Dr. Jennifer Blanke is Vice President of the Agriculture, Human and Social Development Complex at the African Development Bank Group. She is responsible for the Bank’s strategy, lending and other activities in agriculture, water and sanitation, education, and health, as well as the bankwide work on employment and gender equity. She is presently providing technical expertise for the Bank’s multi-billion dollar response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Africa.

Dr. Blanke was previously Chief Economist at the World Economic Forum, overseeing economic research activities and projects from 2012-2017. Other roles held at the World Economic Forum included Lead Economist and Head of the Global Competitiveness and Benchmarking team, and Senior Program Manager responsible for developing the business, management, and technology sections of the Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland. She has written and lectured extensively on issues related to national competitiveness and economic development. Prior to joining the World Economic Forum, Dr. Blanke worked for a number of years as a management consultant for Eurogroup (Mazars Group) in Paris, France, where she specialized in banking and financial market organization.

Dr. Blanke holds a Master’s degree in International Affairs from Columbia University, New York, and an MA and PhD in International Economics from the Graduate Institute of International Studies, Geneva. She also holds a number of non-executive board responsibilities in the not-for-profit sector.