Executive Leadership Group

Cherian Mathews is Chief Executive of HelpAge International, leading the organisation’s global work to promote the wellbeing, dignity and rights of older people.

Cherian has more than 30 years of international development experience in leading and managing humanitarian, long-term development and campaign work at country, regional and global levels.

Previously, he worked with Oxfam GB as International Programme Director and before that as Asia Regional Director, where he led major humanitarian responses in the Philippines and Nepal and led regional campaigns on economic justice and inequality.

Before joining Oxfam in 2003, Cherian worked with Action Aid. Prior to that he worked with local and national level organisations on the rights of indigenous and other marginalised communities in India.

Essi Lindstedt has worked in the NGO sector for 20 years in business development and external relations roles. She secured more than £270 million personally and through teams she has built, and contributed to shaping strong organisations which build good management of the funding cycle.

She then spent four years as a consultant, supporting some of the United Kingdom’s largest NGOs in fundraising strategy, process improvement and planning, and key customer account strategy. She recently completed a Master’s degree at the University of Cambridge (UK) in sustainability leadership, looking at how business partnerships can contribute to sustainable development.

Justine leads the global Human Resources team and strategy for HelpAge International. She has over 20 years of experience in the international development and humanitarian sector.

Justine previously led the human resources for RedR UK, and for Oxfam GB in the South Asia Region and was responsible for human resources for the Sri Lanka Tsunami response based in Colombo. She was also Country Director in Mozambique for Oxfam GB.

As an independent consultant, she also provided human resources and training support to organisations including MSF, European Bank for Reconstruction,  DFID, Transaid, Vision Aid Overseas, Austrian Red Cross and the START Network. Justine is also on the board of trustees for Publish What You Fund, an INGO looking to improved aid transparency and accountability.

Susanna leads HelpAge’s global communications outreach, overseeing media relations, digital strategy and internal communications.

She has more than 20 years’ experience in the media and NGO sectors. Susanna previously held senior communications positions at Amnesty International, where she led the global media team, and at CNN International. She has also worked at the BBC World Service and the British Council.

Sameena started working with HelpAge International as Regional Head of Programmes for Eurasia and the Middle East Region in May 2019.

She is currently Head of Localisation with the key role to lead on the localisation process in the organisation, support with country transition, and delivery of programmatic commitments at country level.

Before joining HelpAge, Sameena has worked for a number of years in the Middle East, South and Southeast Asia, and East and North Africa with international NGOs, leading the country programmes and responding to emergencies in various sectors with a focus on the protection of rights and inclusion and working with partners.

Prior to HelpAge, Sameena worked in Yemen and Iraq with Norwegian Refugee Council and War Child UK, respectively. She holds M.Sc. in Human Resource Development and an M.A. in Public Administration.

Gbenga has a private sector background, having trained with PricewaterhouseCoopers.

He previously worked with Air France before joining Oxfam GB in 2002 and has since remained in the non-profit sector. Gbenga was a Finance Director at Saferworld’s (2018 – 2022) where he led the global finance team in overseeing operations in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.

A fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, he received his Ph.D. in accounting from King’s College London in 2012, focusing on accountability in the non-governmental sector.

Verity leads HelpAge’s work with European governments, the European Union and other regional bodies and actors to strengthen the commitment to older people’s rights in low and middle-income countries, in close coordination with network members.

Since joining HelpAge in 2015, she has held roles leading work across the network on Agenda 2030 and humanitarian advocacy. She played a key role in the establishment of the UN Titchfield City Group on Ageing and has previously chaired the Stakeholder Group on Ageing in New York and the Bond Humanitarian Working Group in London.

Verity has extensive experience in advocacy and working with UN bodies, EU institutions, and governments. Before joining HelpAge, she worked predominantly on children’s rights. She holds a master’s degree in European Affairs and undergraduate degrees in Politics and International Affairs from Cardiff University and Sciences Po Bordeaux.

Carole is a highly experienced lawyer and human rights advocate with more than 25 years’ experience of managing programmes on equality, gender, women’s rights, conflict, and the law in Africa.

Her work has included strategic planning, programme conceptualisation and implementation, advocacy, monitoring and evaluation, fundraising, and partnership development. Carole leads on the development of HelpAge International’s Global Initiatives and is the Regional Representative for Africa.

Prior to joining HelpAge, Carole was the Associate Regional Director, Policy and Advocacy, for the Africa Regional Office of Planned Parenthood Global. She previously worked at the International Women’s Program of the Open Society Foundations and before that was the Africa Program Officer at Equality Now. She has undertaken successful policy advocacy initiatives at the African Union and the United Nations and led projects on inclusion in post-conflict and fragile settings.

Bert leads a small team that seeks to grow HelpAge International’s strategic capabilities to achieve its transformation ambitions by focusing on articulating, activating and embedding key initiatives that will advance the organisation on its transformation journey.

He was previously Head of Programmes for Asia Pacific where he oversaw programmes and partnerships on health and care, humanitarian preparedness and response, social protection and voice.

Bert has worked for 20 years in the development sector in Asia and the Pacific. He has supported programmes, initiatives, partnerships and campaigns in relation to economic justice and climate change. He managed Oxfam’s global climate change campaign in the run up to, during and after the UN climate summit in Copenhagen. Bert managed campaigns in Southeast Asia and country programmes in Vietnam and the Pacific. Bert has a background in international and development economics.

Rhea brings more than 20 years of strategic and operational management experience in humanitarian and development programmes across Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Middle East.

She is deeply committed to advancing the leadership, voice and agency of communities and local organisations within the aid sector. Over the years, she has been involved in capacity strengthening and change management as a consultant, trainer, and a coach in a variety of humanitarian contexts.

Rhea’s thematic areas of expertise includes health and protection programming – with a special focus on ageing and disability inclusion in humanitarian policy and practice. She is a qualified change management professional and has an MBA and a Diploma in Development studies.

Rhea also serves as a trustee on the boards of ELRHA and DePaul International and is a member of the Start Network membership committee.