Our Team

Meet

The Team

Dereje Getu Demissie

Founder, CEO

Dereje Getu Demissie

Founder, CEO

Mr. Dereje Getu, has M.Sc. in Economic Policy Analysis from Addis Ababa University and M.Sc. in Globalization and Development from University of Antwerp, Belgium, and is the co-founder, managing director and principal coordinator of consultancy works at DAB DRT. He possesses more than ten years of experience in research and consultancy. His previous experiences include Lecturer, Research and Community Development Coordinator at Debre Markos University, Researcher at Korea Trade and Investment Agency, Sasakawa Global 2000, and International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). Mr. Dereje also has extensive experience in qualitative research and in collaboration with Wageningen and Groningen University evaluation teams. He evaluated a number of Dutch government-funded NGOs in Ethiopia by using a process-tracing approach, a contemporary technique in qualitative evaluation. He also coordinated an end-line survey of Dutch government-funded MDG projects in Afar, Oromia, and Benishangul regions.

Nuru Hussen Mohammed

Managing Director

Nuru Hussen Mohammed

Managing Director

Mr. Nuru is one of the first employees of DAB-Development Research and Training PLC. He was able to reach to his current post going through the ladder of different posts that ranges from a research consultant to the deputy managing director. Prior to joining DAB-DRT, he had worked at Wolaita Sodo University as a lecturer and a researcher. Nuru earned an M.Sc. degree in Economic Policy Analysis from Addis Ababa University and a BA degree in Economics from Hawassa University. As Managing Director, Nuru is in charge of the overall success of the company and involved in supporting the whole team to deliver successful consultancy assignments. He is also responsible for ensuring the company is achieving its target and involves a sharp focus on searching, winning and delivering consultancy assignments of both a strategic and operational nature over a wide range of government and non-government clients in the development sector. Nuru is a certified international project manager (CIPM) accredited by the American Academy of Project Management. He has extensive experience in managing, implementing, and evaluating international development projects. Nuru had also efficiently handled various consultancy assignments that support and evaluate development programs that are funded by major donors such as the World Bank, USAID, DFID, FAO, UNFPA, UNDP, UNICEF, IOM and other multilateral organizations operating in Ethiopia. Nuru is also known for his ability to find solutions for complex project situations to ensure achievement of the project objectives as per the client expectation and strives hard to deliver results and outputs on time.

Samuel Tekalign Alemu

Deputy Managing Director for Research & Proposal Development

Samuel Tekalign Alemu

Deputy Managing Director for Research & Proposal Development

Samuel has a decade and a half of research, teaching, and team coordination experience in different organizations. He received an M.Sc. degree in Economics (Development Policy Analysis) from Mekelle University in 2012 and a B.S. in Economics from Haramaya University in 2006. Samuel is responsible for leading proposal development tasks as a Deputy Managing Director in charge of Research & Proposal Development at DAB-Development Research and Training PLC. He previously worked as a lecturer, researcher, and community service practitioner at Wolaita Sodo University, as well as social work, tax assessment, and planning expert, and he was the head of the tax administration office for different public organizations. He is a certified higher education trainer with a Higher Diploma Program License from the Ministry of Education. Samuel has training certificates in research methods and data analysis, applied econometrics with software applications (STATA), and statistical software for practitioners and statisticians. He also has ample experience in research proposal writing, literature review, survey instrument design, supervision and coordination of proposal development works and field-level activities, data analysis, report writing, and handling communications with clients and consultants.

Yonatan Getu Demessie

Deputy Managing Director for Operations

Yonatan Getu Demessie

Deputy Managing Director for Operations

As a Deputy Managing Director of Operations at DAB-Development Research & Training PLC, Yonatan handles the company’s internal affairs, design operations strategies, and help human resources build out core teams. He holds two master of art degrees in Marketing Management and Logistics & Supplies Chain Management from Mekelle and Addis Ababa universities. He also has been awarded first-level Kaizen [5S Master and 5S Leader] Certificate from Ethiopian Kaizen Institute with TechnoServe. In his four years at DAB-DRT, Yonatan has practical experience of maintaining and monitoring project plans, project schedules, budgets, and expenditures. He has also been working on organizing, attending and participating in training; preparing necessary presentation materials; delivering training to the clients as needed; coordinating the projects with the project implementation team; supervising large scale survey’s; and supporting the gathering of data to feed into a data system, and. He has been undertaking project tasks as required and providing administrative support as needed. Before joining DAB, Yonatan has worked as Facilitation Manager, Junior Market Data Officer, and Business Development Officer at Ethiopian Airports Enterprise, Ethiopian Commodity Exchange, and Fortune Engineering Plc, respectively. Working at these organizations, he was responsible for providing guidance and support to the airport community, representing airports interests with various stakeholders, and encouraging industry collaboration to identify improvements in passenger processes and the overall seamless travel experience. He develops business and marketing plans; assists in the company’s branding and media communication activities; research the market; approach, follow up, and close business deals with prospective clients. He is a lecturer at Hawassa University College of Business & Economics [Department of Marketing Management] since 2017.

Dr. Wondwosen Getaneh Ejigu

Senior Research Officer

Dr. Wondwosen Getaneh Ejigu

Senior Research Officer

Getahun Siraw

Senior Project Manager

Getahun Siraw

Senior Project Manager

Getahun has ten years of experience working in higher education institutions, consulting firms, and public institutions. He received a Master of Arts (M.A.) degree in sociology from Addis Ababa University in 2019 and a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree in sociology from Wolaita Sodo University in 2014. He previously worked at Dilla University as a lecturer, researcher, and community service practitioner, as well as a senior research officer at Frontieri Consult, where he honed his research and project management skills. Getahun has a strong academic background, exceptional proposal writing skills, rich data collection experience, knowledge of quantitative and qualitative data analysis techniques and software (SPSS, Atlas.ti, Nvivo, Deodoose), project management skills, and a proven track record of publishing 10+ cutting-edge qualitative and quantitative research studies in renowned journals. His research interests focus on a number of societal concerns, with public health, gender, youth, children, IDPs and vulnerability-related issues catching his attention the most. Getahun also has certifications in research methodology and ethics. Getahun currently holds a senior project manager role at DAB, where he leads the project management department by overseeing all projects entrusted to DAB and ensuring that projects are executed on the agreed time, budget, and expected quality. He also actively communicates with clients and consultants across different projects. Getahun is also engaged in proposal writing in his area of expertise.

Dr. Addisu Damtew Atnafe

Senior Research Officer

Dr. Addisu Damtew Atnafe

Senior Research Officer

Addisu Damtew (Ph.D.) received his BA in Geography and Environmental Studies from Wolaita Sodo University. He obtained his MA in Geography and Environmental Studies (Natural Resource and Environmental Management) and Ph.D. in Development Studies (Environment and Development). Dr. Addisu has offered several courses related to Physical geography, including Climatology, geomorphology, and pedology. His research interest includes climate change and extreme event analysis, climate modeling, climate adaptation and mitigation, land use land cover change analysis, watershed management, soil and water conservation, forest management, vulnerability and resilience analysis, food security analysis, ecosystem service, and geospatial technology applications. As a devotee of geospatial data visualization and analysis, Dr. Addisu is a GIS expert for different assignments offered by consultants, senior research officers, and assistant researchers in our company. Dr. Addisu published his MA and Ph.D. works in reputable journals, and now serves his home university as an Assistant Professor and thesis advisor for MSc students and works in different private consultancy. Since he joined our firm, he has won several bids and contributed his part to put our firm to excel in consultancy services.

Dr. Husen Maru Ahmed

Senior Research Officer

Dr. Husen Maru Ahmed

Senior Research Officer

Dr. Husen Maru is a senior research officer at DAB DAB-Development Research & Training PLC. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Geography & Environmental Studies, a Master’s Degree in Natural Resources & Environmental Management, and PhD in Development Studies [Environment and Development Studies] at Addis Ababa University. Husen has been working at Wolaita Sodo University as a lecturer and researcher since 2011. His research areas of interest include natural resources management, water and irrigation, livelihood studies, geospatial analysis, and quantitative and qualitative analyses. He is passionate about designing and executing Spatio-temporal data-driven researches to better inform decision-making in the areas of economic development, livelihood improvement, natural resources management, and geographic information system.

Dr. Tsegay Mebrahtu Gebrezgiher

Senior Research Officer

Dr. Tsegay Mebrahtu Gebrezgiher

Senior Research Officer

Dr. Tsegay holds a PhD, M.Sc and BA degrees in Economics from Andhra University [2018, India], Adama Science & Technology University [2011, Ethiopia] and Haramaya University [2007, Ethiopia], respectively. He also participated in different training like the application of econometric models, Computable General Equilibrium [CGE] Modeling with an application on the future of Ethiopian agriculture, impact evaluation methods…etc. Dr. Tsegay brings a 12-year background in university teaching, research, consultancy and advisory services as well as [supervising, assisting, and overseeing] different projects. In addition to senior researcher officer-ship, he is currently working as a university instructor with the rank of assistant professor at the Department of Economics, Civil Service University. He is passionate about development economics issues, research methodology and quantitative analyses. His expertise covers a broad range of topics and tools such as survey design and impact evaluation methods. At DAB-DRT and Civil Service University, he has developed excellent quantitative skills especially in econometrics, data analysis and statistics. He wrote his PhD dissertation and master’s thesis using different econometric models with STATA and EViews software. He has produced more than 20 winning technical proposals for DAB-Development Research & Training PLC as a research officer. In addition to that, he has been working as a research assistant for principal consultants that are in charge of different projects. He has actively involved in field visit activities as a supervisor and qualitative data collector for many projects.

Messeret Legesse

Associate Consultant – Gender Expert

Messeret Legesse

Associate Consultant – Gender Expert

Mrs. Messeret Legesse is an experienced Ethiopian gender consultant, currently serving as an Associate Consultant with DAB Development Research and Training PLC, while also providing her expertise as an independent advisor. She supports a broad range of development initiatives focused on gender equity, women’s empowerment, and inclusive governance. She holds a Master’s degree in Gender Studies from Addis Ababa University and pursued advanced feminist coursework at Åbo Akademi University in Finland. Beginning her career in the sciences as a chemist and microbiologist, Messeret later shifted her focus to gender advocacy, a path inspired by her passion for social equity. Through her work at our company and as an independent consultant, Messeret delivers a wide range of technical services in gender and social development. Her expertise includes gender audits, GBV and VAW risk assessments, policy development, institutional capacity building, and the design of training manuals. She has also led the creation of anti-GBV and sexual harassment policies, grievance handling procedures, coaching and mentorship materials, and comprehensive gender mainstreaming guides and publications. One of Messeret’s most notable achievements was the establishment of a gender structure within the Ministry of Mines during her tenure at the Geological Survey of Ethiopia. Since then, she has made significant contributions across a wide range of sectors related to women's affairs, including human rights, national elections, the house of representatives, road transport, and other industrial sectors. Notably, she has been involved in numerous high-impact projects with international organizations such as UNICEF, the Packard Foundation, the World Bank, UN Women, the African Development Bank, German Rail Engineering (GRE), and the Global Center for Gender Equality (GC4GE). Her voluntary contributions have included the development of national gender manuals, a gender mainstreaming leveling and database framework, and customized training modules, all reinforcing her commitment to advancing gender equity in Ethiopia. Recognized for her professionalism, insight, and results-oriented approach, Mrs. Messeret Legesse continues to play a meaningful role in shaping Ethiopia’s gender development landscape through her dedication to impactful, inclusive change.

Dr. Befkadu Esayas

Associate Consultant

Dr. Befkadu Esayas

Associate Consultant

Kebede Awgechew W/Tsadik

Project Coordinator

Kebede Awgechew W/Tsadik

Project Coordinator

Mr. Kebede Awgechew works as a senior project coordinator with DAB Development Research & Training PLC. He acquired his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Human Nutrition from Hawassa University. He has coordinated various long and short-term projects for government, non-government, and UN organizations during his three years at DAB-DRT. He has been preparing a detailed fieldwork implementation plan, recruiting data collectors, facilitating, attending, and participating in training sessions, intensive field follow-up, and regularly monitoring project schedules to determine any delays or deviations, ensuring all project activities are completed on time, and sharing relevant documentation and reports with project team members.

Beabtsega Gedlu

Project Coordinator(Qualitative Data Expert)

Beabtsega Gedlu

Project Coordinator(Qualitative Data Expert)

Meet Beabtsega

Born and raised in Addis Ababa, Beabtsega is a dedicated professional with a strong academic and professional background. She earned her Bachelor's degree in Sociology with Distinction from Addis Ababa University. Following her undergraduate studies, Beabtsega worked as a Youth Counsellor at the NGO World Wide Orphans and actively volunteered with various charitable organizations.

With a passion for furthering her education, Beabtsega returned to Addis Ababa University to pursue a Master’s degree in Sociology. During her graduate studies, she took on the role of a junior researcher at the European Institute of Policy Research and Human Rights, while also engaging in project work with multiple consultancy firms. Her hard work and dedication culminated in graduating with a "Very Good" grade.

Over the years, Beabtsega has contributed to a variety of significant projects funded by major organizations such as UNICEF, the World Bank, and the United Nations. She has held diverse roles including Research Assistant, Project Coordinator, Trainer, and Coach.

Currently, Beabtsega continues to make an impact as a Project Coordinator at DAB DRT, where she applies her extensive experience and expertise to drive successful project outcomes.

Mubarek Jenberu Kasye

Software Developer and Technology Officer

Mubarek Jenberu Kasye

Software Developer and Technology Officer

Education: Bachelor's degree in Software Engineering and currently pursuing a master's degree in Global Economy and Business.

With experience in ERP customization and software development, he brings valuable skills to our team.

Mubarek's analytical mindset, attention to detail, and commitment to high-quality solutions make him a valuable asset.

His continuous learning and collaborative approach enhance our capabilities in software development and data management.

Jalene Bekele

Data Manager

Jalene Bekele

Data Manager

Jalene Bekele is a dedicated professional currently serving as a Data Manager at DAB Development Research & Training PLC. She holds a Master's degree in Development Economics from Unity University and a Bachelor's degree in Construction Technology Management. Prior to her current role, she gained valuable experience working with various consultancy firms, further honing her skills and knowledge in the field. As a Data Manager, she has been responsible for developing statistical software and tools such as Survey CTO, Kobo toolbox, ODK, Google Forms, Survey Solution, Comcare, etc., to conduct surveys. and oversee the collection, storage, and analysis of large datasets using Python, SQL, R and Stata, develop and implement data management policies and procedures, ensure data integrity and security through regular audits and maintenance, collaborate with cross-functional teams to identify business needs and provide data driven solutions, data cleaning and create reports and dashboard for visualization using Tableau, Power BI, or Excel to present key client. She collaborates with different departments to support research projects and decision-making processes by providing reliable and timely data insights.

Robel Hagos H/Mariam

Finance Manager

Robel Hagos H/Mariam

Finance Manager

Robel is the Finance Manager at DAB-Development Research & Training PLC. He is responsible for accounting, budgeting, forecasting, processing of all receipts and revenues, payment for all goods and services, scheduling and letting management of all logistic issues, and help human resources to build core teams. Robel holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Finance from Hawassa University. He has extensive experience in preparing financial documents and administering complex project funding mechanisms for major donors including, World Bank (WB), DFID, the EU, KfW – German Development Bank, and AfDB. Before joining DAB, he had worked in a private and public organization in positions including senior accountant, finance and administrative divisions. During his stay at these organizations he acquired a wide range of experiences in the preparation of required audit and financial statements; statutory reports as well as assisting in implementation proper accounting procedure system by collaborating with different NGOs, governmental, and auditing firms.

Mehari Getu

Senior Project Coordinator

Mehari Getu

Senior Project Coordinator

Gesesew Kber

Senior Research Officer

Gesesew Kber

Senior Research Officer

Frewoiny Teklay Kifle

Project Coordinator

Frewoiny Teklay Kifle

Project Coordinator

Tsgereda Abebe

Research Officer

Tsgereda Abebe

Research Officer

Eden Amsalu Debebe

Senior Office Assistance

Eden Amsalu Debebe

Senior Office Assistance

Eden is senior office assistance at DAB DAB-Development Research & Training PLC. She is tasked with handling the company’s internal affairs. Eden holds a Diploma in Information Technology from Adwa TVET. She has practical experience of undertaking a variety of office support tasks and documentation. She handles calendar management; travel and meeting logistics; screening telephone calls and visitors; ascertaining who can be redirected to subordinate management; providing information to callers, and performing receptionist duties when needed. She is also in charge of maintaining a flexible approach in day to day operations to shift focus and support efforts as needed

Konjit Sisay Getachew

Junior Project Coordinator

Konjit Sisay Getachew

Junior Project Coordinator

Bizunesh Lemi Bose

Accountant

Bizunesh Lemi Bose

Accountant

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