Thoko Elphick-Pooley

Thoko Elphick-Pooley has over 20years experience in international development. Born and educated in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, Thoko brings a wealth of experience in government relations, institutional funding, relationship development, partnership management and advocacy. Thoko is currently, heading up the secretariat for Uniting to Combat NTDs, a unique global partnership which brings together industry, non-governmental organisations, donor governments and private philanthropic organisations, all working to end the suffering caused by Neglected tropical diseases and affecting more than a billion of the poorest people on the planet. Prior to this role, Thoko was Director of Institutional Funding at Sightsavers where she worked for six years, leading the institutional funding team and overseeing the growth of institutional funding as a source of income for the organisation. Before that, Thoko worked for Education Action in London, Practical Action in the Rugby, UK and Kenya, CIVICUS in South Africa and a number of organisations in Zimbabwe including UNESCO.