For a young woman growing up in Lusaka, the corridors of Oxford University, the boardrooms of multinational corporations and the chambers of the British Parliament may appear to belong to another world.
But Dr Dambisa Moyo’s life is proof that the distance between a Zambian classroom and the global stage can be crossed with education, courage, discipline and an unwavering belief in one’s own potential.
Born in Lusaka on February 2, 1969, Ms Moyo has grown into one of Zambia’s most internationally recognised economists and authors.
Today, she is a member of the United Kingdom’s House of Lords, sitting as Baroness Moyo of Knightsbridge, and co-principal of Versaca Investments, a family office focused on global growth investing.
She also serves on the boards of major international organisations and corporations, including Chevron, Starbucks, Condé Nast and the National Geographic Society.
Her work focuses on the global economy, geopolitics and financial markets, taking her to more than 70 countries and into conversations about some of the world’s most pressing economic challenges.
But behind those impressive titles is a journey that began with a Zambian family that understood the value of education and ambition.
Ms Moyo was born into a family where professional achievement was already being demonstrated by her parents.
Her father, Dr Stephen Moyo, was an academic and public servant who served as Director-General of the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation.
Her mother, Orlean Moyo, rose to become chairperson of Indo-Zambia Bank.
The example set by her parents appears to have been an important part of the environment in which Dambisa developed.
Her father’s own pursuit of advanced education also exposed the family to life outside Zambia. When Ms Moyo was young, the family spent time in the United States while her father pursued his studies in Los Angeles. Her younger sister, one of Zambia’s celebrated musical talents, Marsha Moyo, was born in Lusaka and travelled with her mother and elder sister to join their father in the United States when she was only three months old.
One of the most fascinating aspects of Ms Moyo’s journey is that economics was not her first academic destination. She studied chemistry, initially at the University of Zambia, before completing her undergraduate degree at American University in Washington, DC, where she obtained a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry in 1991. She subsequently earned an MBA in Finance from the same university in 1993, before pursuing a Master of Public Administration at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.
