Roy Kelly

Roy Kelly is Professor of the Practice of Public Policy, Sanford School of Public Policy, Duke University and the Director of the Program on Fiscal Decentralization and Local Government Financial Management. Previously, he spent 19 years with Harvard University at the Kennedy School of Government, the Harvard Institute for International Development (HIID), and the Harvard International Tax Program teaching local government finance, tax analysis and project evaluation.

Kelly has over 25 years of experience in teaching, designing and implementing reforms on fiscal decentralization, local government finance, revenue mobilization and property taxation in Asia, Africa, Latin America and Eastern Europe. He served as a resident adviser to the Prime Minister’s Office Regional Administration and Local Government (Tanzania) from 2007-2009, Ministry of Economy and Finance (Cambodia) from 2005-2007, Ministry of Local Government (Kenya) from 1998-2005, and the Ministry of Finance (Indonesia) from 1982-1988.

He has worked on a short term basis in Albania, Argentina, Bahamas, Cambodia, Chile, Ghana, Guyana, Dominican Republic, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Kenya, Malawi, Mexico, Nepal, Poland, Russia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. Kelly received his MCRP and PhD in Urban Planning from Harvard University.

Areas of Expertise

• Developing Countries
• Economic development
• Finance, Public
• Public Administration
• International economic relations

Education

Ph.D., Harvard University (1985)

M.A., Harvard University (1981)

B.A., West Virginia University (1976)