Anni is an environmental economist, PhD, with 25 years of experience in international development finance, project management, stakeholder relations, diplomacy and analytical work.  She has worked for 8 years in Mozambique, 3 years in Kenya and 9 years in several Latin American countries.

Her main assignments have been with the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, the UN and the World Bank on topics related to rural development, climate change, sustainable agriculture, forestry and private sector development.  She has designed and managed projects of up to USD 50 million each within a portfolio of up to USD 160 million, working with many funding instruments such as grants, concessional loans, institutional cooperation and climate funds.  Anni’s passion for entrepreneurship also encouraged her to launch two tech start-ups in emerging markets and co-lead their family-owned company in Finland.  In addition, she served for 4 years as a member of the City Council and the City Planning and Zoning board in Espoo, Finland.

In her latest assignment, Anni was the country director for the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) for Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela.  She holds a Doctorate in Environmental Economics from the University of Helsinki, Finland and an MBA with Distinction from Warwick Business School, UK and speaks fluently English, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and Finnish.