Ngao Mubanga

Ngao Mubanga is a Senior Environmental Specialist at the World Bank, where she works across West and Central Africa on issues at the intersection of environment, development, and economic policy. With over a decade of experience, her work has focused on sustainable landscapes, natural resource management, biodiversity, and climate resilience across countries including Zambia, Ghana, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe.

At the heart of Ngao’s work is a strong belief that nature and development must go hand in hand. She has supported governments in shaping climate policies and implementing practical solutions that promote sustainable growth while protecting natural resources and livelihoods.

Ngao has led regional efforts on Natural Capital Accounting (NCA), helping countries better understand and integrate the value of nature into decision-making. From 2019 to 2025, she led the Africa NCA Community of Practice, a dynamic platform that brought together practitioners from across the continent to share knowledge, build capacity, and drive policy uptake in over 20 countries. In 2024, she was honored with the inaugural Natural Capital Young Leaders Prize by Stanford University in recognition of this work.

Before joining the World Bank, Ngao was a Lecturer in Economics at the University of Zambia and a Research Fellow at SAIPAR. She remains deeply committed to evidence-based policy and enjoys creating spaces for dialogue whether through research, presentations, or conversations that challenge and inspire new thinking.

She holds an MSc in Economics from SOAS, University of London, and a BA in Economics from the University of Zambia.