Our staff
Progressio Executive Director Christine Allen (centre) and staff (to right) Dan Hale and Lizzette Robleto with Progressio supporters (from left) Christine Sterlini and Tom Stevens outside 10 Downing Street to hand in our climateACT petition.
Progressio employs around 25 staff in the UK (around one-third of whom work part-time). Our country offices are staffed by nationals of those countries. Some of them have told us why they like working for Progressio!
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Christine Allen, Executive Director
It’s a real privilege to be the Director of Progressio. It’s a great team – we have skilled and dedicated people whose commitment is shared by our members and supporters. I am always inspired by people in their local parishes or groups who organise events or activities to support our campaigns and raise awareness and money for Progressio’s work. It’s important for us to be an organisation where people can come together, from all sorts of different backgrounds, sharing the same concerns with openness, respect and a passion to build a better world.
FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION
James Collins, Director of Finance and Administration
Paula Collins, Bookkeeper
Lucy Frew, Central Services Administrator
Barbara Georgiou, Administration Manager
Patricia Pons, Senior Accountant
Emmanuel Sengoga, Accountant
FUNDRAISING
Gloria Doñate, Programme Development and Funding Officer, Hispaniola (based in the Dominican Republic)
Gillian Houghton, Programme Funding Officer
Pamela Jackson, Fundraising Executive
Edwin Phiri, Programme Funding Officer, Southern Africa sub-region (based in Zimbabwe)
Yasmin Reyes, Programme Development and Funding Officer, Central America (based in Honduras)
Sarah Sandon, Head of Fundraising
INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMMES
Suad Abdi, Somaliland Country Representative
Abeer Al Absi, Yemen Country Representative
Sania Al Aswadi, Yemen Projects Officer
Christopher Bautista, Somaliland Projects Officer
Cesar Butron, Peru Empower Logistics Officer
Heather Drury, Empower Coordinator
Isabel Gammie, Programmes Officer
Marianela Gibaja, Peru Empower Coordinator
Mario Guevara, El Salvador Empower Logistics Officer
Godwin Kamanga, Malawi Empower Logistics Officer
Carmen Medina, El Salvador Country Representative
Thomas Msiska, Malawi Country Manager
Ronnie Murungu, Sub-Regional Manager, Southern Africa (based in Zimbabwe)
Belisario Nieto, Learning Manager
I am very proud to be part of an organisation that “walks the talk” - a phrase used by an evaluator to describe Progressio’s work. I have also been privileged to have met most of our development workers who are the heart of what Progressio is all about. It is simply inspiring what they do at grassroots level, with community organisations, civil society, women's groups, farmer’s cooperatives - each and every one empowered to overcome barriers that keep them poor. This is a mission that can make the difference in the quality of lives of thousands of people who are our beneficiaries. In a world taken over by the need for providing evidence of change and value for money, the challenge lies in having a balance between what is important to our partners and beneficiaries and what is important to our funders. Making our work sustainable depends on the level of ownership our partners and beneficiaries have of our country programmes and of the system that monitors and evaluates them.
Gabriela Quevedo, Programmes Monitoring and Evaluation Officer
Cecilia Rose, Empower Project Officer
Rodrigo Sandino, Nicaragua Country Representative
Nicolo Schiaparelli, Sub-Regional Manager, Hispaniola (Dominican Republic/Haiti)
Tibor van Staveren, Timor-Leste Country Representative
There are many reasons to like my work: the buzz of working as part of a dedicated team, the contact with so many different people from so many different countries, the shared goals. Working in Timor-Leste and knowing that I can assist in some small way in the development of this new country and its people is what keeps this job so interesting.
Ricardo Tomaz, Recruitment, Selection and Training Coordinator
Osvaldo Vasquez, Head of Programmes
I have worked for Progressio for 24 years and I have loved every minute of it! I consider myself very fortunate working for an organisation that puts people at the centre of its development work. Progressio is all about people struggling against poverty and discrimination and we link the best people in the North with the best people in the South. We also do international advocacy rooted in the work that we do together with our partners – which allows us to ‘punch above our weight’. I feel very proud of our work and of the commitment of all my colleagues to do it even better!
Xiomara Ventura, Sub-Regional Manager, Central America (based in Honduras)
My job is all about connecting people and their skills with where they are most needed. In 2009, when we were in the throes of the coup d’état in Honduras, I had to react quickly to the changing situation. The general environment was difficult, but our development workers and partners showed great commitment. My job was to bring together all their skills and capabilities and try to make the best use of them. We had the energy and togetherness to overcome the complicated conditions and continue our amazing work.
Ruth Watkins, Recruitment, Selection and Training Officer
Patisiwe Zaba, Zimbabwe Projects Officer
POLICY AND COMMUNICATIONS
Tim Aldred, Head of Policy and Communications
Graham Freer, Digital Editor and Producer
Dan Hale, Campaigns Officer
Steve Kibble, Policy and Advocacy Officer – Africa, Middle East and Asia
Petra Kjell, Environment Policy and Advocacy Officer
Lizzette Robleto, Policy and Advocacy Officer – Latin America and the Caribbean
Esther Trewinnard, Communications Officer
Alastair Whitson, Senior Creative Editor
