About nine years after my first doomed attempt at blogging and many more since, I think this time I may be ready to commit to this thing on a regular basis. As you can probably tell from my about section, I’m not completely sure where I’m heading with this personal-professional hybrid blog, but figure that I will muddle through and react to opportunities on the way (which incidentally appears to be a half-decent approach to development).
I’m going to try to follow various bits of advice out there on blogging. I’ll do my utmost to keep my posts short, informal and straightforward (with lots of pretty pictures/charts). I’m making no promises on regularity for blog posts in general but I will be posting Saturday Morning Reading every week.
And so to introduce myself…
I’m just embarking on a career in international development. I’m a few weeks into my first proper, paid job abroad working as an economist for the Zanzibar Planning Commission which is part of the President’s Office here. As an ODI Fellow, I’m contracted to the Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar rather than working for a donor. This puts ODI Fellows in a unique position to be more of an insider and (in theory) build capacity in a more sustainable way. We’ll see how it works out.
I’m living in Stone Town which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. I’ve yet to properly explore the rest of the island but am very much looking forward to doing so in the new year. If anyone has any East Africa travel tips please do comment below or tweet at me.
Next up, I’ll do proper introductions to Zanzibar, life in Stone Town and working in a developing country government.
Welcome back!