John Ulanga, the immediate past Chairman, is the Executive Director of the Foundation for Civil Society, the largest support mechanism for civil society organizations in Tanzania.
Prior to joining the Foundation for Civil Society in late 2005, Mr. Ulanga worked with the Economic and Social Research Foundation (ESRF), one of the leading Policy Research Think Tanks in Tanzania as its first Coordinator of Commissioned Studies where he was charged with the responsibility of forming the department and coordinate consultancy assignments undertaken by ESRF.
Mr. Ulanga is a Board Member of HakiElimu, a Tanzania Education and Democracy Organisation that works to realize equity, quality, human rights and democracy in education in Tanzania; a Board Member of Tanzania Financial Services for the Underserved Settlements (TAFSUS), a UN-Habitat-supported initiative to upgrade slums and underserved settlements in Tanzania; A Member of the Steering Committee of African Grantmakers Network (AGN), a member of an Independent Advisory Panel of eminent persons in Tanzania advising the World Bank Country Office on their programmes pertaining to the Government of Tanzania. He is also a Fellow of the African Leadership Initiative, East Africa and the Aspen Global Leadership Network of the Aspen Institute.
Mr. Ulanga has recently been appointed to join the Africa Policy Advisory Board of an organisation called ONE (www.one.org), established by the world-renown rock musician Bono, to enable more aid to come to Africa. Mr. Ulanga also has experience with the public sector through his intensive involvement in Public Service Reform Programme in Tanzania. Mr. Ulanga has held various other leadership/managerial positions in several places.
