Mark Bradbury is a social analyst with over 20 years’ experience in international development and humanitarian aid. He has worked in and written about Somalia, Somaliland, Sudan, South Sudan, Sierra Leone, Kenya, Uganda, and Kosovo as a development worker and researcher. He is author of Becoming Somaliland (Indianapolis, Indiana University Press, 2008). He was the RVI Regional Director for the Horn of Africa and East Africa from 2012–2016, and is the RVI Executive Director since January 2017.

Amina is the Programme Officer for the Rift Valley Forum and the Research Communities of Practice project. She has experience in strategic communications, having worked as a Communications Officer and Media Liaison Officer for local NGOs operating in Kenya and Somalia before joining RVI. She holds a BA in Development Communications and MA in International Conflict Management from the University of Nairobi.

Benedict joined RVI as Head of Finance and Operations in June 2018. He holds a Master of Business Administration degree, specialising in Strategic Management, as well as a Bachelor of Commerce Degree, Accounting option. He is a member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA). Prior to joining RVI, he was the Grants Manager-Finance at the Somalia Stability Fund, a multi-donor fund managed by Adam Smith International Ltd. Benedict has previously held various finance and audit roles at Deloitte and Touche, Mumias Sugar Company Ltd and PwC Kenya.

Liz Mahiri is the Programmme Manager for Communications, IT and Knowledge Management at the Rift Valley Institute. Previously, she was the Programme Officer for Education. Before coming to RVI, Liz was the editor for Ghetto Mirror, a newspaper that focuses on social, political, and economic issues in informal settlements. She trained slum youth in journalistic writing and photography and empowered them to design and produce high-quality media material. She holds a BA in International Studies from Kenyon College in Ohio.

Richard joined RVI in February 2016, after working in the commercial sector for seven years as an accountant. He holds a Bachelor of Finance degree from Strathmore University, Nairobi, and is also a Certified Public Accountant.

Sylvia Kitema is the Finance Manager at the Rift Valley Institute, Nairobi. She holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting) and a Certified Public Accountants of Kenya (CPA-K) II degree.

Michael Odhiambo joined RVI as the Head of Programmes in January 2024. He brings to the role many years of experience in programme development, policy research and analysis, training and mentoring, institutional capacity building and monitoring and evaluation. Trained in law, Michael was an Advocate at the High Court of Kenya for over a decade before becoming a researcher, policy specialist and advocate on land rights and governance, natural resource management and rural development. Michael was a founder and National Coordinator of the Kenya Land Alliance, a founder and Executive Director of the Resource Conflict Institute (RECONCILE), and the CEO of the Drylands Learning and Capacity Building Initiative (DLCI). For two decades Michael has worked extensively in East Africa, the Horn of Africa, South Sudan and Sudan as a highly respected and sought after researcher and advisor on land, sustainable natural resource management and climate change. In his career Michael has worked with UN agencies, the World Bank, the African Development Bank, the AU, IGAD and numerous national and international NGOs. 

Joel is a conflict and fragility specialist with a passion for rethinking conflict prevention, peacebuilding, and sustainable development through research, knowledge translation and strategic engagement for policy and practice. He is currently leading the coordination and implementation of the Cross Border Conflict Evidence, Policy and Trends (XCEPT) as the Project Manager.  Prior to joining RVI, Joel was a Senior Programme Officer – Research and Policy at the Partnership for African Social and Governance Research (PASGR) where he worked for 2 years to oversee implementation and management of several projects. Previously, he also worked with Horn Institute as a researcher within the Conflict, Security and Peacebuilding Worktreams; Amref Health Africa; and Masinde Muliro Univerity of Science and Technology.

He holds a Master’s degree in International Peace Studies (Distinction) from Liverpool Hope University, a Bachelors in Conflict Resolution and Humanitarian Assistance (First Class) from Masinde Muliro Univerity, and a Professional Certificate (ProCert) in Public Policy Analysis from London School of Economics and Political Science.