Archives: Speakers

Ali Djire is a Managing Director at CrossBoundary Advisory, where he leads investment advisory work focused on unlocking capital for SMEs and priority sectors across West Africa. Ali is passionate about finding creative financing solutions for businesses in Africa, and has extensive experience structuring and implementing blended finance solutions, risk-sharing facilities, and bank engagement models… Read more »

“Einars is Co-founder & CEO of Conserve Safari, a luxury safari operator developing safari real estate across Tanzania’s most iconic wildlife ecosystems. Conserve Safari operates at the intersection of high-end hospitality, conservation, and private investment — building properties that are designed from the ground up to deliver both exceptional guest experiences and long-term asset value…. Read more »

“Susan Chen is Managing Director at New Trails Capital, a growth-stage investment fund in emerging markets. She is a founder, angel investor, and operator, having launched ventures including an innovation school, a B2B platform, and a crypto exchange. Susan spent 10 years at McKinsey, worked hands-on at Jumia, and led corporate strategy at Transsion, before… Read more »

“As Director and Head of Africa at Convergence, Aakif works with key stakeholders, such as governments, development finance institutions, and commercial investors, to mainstream blended finance across investment, portfolio management, and policy. To this end, he has worked closely with UNDP, Sweden International Development Agency, Global Affairs Canada, African Development Bank, Private Infrastructure Development Group,… Read more »

“Dr ,Clinton Mawanda is a specialized business advisor who helps organizations develop, implement, and improve their sustainability and ethical practices. He ensure corporate strategies align with regulatory requirements, reduce operational risks, and meet investor expectations. He blends deep technical knowledge of sustainability frameworks and regulatory compliance with strong financial modeling and stakeholder communication skills. He… Read more »

“Stanley is a seasoned business, technology, and operations professional with experience across corporate strategy, supply chain, sourcing, analytics, AI, and business development. Over the course of his career, he has worked with several Fortune 500 and leading global companies, including Walmart, Office Depot, Motorola, Bosch, and SpaceX. He is Co-Founder of FreightLynk AI and a… Read more »

Judy Kinyanjui is an accomplished finance professional with over 20 years of experience managing and growing Norfund’s financial inclusion portfolio through investments in financial institutions across Sub Saharan Africa. In addition, she has the led the East African operations at Oikocredit and served as a board director in multiple financial institutions.

Ben leads Aqua-Spark’s Africa Fund and has been based in Kenya for the last 13 years. Prior to joining Aqua-Spark, he was Investment Director at Gatsby Africa, and lead various other initiatives to invest in and transform high potential sectors across East Africa with Gatsby. Ben has also worked in strategy consulting, impact investment and… Read more »

“Ram is a Partner at Kasada and leads transactions across Kasada’s target economies. He has 20 years of experience in global real estate private equity and operations across North America, India and SSA. Prior to joining Kasada, Ram was based in Dar es Salaam where he was CEO of Village Supermarket, a regional Supermarket chain… Read more »

“Gilbert Anyetei is an experienced investment professional with a passion for empowering entrepreneurs to build and scale high-impact ventures across Africa. With a strong track record in venture capital, private equity, and financial advisory, he brings a unique blend of strategic insight, hands-on experience, and financial expertise to the innovation economy. Gilbert currently serves as… Read more »