Our first meeting of 2019 is sure to be a good one, on the 7th March we will be joined by Simon Boas the Director of Jersey Oversea Aid.

Simon Boas, Director of Jersey Overseas Aid

For over 50 years, Jersey has operated a taxpayer-funded overseas aid and development programme. A little rock off the coast of Normandy has funded boreholes, schools and clinics in six continents, and sent almost 1,000 volunteers on work trips to developing countries. We even have a Minister for International Development. Why do we bother? Shouldn’t charity begin at home? Can our aid really change anything? For that matter, can anyone’s?

Simon Boas has been Director of Jersey Overseas Aid (JOA) since October 2016. Brought in with a mission to reform and professionalise Jersey’s overseas grant-making, he will lift the lid on Jersey’s humanitarian and development donor ship and provide a candid assessment of what’s worked and what hasn’t. He will explain how funding decisions are made, the changes underway at JOA, and set out how the Island can maximise the impact of its international aid programme over the next five years.

Before arriving in Jersey, Simon spent most of his career designing, implementing and evaluating aid projects in developing countries. He managed UN and NGO offices in the Middle East and South Asia His experiences range from long-term development policy-making to immediate post-disaster relief. He was educated at Winchester and Oxford before, more latterly, receiving a Master’s degree in International Policy Analysis from Bath University.

As usual, there will be a three course meal preceding the talk, and bar facilities open throughout.

More details are available on the booking form here.