Meera Shah is Head of the Smallholder Farmer Portfolio at Shell Foundation, where she is responsible for identifying and scaling solutions that enable smallholder farmers in Africa and South Asia to earn a sustainable living income. Previously Meera headed SF’s Household Energy and Off Grid Utilities Portfolio.
Meera currently serves on the board of Persistent (African Climate Venture Builder) and is an Advisory Board Member of Factor[e] (Venture Builder of decarbonised solutions for emerging markets). Meera has 10+ years’ experience in seeding and scaling pioneering social enterprises in Africa and India; providing them with strategic advisory and hands on operational support. She has co-created two social enterprises, served as a Board Observer for SunCulture (IoT enabled solar irrigation equipment), as an Advisory Council Member for Dharma Life (last mile distributor in rural India) and has served on the SF investment committee for three years. Meera led much of SF’s strategic work in last mile distribution and co-authored Last Mile Solutions for Low Income Consumers.
Prior to this, Meera worked for the Shell Group across a range of strategic and commercial roles in London, Milan and Istanbul. She holds a BSc in Economics Politics and International Studies from the University of Warwick. Meera is an alumni of London Business School (LBS) and has been a mentor on the LBS Entrepreneurial Edge Programme.