Mr. Tseliso Steven Lesenya is a senior public-sector executive, governance practitioner and international relations specialist from the Kingdom of Lesotho, with more than two decades of progressive leadership experience spanning central and local government, public-sector reform, democratic governance, international relations, humanitarian affairs and institutional development. He currently serves as Deputy Principal Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Lesotho, where he provides strategic executive leadership and coordination at the centre of government, supporting the implementation of national priorities and strengthening institutional performance, accountability and delivery.
Mr. Lesenya has previously served at the level of Principal Secretary and Chief Accounting Officer, providing executive leadership over Government Ministries and overseeing policy implementation, financial and administrative management, institutional reform and public-sector modernisation. During this period, he led initiatives in digitisation, organisational restructuring and performance-based reform, while managing strategic partnerships with international development institutions including the World Bank, UNDP, European Union and Commonwealth. He also introduced and supervised the national biometric civil service census, contributing to payroll rationalisation and wider public-service reform.
His professional experience is complemented by extensive engagement in democratic governance and continental policy processes. He serves as a National Governance Expert to the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) of the African Union (AU), providing technical and policy expertise on governance, democracy, constitutional order and institutional resilience. His work has included national consultations and policy analysis concerning unconstitutional changes of government, governance reform and democratic institutions, as well as facilitating dialogue among Government, Civil Society and Regional stakeholders.
Mr. Lesenya is also a National Coordinator and International Relations Specialist for the Small States Research Programme at the University of Westminster in the United Kingdom, where he contributes to research and policy dialogue on small-state diplomacy, foreign policy, governance and Lesotho’s geopolitical position. His academic and professional interests include small-state strategy, humanitarian and water diplomacy, crisis governance, public-sector transformation, economic diplomacy, climate resilience and African integration.
His leadership experience also extends to local governance, risk analysis and community resilience. Between 2005 and 2015, he held executive management responsibilities within community and District Councils, overseeing decentralised governance, local development planning, infrastructure, water supply, food security and community programmes. He also led disaster-response coordination and resilience initiatives and worked closely with government Ministries, Development Partners and Traditional Authorities.
Mr. Lesenya has maintained a strong commitment to institutional governance and public service beyond his formal government responsibilities. His leadership and professional service have included roles on the Lesotho Specified Pension Fund, the Disaster Management Authority (co-opted on DMA Board during COVID-19), the Office of the Prime Minister Integrity Committee, and the Lesotho Red Cross Society, Maseru Division (where he has engaged in humanitarian affairs and crisis governance). He has also served in professional and youth leadership capacities and is involved in mentorship and leadership development.
A Chevening Scholar, Mr. Lesenya holds a master’s degree in international relations and Democratic Politics from the University of Westminster, awarded with Merit, as well as degrees in Political Science (Honours specialising in International Relations) and International Relations and History from the University of the Free State and the University of the Witwatersrand respectively. His professional development includes the AAPAM/Chandler Strong Nations Programme and international programmes in crisis management, governance, democratic development and public administration.
He is also an author and policy contributor, with publications and research covering governance, Lesotho’s foreign policy, small-state diplomacy, great-power geopolitics, security-sector governance, artificial intelligence, economic diplomacy and crisis governance. His work has contributed to national and continental policy discourse, and he regularly engages as a commentator on governance and international affairs.
Mr. Lesenya brings together high-level government experience, governance expertise, international policy engagement and a practical understanding of humanitarian and community resilience challenges. His professional outlook is grounded in the principles of accountable leadership, institutional integrity, partnership, service to communities and the strengthening of systems that enable societies to withstand and recover from crises.
He is particularly interested in advancing a more strategic role for humanitarian institutions in crisis preparedness and response, climate resilience, water and humanitarian diplomacy, youth development, food and nutrition security, and sustainable institutional development—areas that connect national development priorities with the humanitarian mission of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.