Dr. Charles Owubah

CEO, Action Against Hunger,

New York, NY, USA

Dr. Charles Owubah leads Action Against Hunger USA’s executive team in providing leadership and strategic direction to more than 1,600 staff across seven countries: Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan, and Haiti. Globally, as the world’s hunger specialist, Action Against Hunger served more than 17 million people in 46 countries in 2019. 

Dr. Owubah is a passionate humanitarian with extensive experience in program design, monitoring and evaluation of relief and development programs. He brings deep technical expertise and analytical rigor in collaborating with local communities on sustainable water and food security programs, delivering emergency relief, and promoting child survival across a global footprint. Dr. Owubah is deeply committed to ending global hunger and saving lives by preventing, detecting, and treating malnutrition. 

Originally from Ghana, Dr. Owubah earned his Master of Science and Ph.D. in Natural Resource Management and Policy from Purdue University. He was an academic and consultant on food aid management before spending nearly 20 years at World Vision in roles of increasing responsibility, including as Regional Vice President for East Africa from 2009 to 2014 and Vice President and Partnership Leader from 2014 to 2018. 

He currently serves on the board of KickStart International. From 2002 to 2007, Dr. Owubah was a member of the Board of Directors of the Pinchot Institute for Conservation, a Washington, DC-based think tank on forest conservation. From 2016 to 2018, he served on the Board of Directors for the Joint Learning Initiative on Faith and Local Communities in Washington, DC. Dr. Owubah was honored with Purdue University’s Distinguished Agriculture Alumnus Award in 2013.