Team
Our Team
We brings together a senior network of associates, advisors, experts, and consultants across Africa and beyond combining diverse sector expertise with deep contextual knowledge to deliver results that matter.
Lucio Iaccarino
Associate
Sabrina Segal
Associate
Massimo Alone
- CEO and Founder
Massimo is an accomplished international manager, consultant, and researcher with over thirty years of experience across Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. He has successfully led numerous complex projects in diverse countries and sectors, including strategic partnership and business development, education system reform, sustainable agriculture initiatives, youth and women employment programs, cultural heritage preservation, infrastructure construction, micro and small enterprises support, and development of water management systems.
Throughout his career, Massimo has undertaken various significant research projects as an independent scholar, contributing valuable insights to international development discourse. Since 2021, he has been pursuing a doctoral degree in International Education and Development at the University of Sussex (UK), where his research focuses on education policy in conflict-affected contexts and protracted crises. He also brings extensive expertise in program evaluation, particularly specializing in context analysis and risk assessment methodologies.
After living for the past decade in Africa – primarily in Ethiopia and Rwanda – where he developed deep cultural understanding and established strong local networks, in March 2025, Massimo founded Africa Partnership and Management Consulting (“Africa PMC Ltd”) in Kigali, Rwanda. The firm has been established with the support of a group of long-time colleagues and friends, with the ambitious aim of promoting effective and equitable partnerships between international investors and African communities across the continent.
Marta Volpi
- Managing Director
Marta is the Managing Director, where she believes effective leadership is not only about direction, but also about presence, empathy, kindness, and co-creation. Her approach to leadership is deeply informed by her commitment to creating sustainable economic development and social impact investments across Africa.
She is an international development professional with over ten years of experience leading projects in human rights, child protection, and social impact. She holds an LLM in Human Rights Law and has worked across regions including Ethiopia, Nepal, and Cambodia. Over the years, she has designed and delivered programs for NGOs, built lasting partnerships, and helped turn complex challenges into practical, people-centred solutions that drive both social and economic value.
She is passionate about protection and has recently deepened her knowledge in Investigations into Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment. This commitment to safeguarding informs her leadership approach and ensures that all investment decisions prioritize ethical standards and community wellbeing. Her expertise in risk assessment and due diligence in challenging environments makes her particularly adept at identifying sustainable investment opportunities that align with Africa PMC Ltd. principles.
She brings with her not only professional experience, but also the many lessons she has learned through connecting with diverse cultures and her commitment to spiritual exploration, a path that inspires how she connects, engages and creates meaningful partnerships between investors and African communities.
- Head of Research, Learning and Quality Contents
Alessandra is the Head of Research, Learning, and Quality Contents at Africa PMC Ltd, where she leads the development of evidence-based insights that foster partnerships between Europe and Africa, ensuring communication is culturally sensitive and respectful of differences. In her role, Alessandra oversees the creation of high-quality content, research publications, and strategic frameworks that support Africa PMC Ltd‘s mission and guide its stakeholders. Her work plays a crucial role in advancing the company’s vision of a more just, coherent, and sustainable world, built on equitable intercontinental cooperation.
She holds a Ph.D. in Italian Philology from Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität in Munich. With over twenty years of academic research experience, she combines rigorous analysis with creative thinking to explore sustainable models of intercultural communication and collaboration.
Her expertise spans cultural studies, post-colonial and de-colonial theory and cultural translation.
She adopts a mixed-method approach, blending quantitative research with qualitative insights—ensuring the authenticity and relevance of all content, and amplifying the voices and priorities of each stakeholder.
Deeply committed to people-powered change, Alessandra believes that high-quality research is essential for building strong and resilient partnerships. Her work reflects Africa PMC Ltd’s values of integrity, sustainability, and inclusiveness—contributing to a future where evidence-based decisions and locally driven solutions connect continents and empower communities.
- Administrative Officer
Francoise brings youthful energy and strong organizational skills to her role as Administrative Officer. Known for her dynamic approach and attention to detail, she ensures that administrative processes run smoothly and efficiently.
A native speaker of Kinyarwanda, Francoise brings valuable cultural and linguistic perspective to her role, enriching communication within diverse teams and with local partners. Her structured work style and natural aptitude for coordination make her a key contributor to the team’s success. Her reliability and dedication have made her the go-to person for administrative support.
Her work plays an essential role in supporting the smooth functioning of the team, allowing others to focus on strategic goals and mission-driven initiatives.
Through her efficiency and positive spirit, Francoise contributes to a culture of trust, care, and shared purpose.
- Associate
With over 20 years of experience across East Africa, Alessia is a dedicated development professional with deep expertise in civil society, culture, WASH, environment, and economic development. Based in Tanzania since 2002, she brings a culturally grounded approach to her work, supported by a Master’s degree in Eastern African Languages and Cultures.
Alessia began her career as a community organizer, working in partnership with grassroots and community-based organizations. Over the years, she has led and managed a wide range of programs across the region, including initiatives funded by the European Union, UN agencies, and bilateral donors. Her work spans both international and national NGOs, as well as public and private institutions, through which she has built a strong, cross-sectoral network.
Currently, Alessia serves as Project Manager at the WAJAMAMA Foundation in Zanzibar, where she leads the Group Care Model (GCM). GCM is an innovative initiative that integrates high-quality clinical services, facilitated learning, community building, and peer-to-peer support accessible to women and their infants. It empowers women with essential knowledge on mental health, nutrition, and holistic wellbeing during the preconception, prenatal, intrapartum, and postnatal stages.
Her role includes overseeing program delivery, strategic planning, impact tracking, budgeting, and donor engagement, while ensuring all activities align with the foundation’s broader mission.
- Associate
Angelo is a leader in digital innovation with an international career spanning Italy, Ireland, France, and Tunisia, operating across sectors such as Healthcare, Agri-food, and ICT. He currently serves as Associate at Africa PMC Ltd, where he leads digital transformation through strategies focused on value creation and social impact.
With a human-centred approach to technology, Angelo promotes the adoption of digital solutions that enhance user experience and operational efficiency. His leadership is distinguished by the ability to combine empathy, creativity, and strategic vision, inspiring multidisciplinary teams to innovate in a sustainable and inclusive way.
Holding a degree in Political Science and a Master’s in International Studies, he has enriched his academic background with professional experiences in multinational contexts, developing a deep understanding of cultural and organizational dynamics. Convinced that innovation is a collaborative process, Angelo fosters work environments open to dialogue and change, where technology is at the service of people.
His commitment is reflected in projects that integrate digital transformation with humanistic values, contributing to the creation of a more equitable and connected future.
- Associate
Chiara is an experienced development professional with over 22 years of expertise in managing and advising on international cooperation projects, more than 26 projects funded by different donors (in particular, BMZ, Italian MoFA and EU (EUTF, EC-ENPI, EC-DEVCO/INTPA, ECHO).
Particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East. At Africa PMC Ltd, she serves as an Associate, bringing deep knowledge in sustainable economic development, ethical investments, and private sector engagement.
She has about 16 years of management/leadership experience as project team leader/programme manager. With over 10 years of work experience in Sub-Saharan Africa, she acquired a strong ability dealing with development and emergency settings and a deep knowledge of the African context, including the promotion of creation, training and capacity building of MSMEs start-ups and IGAs. Chiara has extensive leadership experience, having managed teams of up to 40 people and budgets reaching €38 million. She is skilled in project cycle management, capacity building, stakeholder engagement, and cross-cutting themes such as gender, disability inclusion, digital innovation, and environmental sustainability.
Her pragmatic, culturally sensitive approach and proven ability to foster public-private partnerships make her a key contributor to APMC’s mission of promoting responsible and impactful investments across Africa.
- Associate
Eleonora Iannotta is an international expert and consultant with over 20 years of experience in Africa and the Middle East, specializing in migration, human rights, gender, trauma healing, and mental health. She has worked with major international organizations such as GIZ, UNHCR, EUAA, and the Italian Development Cooperation, as well as national and grassroots organizations. Her roles have included programme and project management, research, monitoring and evaluation, training, and coaching.
She has successfully led large-scale development programs, conducted field assessments, and coordinated complex, multi-stakeholder initiatives. Her work focuses on humanitarian response, refugee protection, women’s empowerment, youth engagement, and social cohesion. She has contributed to EU- and regionally funded projects targeting sustainable economic integration and gender-sensitive value chains, particularly in Egypt, Tunisia, Jordan, and Morocco.
Eleonora combines academic knowledge with strong interdisciplinary skills in project cycle management, stakeholder analysis, and humanitarian coordination. She brings strategic vision, intercultural sensitivity, and hands-on field experience, having worked in countries such as Italy, Belgium, Turkey, Egypt, Morocco, and the Kurdistan Region. Committed to participatory, human-centered approaches, Eleonora bridges grassroots realities with policy frameworks, aiming to empower communities and promote sustainable, inclusive development with lasting impact.
- Associate
I’am a consultant specialising in sustainability and marketing strategy, supporting organisations to navigate complex challenges and drive purposeful, measurable change. Through bespoke workshops and strategic advisory, I help clients embed sustainability into their operations, strengthen stakeholder engagement, and translate ambition into practical action. At Africa PMC Ltd, I serves as an Associate, bringing deep knowledge in hospitality, marketing, communication customer experience, service design, and commercial strategy.
My background spans over a decade of experience in hospitality and marketing, where I held roles across brand management, communications, and operations. Working with both established brands and mission-driven organisations, I developed a deep understanding of customer experience, service design, and commercial strategy. This foundation allows me to approach sustainability with a pragmatic, cross-functional perspective, ensuring it is integrated into core business functions rather than treated as a standalone initiative.
Drawing on methodologies such as Design Thinking, Systems Thinking, and Change Theory, I guide teams through strategic transformation with clarity and creativity. My work bridges the gap between vision and implementation, enabling organisations to innovate responsibly, build internal alignment, and stay ahead of evolving stakeholder expectations and regulatory demands.
I work across sectors and scales, from SMEs to multinational organisations, always with a focus on delivering actionable outcomes and long-term impact.
- Associate
Germán is a seasoned developmental worker with over 19 years of experience implementing projects in the Middle East and North Africa, Central Europe and Latin America and the Caribbean. In particular, he has dealt with different donors such as with Spanish AECID, UNICEF, USAID, UNDP, SIDA, European Commission (EC-ENPI, EC-MENA/INTPA), Spanish decentralised cooperation, and the private sector.
At Africa PMC Ltd, he serves as an Associate, bringing deep knowledge in children’s rights, civil society and citizens’ engagement, and good governance in the security sector.
With over 13 years of work experience in Palestine, Egypt, Tunis, Libya, Morocco, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel and Syria, Germán acquired a strong ability in dealing with setting monitoring and evaluation mechanisms, developing knowledge management strategies and brokering knowledge, conducting evaluative work, and reporting on program management outcomes. He has proven experience in building the capacities of clients (civil society organizations, academia) to upskill partnerships, strategy development, project management, and M&E.
Germán possesses the cultural and professional ability to represent APMC’s mission in different fora and audiences, including government, civil society, academia, and various public events, relying on his excellent presentation skills and fluency in Arabic, English, Italian, and Spanish. He has excellent skills in establishing networks and strong relationships with local counterparts, ensuring the understanding of APMC’s message in an effective and efficient fashion.
- Associate
Massimiliano Di Tota is a sociologist and international development consultant with over 25 years of experience in planning, implementing, and evaluating development projects across North and West Africa and Central America.
Massimiliano is specialist in migration, youth, human rights, and local governance worked with major organizations such as the European Union, the French Development Agency (AFD), UN agencies, and various NGOs. He has led projects funded by the EU Migration Trust Fund and managed bilateral cooperation programs involving Morocco and EU countries like Spain, Belgium, and the Netherlands. He is an expert in citizen participation, he has led numerous studies and programs on integration, participatory democracy, and sustainable local development”.
Massimiliano excels at facilitating dialogue between public authorities and civil society, organizing workshops and training for local organizations. With over 15 years of expertise in monitoring and evaluation, he applies both quantitative and qualitative methods to assess complex development programs. He played a key role in Morocco’s migration policy reform, contributing to the National Strategy for Migration and Asylum (SNIA) and supporting policy implementation in several African countries.
Massimiliano’s unique blend of strategic policy development, operational management, and evaluation expertise enables him to tackle complex international development challenges, particularly in migration governance and human rights.
- Associate
Piera is a strategic international development leader with over 20 years of experience working across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Early in her career, based in Tanzania, she led programmes in sustainable tourism and natural resource management. Since then, she has delivered high-impact health and workforce development initiatives in countries including Sierra Leone, Ghana, Malawi, Cameroon, Somaliland, Nigeria, and Uganda.
She has held senior leadership roles such as Director at World Child Cancer and Head of Programmes at King’s Global Health Partnerships, specialising in systems strengthening, policy advocacy, and multi-sector partnerships. With 18 years of experience building organisational capacity and resilience within multiple NGOs, Piera designs and implements sustainable, education-centred solutions to improve outcomes in hard-to-reach communities worldwide.
She manages funded projects exceeding £5 million, leveraging her expertise in strategy development, programme governance, and stakeholder engagement to expand programme reach and secure commitment from international partners and donors such as the FCDO, European Commission, USAID, UN, WHO, corporate donors, trusts, and foundations.
A progressive leader and inclusive role model, Piera fosters collaboration and promotes innovative practices to create diverse and empowering organisational cultures, driving impactful and sustainable development outcomes.
- Associate
Valeria Fruzzetti is an experienced and accomplished finance leader, specializing in audit management, process optimization, and financial system design. With over 15 years of experience in the humanitarian and development sector, she has worked extensively in challenging contexts such as Afghanistan, Palestine, Chad, Somalia, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Throughout her career, she has led audits for global organizations with budgets exceeding \$1 billion, ensuring full compliance with international financial standards and specific donor requirements, including DFID, USAID, various UN agencies, and the European Union.
Her deep expertise in financial audits has significantly strengthened organizational oversight, enhanced internal control mechanisms, and reinforced comprehensive compliance frameworks. In addition, she has successfully led large-scale process transformation initiatives aimed at improving operational efficiency, increasing accountability, and ensuring greater accuracy in donor reporting. This includes the development of detailed multi-year financial planning processes and the optimization of cost coverage strategies to support sustainability.
Valeria has also taken the lead in implementing and improving enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, ensuring both data reliability and financial transparency. Fluent in English and French, with Italian as her native language, she remains firmly committed to advancing financial governance, promoting efficiency, and supporting long-term sustainability in complex and dynamic global environments.
- Advisor
Dave Lefor is an international development professional and researcher specialising in education, migration, and youth participation in contexts of displacement and crisis. He has extensive experience leading research and programme evaluations for international organisations including UNICEF, Plan International, and the ILO, with a focus on child protection, adolescent participation, triple nexus, and gender-transformative approaches.
Currently a Doctoral Researcher at the International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) and the Institute of Development Research and Development Policy (IEE), Dave’s thesis explores education and skills development among conflict-displaced refugee youth in urban and rural Thailand. His work combines qualitative and participatory methods to generate evidence that informs both academic debates and policy practice. He is also Co-Founder and Director of Research for the Centre for HDP Nexus Solutions (C4NS), where he leads efforts to advance collaborative, locally led, and actionable research on humanitarian–development–peace linkages.
Dave has held senior research and programme management roles, including as Director of Programmes at Includovate and Project Lead at Samuel Hall, and continues to provide technical expertise as an independent consultant at UNICEF and expert reviewer for development research funding. His publications span adolescent development, child rights, migration, and climate resilience.
Bridging research and practice, Dave’s career is dedicated to advancing locally grounded, actionable insights that strengthen humanitarian, development, and peace outcomes.
- Advisor
Fisehatsion Afework is a Social Work and Project Management professional with over 14 years of experience. I have technical expertise in Child Protection, Safeguarding, General Protection, MHPSS, and Gender Based Violence programs. I acquire immense experience in the triple nexus of development, humanitarian, and peace (HDP nexus) to bring about sustainable results of programs contributing to SDGs. I am also a certified Safeguarding and PSEA investigator as per the CHS standard.
I am an experienced influencer and advocator for the rights of children both at the continental and regional levels. I have a well-established working relationship with governing global and regional entities i.e., African Union and United Nations. Evidence generation through conducting empirical researches, monitoring, and evaluation of programs are the areas that I do have practical knowledge. I was one of the recognized contributors for the longitudinal study on protection and education conducted between the collaboration of University of Sussex, Plan International and Gambella University.
I am a professional with extensive experience in program design and management, partnership/negotiation, and budget management. I possess specialized skills in child protection case management, social workers and teacher’s continuous professional development (CPD), alternative care arrangements, psychosocial support, and behavioral change communication. I have ample experience of working with several International Organizations like Save the Children International, Plan International, UNICEF, and Terre des Hommes Netherlands which makes me a good candidate for this post.
I consider myself a proactive and solution-focused person with the ability to motivate and lead teams toward results through innovative, ethical, and professional actions.
- Advisor
Gustavo is an Innovation Leader with 5+ years working closely with startups and the open innovation ecosystem.
Some of his accomplishments within this role include venturing business models, establishing partnerships between the private sector and booming startups, assessing corporate venture capital opportunities and innovation strategy building.
He has mentored startups in the health sector, has profound knowledge of trending technology in the automotive market and has featured as presenter, advisor or speaker in a series of events within the innovation ecosystem.
He is Brazilian, born in Rio de Janeiro, and has a Business graduation with a MBA in Business Management and Design Thinking. He is currently pursuing a second graduation in International Relations.
He believes Design Thinking is a powerful collaborative tool and has lead numerous workshops, design sprints and strategic planning sessions in the private sector. He is a passionate humanitarian with focus on conflict, peace and security.
His interests are the innovation ecosystem, technology, climate change, community development and peace building. He considers himself a curious person, a life long learner and problem solver.
