Avril Halstead

• Chief Director, Sectoral Oversight
  National Treasury of South Africa

Avril Halstead is a Chief Director at the National Treasury in South Africa where she has responsiblity for overseeing approximately 40 of the largest state owned enterprises (SOEs). She is also a trustee of the National Empowerment Fund (NEF) a development finance institution with the mandate to promote and facilitate Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment. Prior to joining the National Treasury, Avril worked for McKinsey & Company, Old Mutual and Wipcapital, a subsidiary of Wiphold. She has also worked with a number of NGOs, notably the Nelson Mandela Foundation as well as the Family and Marriage Association of South Africa (FAMSA) and Ikageng, an organisation responsible for caring for HIV/AIDS orphans. Avril has an MBA from the University of Cape Town and an MA in Organisational Consulting from the University of London. She was nominated as a Young Global Leader in 2011. Avril was the South African track athletics champion in the 1500m (1999) and represented the country in both athletics and cross-country.