Jesal Kika is an Education Economist and Consultant at the World Bank, supporting operations and providing analytical and advisory support across South Africa, Lesotho, and Eswatini. Her work mainly focuses on early childhood development, foundational learning, and overall education systems strengthening. She is also involved in various research projects in South Africa, with a particular focus on early childhood development.
Prior to joining the World Bank, Jesal worked at the national Department of Basic Education in South Africa, and was responsible for research, monitoring and evaluation activities. She also provided technical support on social sector policy issues to the National Planning Commission Secretariat at the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation under the Presidency of South Africa. Jesal holds a Masters in Economic Science and a Bachelor of Science in Computational and Applied Mathematics and Economics from the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.