Laura Frigenti

Laura is a senior executive with 30 years of experience in global development gained through her service in multilateral organizations, government, nonprofit, and more recently the private sector. She started her career at the World Bank, where she worked for 20 years, holding several technical and managerial positions in Africa, Latin America and Eastern Europe.

She was then appointed Director General of the Italian Overseas Development Agency, with the responsibility of setting up the newly created agency under the government of Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.

Prior to joining GPE, Laura led the Global Development Assistance Service Practice at KPMG, which supports initiatives that create real value for investors and for society. These include implementation improvement and restructuring to help governments function better in areas such as infrastructure, education and finance.

In the aftermath of the pandemic, an increasing amount of her work related to vaccine distribution and COVID-related issues, as well as supporting governments in implementing various types of social protection measures to sustain the most vulnerable groups. She oversaw various teams who managed ongoing relationships with the United Nations, World Bank and other multilaterals.

Her senior roles at the World Bank, where she worked extensively in the human development sector, as head of a bilateral development agency, and more recently as head of a large practice in a global consulting firm, give her a deep familiarity with GPE, the issues that GPE is trying to address, and the global development space where its work is situated.

Laura is multilingual; beyond her native Italian, she is fluent in English, French, Spanish and Portuguese. Laura served as a board member at the School of Business and Management at the Polytechnic University of Milan and has been a member of the Group of Eminent Advisers to the President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), as well as various nonprofit organizations. She was awarded the Star of the Italian Republic in 2014 by the Italian President Giorgio Napolitano in recognition of extraordinary merit to the preservation and promotion of national prestige abroad.