Trudi Makhaya is a writer, economist and entrepreneur. In April 2018, she was appointed as full time economic advisor to His Excellency President Cyril Ramaphosa. In this role, she provides analytical support to the President on economic policy. This includes regular input on key issues and initiatives, interfacing with advisory structures and engaging with economic policy stakeholders. Trudi also serves as South Africa’s G20 sherpa.

Before taking up this role, Trudi led Makhaya Advisory, a boutique consulting firm with a focus on helping business navigate economic policy, including competition policy (anti-trust). Trudi has held non-executive directorships at Vumelana Advisory Fund and MTN South Africa.

An active public commentator, Trudi’s columns have appeared in Business Day, Daily Maverick and Acumen. She has also published academic journal articles on competition economics and policy. Trudi holds an MBA and an MSc in Development Economics from Oxford University, where she studied as a Rhodes Scholar. From the University of Witwatersrand, she holds an MCom in Economics, an honours degree in economics and a BCom in Law and Economics.

Trudi was an economist and later a member of the executive committee at the Competition Commission of South Africa from 2010 to 2014. She joined the Commission as Principal Economist, assessing the competitive effects of mergers and acquisitions, analysing complex competition enforcement cases and appearing as an expert witness at the Competition Tribunal. Trudi represented the Commission at various international fora including the OECD, BRICS, International Competition Network and the African Competition Forum.

Prior to joining the Competition Commission, Trudi held various management consulting and corporate roles at Deloitte South Africa, Genesis Analytics and AngloGold Ashanti.