Sonja Giese

Background

About Sonja Giese

Sonja is founding executive director of DataDrive2030, a social enterprise that aims to democratise early years data, making relevant data accessible, understandable and actionable by all stakeholders. Sonja has a career in development spanning 30 years, with a proven track record of launching successful ventures. In 2014 she founded Innovation Edge, an impact first investor focused on solving early childhood challenges in South Africa. She led the organisation for eight years, demonstrating the ability to take ideas from source to scale. Prior to Innovation Edge, Sonja held senior leadership positions within a number of other entities. She founded the HIV/AIDS programme within the University of Cape Town’s Children’s Institute, she was a director at the international NGO Absolute Return for Kids (ARK), and she led the ECD donor consortium, Ilifa Labantwana. Sonja has also initiated and led local community-based programmes and large-scale research initiatives and has consulted extensively to local and international donors, the private sector and Government on impact strategy, policy and programme design and evaluation. She has a Bachelors Degree in Science from the University of Cape Town and an Honours Degree in Psychology.