Experts on countries of origin by country

Expertise on religion and politics in a number of African, Asian and Latin American countries - and in a number of languages. Current research includes China (Tibet), Chile, Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Argentina, DRC, Uganda, Kenya, Zambia, South Africa, Malawi and Zimbabwe; Libya and Syria

Political scientist with comprehensive experience from research and Country of Origin reports and documents assessments. Research experience on political economy, opposition and political parties, political rights, democratic institutionalisation, NGOs. Expert on human and political rights abuse, political persecution, LGBT persecution, risk of return and of brutal and degrading treatment and torture.

Dr. Ashforth is currently Professor of Afroamerican and African Studies at the University of Michigan, having previously held teaching and research posts at, amongst other places, Northwestern University, City University of New York, and the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton. In 2019 he was appointed the Nelson Mandela Visiting Professor in the Department of Political and International Studies at Rhodes University in South Africa.

Dr. Ashforth holds the degrees of Master of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy in Politics from Oxford University, where he was a Rhodes Scholar (Australia-at-Large, 1979). Since 1981 he has conducted extensive research in South Africa, as well as in Botswana, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, and Zimbabwe. His primary research field has been South Africa, where he has conducted extensive research into issues of insecurity in everyday life contexts. In the 1990s, Dr. Ashforth conducted many years of ethnographic fieldwork in the black township of Soweto studying the social dynamics of the transition to democracy. He has published four books, three on South Africa and one on Malawi. In 2005 my book Witchcraft, Violence, and Democracy in South Africa won the Herskovits Prize for the best book on Africa published in that year… Read more

Dr Hazel CameronExperienced expert witness and author of country reports for courts and tribunals nationally and internationally.Zimbabwe, Uganda, South Africa, BotswanaArbitrary Arrest And Detention; Child Trafficking; Country Case Law; Criminal Justice System; Criminal Justice System; Domestic Violence, Forced Marriage; Economy; Education; Employment; Ethnic Groups; Food Security Identification On Return; Gender Based Violence; Gender Based Violence; Gross Violations Of Human Rights Perpetrated By State Security Forces; Health Care; Health Insurance; Housing; Human Trafficking; Internal Relocation; LGBTIQ+; Mental Health Services; Opposition Politics And Election Violence; Organ Trafficking; Policing; Political Violence; Prison Conditions; Rape; Risks Of Re-Trafficking; Social Groups; State Sponsored Violence; Sufficiency Of Protection; Torture And Sexual Violence; Trafficking For Ransom; Trafficking Routes; Witness Protection; Risks On Return.RwandaLGBTIQ+; Human Trafficking; Organ Trafficking; Risks of Re-Trafficking; Sufficiency of Protection; Trafficking for Ransom; Trafficking Routes.Africa Human Trafficking; Organ Trafficking; Risks of Re-Trafficking; Sufficiency of Protection; Trafficking for Ransom; Trafficking Routes.

Simone Elyse Carter is a public health and humanitarian expert with over 15 years of experience in outbreak analytics, research coordination, and strategic leadership. She currently serves as the Lead for Integrated Outbreak Analytics (IOA) at UNICEF, providing technical guidance and capacity strengthening for emergency response efforts worldwide.

Throughout her career, Simone has played a key role in developing data-driven solutions for complex health crises, leading interdisciplinary teams, and fostering global partnerships. Her work has included chairing the IOA working group under the Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN) and overseeing systematic research dissemination to improve outbreak response strategies.

Previously, Simone managed the Integrated Analytics Cell (CAI) in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where she contributed to the development of evidence-based response mechanisms during public health emergencies. Her expertise spans epidemiology, humanitarian coordination, and policy development, making her a vital resource in advancing data-informed decision-making in crisis contexts.

The Expert is a Sub-Saharan Africa specialist with extensive experience in Country Operations Management, Resource Mobilization, Business Development, Communications and Advocacy across multiple countries with leading international NGOs.

I am a social and medical anthropologist who has worked in the field of global health for over 25 years.  I lived in Eastern and Southern Africa for 22 years, where I worked with government and other institutions including NGOs, the National Institute for Health Research (Tanzania), the Malawi-Liverpool-Wellcome Research Programme (Malawi).  I have extensive experience of social and health related research and fieldwork in rural and urban communities.  I have conducted fieldwork in medical anthropology on social and health risks including on treatment seeking, disease interpretation, traditional religio-cultural beliefs, social networks, social status (reputation), social position, stigma and discrimination.   

I am a National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) Global Research Professor based within the Department of Global Health and Development at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM).  I have a portfolio of research across geographies and diseases with a primary focus on sub-Saharan Africa and am strongly committed to supporting capacity strengthening in sub-Saharan Africa.  I hold a number of external positions including on funding panels and the World Health Organisation (WHO) HIV… Read more

Lecturer in African Studies at the University of Edinburgh with extensive experience researching and writing about violent social groups and discrimination in selected African countries.  

Lecturer in African studies at Edinburgh University with extensive experience researching, writing and teaching on the history, politics, and cultures of Southern Africa.

The Expert is a Gender & Social Inclusion International Development specialist across multiple global south countries - She holds a Ph.D. in Gender & Postcolonial Studies, University of Sydney, Australia, 2005.

The Expert is an experienced senior consultant and academic with 15+ years in educational program design and management across humanitarian and development sectors, including democracy, education, civil society, and government collaboration in diverse global regions. Her expertise in creating effective development programs with a focus on inclusion and sustainable livelihoods.

Christian Reed is a Medical Anthropologist and Epidemiologist who specializes in sub-Saharan and East Africa. He has extensive research experience in Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zambia and speaks Portuguese, Swahili, Lunda-Ndembu, and Bemba. His single-authored book "Landscapes of Activism" pertains to pharmaceutical treatment access and HIV/AIDS activism with the matrilineal and Muslim tribes of northern Mozambique. He specializes in the social ramifications of infectious and communicable disease and rural and urban global health. Christian also studies religion with interests in traditional religion and healing, Pentecostalism, Catholicism, Santaria, Voodoo, and spirit possession.