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São Miguel Silva

Gender Equality, Social Inclusion, Governance, and Crisis Response

Dr. São Miguel das Neves Silva is a senior GEDSI, governance, and evaluation expert with more than 25 years of global experience in humanitarian and development settings. With a Ph.D. in Social Anthropology, she brings deep expertise in designing, managing, and evaluating gender equality, disability, and social inclusion (GEDSI) programs, with a focus on fragile, conflict-affected, and transitional contexts.


She has served as a lead technical advisor, evaluator, and program strategist for USAID, the European Union, Agence Française de Développement (AFD), UNICEF, and international NGOs. Her experience includes overseeing over 250 grants across Latin America, Africa, and Asia; developing gender action plans; safeguarding systems (SEA, SGBV); and integrating GEDSI into governance and resilience programs.


Dr. Silva has worked in Sudan, Haiti, Mozambique, Myanmar, Guinea-Bissau, Angola, Liberia, Kenya, Honduras, Côte d’Ivoire, and Brazil. She has provided technical assistance for inclusive program design and conducted policy audits and institutional strengthening processes for both the public and private sectors, particularly in telecommunications and agribusiness.


She is known for her adaptive leadership in complex contexts, promoting local governance, civil society participation, and youth empowerment. Her participatory approach ensures donor alignment, contextual sensitivity, and capacity-building for sustainable systems change.



Areas of Expertise


  • Gender Equality, Disability, and Social Inclusion (GEDSI)

  • Governance in fragile and post-crisis settings

  • Strategic planning and evaluation (OECD/DAC, ESG, USAID/OTI)

  • Prevention of sexual exploitation, abuse, and gender-based violence

  • Inclusive grant management and third-party monitoring

  • Local governance, civil society, and youth leadership

  • Capacity building and mentoring across sectors

  • Gender action planning for private sector and development actors

  • Crisis response and adaptive program design

  • Multilingual stakeholder engagement in cross-cultural settings


Languages


  • Portuguese (native)

  • English (fluent)

  • French (fluent)

  • Spanish (fluent)


Geographic Experience


  • Africa: Sudan, Angola, Liberia, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Côte d’Ivoire, Uganda

  • Latin America & Caribbean: Haiti, Honduras, Brazil

  • Asia: Myanmar

  • Europe: Portugal, France

  • Remote/global portfolio with USAID, EU, AFD, UNICEF, DT Global, DAI, MSI, and SOFRECO

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