Aleem Walji

Aleem Walji is the Practice Manager of World Bank Institute’s Innovation Team. He oversees the Development Marketplace program which provides social entrepreneurs access to early stage, mezzanine, and growth financing for the delivery of public goods.

He also oversees ICT for Development projects focused on Open Government, Transparency and Accountability. As part of his role, Aleem leads efforts related to Innovation@Work including the Bank's competition management platform (or Innovation Radar) designed to surface solutions to complex development problems from within and outside the World Bank. 

Prior to joining WBI, Aleem served as a Head of Global Development Initiatives at Google.org, with a focus on eastern Africa. He led efforts related to increasing transparency and accountability in government and supporting the growth of small and medium-size enterprises in Africa. Aleem was also the first CEO of the Aga Khan Foundation in Syria. His particular interests lie in rural economic development, entrepreneurship, and public-private partnerships. He completed his bachelor's degree in Near Eastern Studies and Anthropology from Emory University and his master's degree in International Development and Regional Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Read his article on Innovations in Development: Where Traditional Markets Fail.