Gillian Pais

Gillian Pais is a Partner at McKinsey & Company and the Managing Partner of the firm’s Nairobi office. She leads McKinsey’s work on agriculture, nature, and sustainable land use across Africa. In this role, she advises governments, development partners, and private-sector organizations on strategies that support economic growth while protecting natural resources.

Since joining McKinsey in 2008, Gillian has built deep expertise across agriculture, conservation, clean energy, manufacturing, and rural development. After moving to Kenya in 2015, she became a central figure in shaping McKinsey’s Africa Agriculture Practice and the firm’s global nature initiatives. Consequently, her work has helped countries unlock large-scale financing for conservation, scale agricultural production, and design sustainable business models.

Moreover, Gillian has supported governments and enterprises to protect millions of hectares of tropical forests while creating jobs and strengthening rural livelihoods. Her projects often combine policy reform, private-sector engagement, and investment planning to deliver long-term impact. As a result, her approach bridges environmental goals with economic development.

Before McKinsey, Gillian worked with One Acre Fund in Ethiopia, where she supported programs serving smallholder farmers. This experience strengthened her understanding of on-the-ground agricultural systems and farmer needs.

Gillian holds a Master’s degree from the University of Chicago and a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Toronto. Through her leadership, she continues to advance climate-smart agriculture, conservation finance, and inclusive growth across Africa’s agri-food systems.