed both local and international volunteers and is also a youth leader outside the workplace. An advocate and certified trainer in participatory and social accountability approaches, he holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Media for Development from the University of Malawi and a Master of Science in Transformative Community Development from Mzuzu University, along with certifications in project management.