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WFSA Staff

The WFSA is led and run by volunteers and is consequently able to keep staff numbers low.

Our small Secretariat supports all aspects of the Federation’s work including programme management, fundraising, membership, volunteering and governance.

Kristine Stave

Chief Executive Officer

Kristine Stave

Prior to taking over as WFSA CEO in June 2022, Kristine was the founding Executive Director and subsequently Global COO of Lifebox, the world’s leading nonprofit dedicated to surgical safety. During her 11 years with Lifebox, the organization distributed over 30,000 pulse oximeters to anaesthesia providers in more than 100 countries, developed a ground-breaking surgical site infection reduction programme (Clean Cut) and delivered capacity-building work across low-resource settings.

Kristine’s earlier career includes time spent working on a range of patient safety and governance issues, including at the World Health Organization in Geneva and at the UK Department of Health.

Niamo Yassin

Governance Manager

Niamo has a strong interest in global health and in governance. Prior to joining WFSA, she worked as a Programme Coordinator for a national clinical audit programme at the Royal College of Physicians, and has previously worked as a Commissioning Assistant within the NHS.  Niamo holds a degree in History and Arabic from SOAS, University of London.

Elizabeth Thompson

Governance & Programmes Officer

Elizabeth has a keen interest in global health and international development stemming from various volunteering experiences in Sierra Leone and Haiti. Having completed her Bachelor’s degree in International Development with Arabic from the University of Sussex, Elizabeth is starting her career in the charity sector with WFSA.  

In her spare time, Elizabeth loves to read and learn however she can, particularly in subjects like literature, theology, philosophy and history. She also loves travelling and exploring new places whenever she can find the time, and actively volunteers in her community. 

Matthew Rothero

Partnerships Manager

Prior to joining WFSA, Matt worked as institutional fundraiser in development and humanitarian contexts for more than 14 years. This includes longer term deployments to the South Caucasus region with Oxfam, working as part as Oxfam’s Syria Crisis Response based in Lebanon, and more recently with ActionAid. This included deployments to Somaliland in response to the East Africa Food crisis, and to Bangladesh as part of ActionAid’s Rohingya Crisis Response. Matt brings extensive experience of fostering relationships with donors, working closely with colleagues to prepare proposals, contract management, and reporting. His voluntary experience includes working with a small Oxford based charity called Asylum Welcome where he acted as a voluntary Youth Support Worker helping to run a youth club for young, male, asylum seekers arriving in the UK. 

Francis Peel

Head of Communications, Advocacy and Digital Learning

Francis has over 15 years’ experience working in communications, marketing and advocacy for global health and not for profit organisations. Prior to joining WFSA, Francis ran Global Health Comms, a consultancy providing communication services to research groups working primarily in public health. His clients included London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, the Economist Group and Imperial College London. He has worked on a wide range of global health issues  including school health and nutrition, neglected tropical diseases, small-holder agriculture, malaria and WASH. When not promoting global health initiatives, Francis can be found at home being given the run-around by his two kids.

Jyoti Shrestha

Communications Officer

Jyoti has over 20 years’ experience in media and development communications, with a strong focus on strategic outreach, storytelling, and community engagement. She has worked with international development and environmental organisations including Legal Response International, Mercy Corps, and WWF Nepal, where she led communication campaigns, developed multimedia content, and supported various global events. Jyoti’s expertise spans communication strategy, knowledge management, and the production of visual and written content across platforms. She began her career as a television and radio presenter in Nepal, and holds a Master’s in Social Work and a Bachelor’s in Mass Communications and Literature. When she’s not crafting communication plans, Jyoti enjoys writing, storytelling—and spoiling her cats.

Rosa Garriga Mora

Digital Learning Officer

Rosa Garriga Mora serves as the Digital Learning Officer at WFSA, where she coordinates ATOTW, UIA, and our other online educational initiatives. With a background in communications and event management, Rosa’s 13 years of prior experience involved collaborating with medical and scientific associations to enhance their online offerings and congresses.

Rosa has a keen interest in developing digital learning solutions that strengthen the knowledge and skills of healthcare professionals, with a strong focus on measuring learning outcomes. 

Amal Paonaskar

Head of Programmes – on sabbatical until 1 Sep 2025

Amal has an academic background in Biomedical Sciences and Global Health. Before joining WFSA, he supported the programmes of Shaishav, a children’s rights organisation working with marginalised children in urban slums and remote regions of India. He has also worked on community-driven projects aimed at supporting education and livelihoods in Nepal and Zambia and spent time working with the NHS in the UK.

Lauren Hyland

Project Manager

Lauren has a keen interest in international relations and development. She completed her Master’s degree in International Relations in 2021 and looks after WFSA’s Fellowships as well as our work on patient blood management.

In her spare time, she works as a fundraising volunteer for the British Red Cross and with Involve Kent in her local community.

Lauren also has a bachelor’s degree in Spanish, which she looks forward to making use of in this role.

Laurie Barnes

Project Manager

Laurie has a keen interest in international development and humanitarian aid. Prior to joining WFSA, she worked with international and local organisations on needs assessments and shelter responses. Laurie holds a master’s degree in international development with conflict and humanitarian action, and specialised in international development management. 

Laurie coordinates our SAFE Programme and leads on WFSA’s scholarship programme, small grants, and awards. 

Clelia Martorelli

Programmes Support

Clelia holds a master’s in management and is fluent in French, English, and Spanish. At WFSA, she supports the Programmes team with SAFE, scholarships, and course implementation. In addition, she leads fundraising and donor relations in a humanitarian organization focusing on malnutrition and access to safe water. In her spare time, she co-founded an NGO in partnership with the French Red Cross and volunteers with children. 

Leslie Enobun

Finance & Operations Manager

Leslie has over 16 years of experience in finance. Prior to joining WFSA, Leslie worked as a Finance Manager at The National Federations of Women’s Institute where he presented the accounts to the Board of Trustees and Finance Committee.

Leslie earned a degree in Accounting from the Ambrose Alli University in Nigeria, where he was born, before moving to England in 2005 to study for a master’s degree at Middlesex University. Leslie also holds an MSc & MA in Financial Management with HR.

When he isn’t working with numbers, Leslie loves to sing, watch films and travel.

Hazi Khader

Finance & Operations Officer

Prior to joining to WFSA, Hazi worked for nearly seven years as a Finance Officer in the children’s charity Coram. She holds a degree in Bachelor of Commerce specializing in Finance & Accounts from Madras University (India). After a busy day at work, she loves to spend time with her family

 

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