Lesedi Senamele Matlala

Dr. Lesedi Senamele Matlala is a Public Policy, Monitoring and Evaluation specialist and a Lecturer in the School of Public Management, Governance and Public Policy at the University of Johannesburg. He holds a PhD in Public Management, Governance, and Evaluation, with a research focus on the use of social media as a tool for citizen-based monitoring in South Africa.

He teaches and supervises both undergraduate and postgraduate students in areas related to public policy, monitoring and evaluation (M&E), and digital governance studies. Prior to entering academia, Dr Matlala accumulated over eight years of experience as a consultant, working with private organisations, government departments, NGOs, and development agencies across the globe.  Dr. Matlala is a Fulbright candidate and currently serves as a Visiting Researcher at Michigan State University (MSU), where he collaborates on international governance and development research initiatives.

Dr. Matlala is an active member of some of the most prominent global evaluation networks, including the African Evaluation Association (AfrEA), European Evaluation Society (EES), American Evaluation Association (AEA), South African Monitoring and Evaluation Association (SAMEA), Canadian Evaluation Society (CES), and the Africa Evidence Network (AEN).

In the field of public administration, Dr. Matlala holds membership in the Association of Southern African Schools & Departments of Public Administration and Management (ASSADPAM) and the South African Association of Public Administration and Management (SAAPAM).

Beyond his academic and professional responsibilities, Dr. Matlala is strongly committed to youth development and volunteerism. He currently serves as a mentor for the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), the SAMEA Emerging Evaluators programme, and the EvalYouth Global Network. He is also actively involved in the Young and Emerging Evaluators (YEE) community, where he contributes to capacity-building efforts for early-career evaluators across Africa.

Dr. Matlala also serves as a Board Member for AccessEd, an international widening participation organisation that connects postgraduate researchers with under-resourced high schools to improve academic access and inclusion. Through AccessEd and other platforms, he has contributed to the co-design of research-based curricula and youth-led evaluation initiatives.