Olivia Elson’s international development experience spans innovation, market systems development, private sector development and results measurement.
Ms. Elson is a fellow at Results for Development (R4D). Prior to this, she was an associate director for R4D’s Innovation practice where her work focused on identifying and scaling innovative solutions to address systemic challenges in health, education and nutrition in low- and middle-income countries.
She also served as the Programme Manager for the Frontier Technologies Hub, led by a consortium of partners and funded by the U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO). This global initiative equips FCDO staff to be better commissioners and users of frontier tech and innovative methods by fostering learning around, and enabling experimentation with, frontier technologies (including UAVs, fintech and artificial intelligence).
Ms. Elson also formed part of the Secretariat for the International Development Innovation Alliance (IDIA), a collaboration platform bringing together bilateral, multilateral and philanthropic agencies working to promote and advance innovation as a means to help achieve sustainable development. This role included managing a Strategic Partnership with the World Health Organisation (WHO), an Emerging Technologies Working Group and the Million Lives Collective, an initiative that celebrates innovations reaching new horizons of impact and improving the lives of those living on less than $5.50 a day.
Before joining R4D, Ms. Elson spent six years working for PwC. As part of their international development team, she supported the set-up of the Global Innovation Fund and was the Operations Lead and Country Manager for Myanmar of the Business Innovation Facility, a market systems development program funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID). Prior to this, she worked on development initiatives in microfinance, education and healthcare with NGOs in Nicaragua and Bolivia.
Ms. Elson holds a BA (with honors) in combined arts (geography, Spanish & English literature) from Durham University. She is trained in the DCED Standard for Results Measurement. She speaks English and Spanish.
