collaborate

Conference Chair

H.E. Ambassador Josefa Leonel Correia Sacko
Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture
African Union Commission (AUC)

H.E. Ambassador Josefa Leonel Correia Sacko, an Angolan national, is a leading African Agronomist and Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy, and Sustainable Environment of the African Union Commission. Prior to her election in January 2017, she was Special Adviser to two Ministers in Angola: The Angolan Minister of Environment where she also served as Ambassador responsible for Climate Change and advisor to the Minister of Agriculture in charge of Food Security and Poverty Reduction. Ambassador Sacko was also the former Secretary General of the Inter- African Coffee Organization (IACO), Abidjan Cote D’Ivoire for 13 years. In recognition of her meritorious service, Amb Sacko has received numerous awards and recognition. Since 2018, Amb. Josefa Sacko has served as a member of the United Nation’s Champions 12.3-a global coalition of sustainable food champions; At the invitation of the United Nations Secretary-General, she joined the Scale Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement Lead Group in May 2019 in recognition of her strong commitment to the fight against malnutrition; she was named one of the 100 most influential people in climate policy in March 2019 for her efforts towards influencing climate policy in Africa; awarded the Prix De La Foundation 2019 by Crans, Montana, Brussels Belgium for her efforts to empower rural women on November 16, 2019; and one of the 100 Most Influential Africans by New African in December 2019 for holding African governments to account for their commitment to agriculture and defending the interests of African farmers. Ambassador Sacko is multilingual. She speaks fluent Portuguese, French, English, Spanish and Lingala.

Ministers

Hon. Ms. Paula Francisco
Secretary of State for Environment
Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Environment, Angola

H.E. Paula Francisco, an Angolan national, is a leading Environmentalist, Manager and Politics. She was Minister of Environment, prior her appointment as Secretary of State, under Government Reform in 2020, also being the only Secretary of State for Biodiverity and Conservation Areas from 2012-2017. Apart of that she has a carrier within Ministry also thru National Director to Proejct Coordinators and Focal Point and others. In her activities, she represents the country in many nationals and international forum, to which also represent H. E. President of Republic of Angola. In her technical capacity, includes the Managment of the Environmental Fund, GEF GGGI and GCF Unities and serves as Focal Point to many Conventions and Treaties that Angola Ratified, as per Curriculum.

Hon. Mr. Lee White
Minister
Ministry of Forests, Seas and Environment, Gabon

Hon. Lee White was appointed Minister of Water and Forestry in Gabon 2019. A naturalised Gabonese citizen for more than 12 years

Hon. Dr. Mahad Hassan
Deputy Minister
Ministry of Ports and Marine Transport of Somalia

H.E Dr. Mahad Mohamed Hassan obtained his MBBS degree from the Benadir University & he did his MPH from UPM as Epidemiologist, He is certified in medicine and public health. He is currently Deputy Minister of ports and marine transport in the Federal Government of Somalia. He director National Humanitarian Coordination Center NHCC 2018-2020. Head of Non-communicable Diseases Unit in the Directorate of Health of the Somalia Ministry for Human Development and Public Service 2012-2017. He was a Lecturer in Nutrition and Dietetics at Benadir University Faculty of Medicine. He has been a member of the team working on developing the Somalia Health Sector Strategic Plan. He has been working since 2011-2012 with the World Assembly of Muslim Youth WAMY as country medical coordinator. Since late 2009-2011, He has been a Physician based at Aden Abdulle Osman Hospital Mogadishu, Somalia, handling mainly patients complaining from NDCs namely Hypertension, Diabetes, Renal failure and etc. He participated in a regional meeting on the prevention and control of NCD & risk factors Kuwait 29-30, 2013 also he attended the 7th WHO-IUMSP NCDs INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR, 3-8 June 2013, Lausanne, Switzerland. He is a member of the RAN Forum ( Resilience African Network )

Hon. Mr. Soares Cassama
Minister
Ministry of Environment and Biodiversity, Guinea Bissau

Viriato Luís Soares Cassama holds numerous degree - Degree in Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universidade Nova de Lisboa – 1997, a Masters in Georesources (Natural Resources Management), scientific area (Geosystem) from the Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade Technical University of Lisbon (UTL) – 2006; Postgraduate in Adaptation to Climate Change, University of Oxford, UK, 2013 and is a Doctoral Student in Global Studies, Universidade Aberta, Portugal. Other numerous positions include being the Director General for the Environment (2016-2020), Project Coordinator of “Promoting Climate Smart Agriculture in Eastern Guinea-Bissau” until February 2020; the National Coordinator of the REDD+ Working Group (2015); Coordinator of the Project “Strengthening the Resilience and Adaptation Capacity of the Agricultural and Water Sectors to Climate Change in Guinea-Bissau” UNDP/GEF (2011-2017); Technical Adviser for Political and Strategic Environmental Affairs to the Secretary of State for Environment and Sustainable Development (2009-2012) amongst others senior positions. He is also researcher in the field of Remote Detection of Changes in Land Cover, Vegetation Cartography, Geographic Information Systems. He was appointed Minister of Environment and Biodiversity, under the leadership of Prime Minister Nuno Nabiam.

Hon. Prof. Fekadu Aleka
Commissioner
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate change Commission (EFCCC), Ethiopia

H.E. Prof Fekadu Beyene Aleka is the Commissioner of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Commission of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. He previously served as Minister, University Professor, researcher, Institute, program and project leader, and also actively involved in the development of Debub University /Hawassa University. He has also served as chairperson and member of several international and national task forces and steering committee

Hon. Hassan Karneh
Deputy Minister for Research Planning and Policy
Ministry for Research, Planning and Policy, Liberia

Deputy Minister for Research Planning and Policy at the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection Mr. Hassan Karneh has rolled out remarkable achievements the Ministry has achieved within a period of a year

Hon. Mrs. Baomiavotse Vahinala Raharinirina
Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development
Ministry of Environment, Ecology and Forests, Madagascar

PhD in environmental economics and natural resources, sustainability and passionate patriot at heart, Baomiavotse Vahinala Raharinirina decided to lend a hand in rebuilding her country after 17 years in Europe where she combined research and teaching and Consulting. She did not hesitate for one moment to the call of the President of Republic of coming back to the country to lead the Environment and Sustainable Development Department. Although she regularly came to Madagascar for her teaching and research activities, but also associative and entrepreneurial, making the choice to return definitively to Madagascar may seem surprising when the trend observed among young people in the diaspora is rather to seek to stay in expatriation.

Keynote Speakers

Jean-Paul Adam (Panel Chair)
Director, Technology, Climate Change and Natural Resource Management Division
United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA)

Jean-Paul Adam is the Director for Technology, Climate Change and Natural Resources Management in the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa. Prior to taking on this role, he served in the Government of the Republic of Seychelles in several Cabinet positions. He was Minister of Health from 2016 to 2019. He served as Minister of Finance, Trade and the Blue Economy from 2015 to 2016 where he negotiated a debt for climate change adaptation swap and launched the process for Seychelles to become the first issuer of a Blue Bond. Between 2010 and 2014, he was Seychelles’ Minister of Foreign Affairs, where he advocated for countries to embrace the concept of the Blue Economy, to improve sustainability for island and coastal countries.
Before entering the Cabinet, between 2005 and 2009, he occupied several senior roles in the Office of the President of the Republic of Seychelles including Director General for presidential affairs, Principal Secretary for the Office of the President and Secretary of state in the presidency. He started his career as a career diplomat in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs between 2001 and 2004. He is a holder of a Masters in International Political Economy form the University of Manchester (UK) and a BA in English Literature and French from the University of Sheffield (UK).

Dr. Simeon Ehui
Central and Western Africa Regional Director for Sustainable Development
World Bank Group

Dr. Simeon Ehui is the Africa West Regional Director for Sustainable Development. Prior to his appointment, Simeon was Director of the World Bank’s Food and Agriculture Global Practice (2017-2019). Since joining the World Bank in 2003, Simeon has held a number of assignments. He was manager of the Food and Agriculture Global Practice for Africa (2015-2017) and South Asia (2009-2015). Simeon holds a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics from Purdue University and has published extensively in his field. He is an honorary fellow of the African Agricultural Economist Association, and a Distinguished Agricultural Alumnus of Purdue University.

Karin Isakson
Managing Director
Nordic Development Fund (NDF)

Ms Isaksson has 30+ years’ experience from project finance mainly in emerging markets and the private sector. Before joining NDF in August 2019, she served for three years as Executive Director to the African Development Bank, representing the constituency of Denmark, Finland, India, Norway, and Sweden. Previous to this she held the position of Vice President at Business Sweden (the Swedish trade and investment promotion agency) and Director positions at Swedfund (the Swedish bilateral DFI), as well as positions in Swedish ECAs. During Ms Isaksson’s first year at NDF, the organisation has successfully completed a strategic review and closed a capital increase of EUR 350 million from its five Nordic member states, thereby increasing the capital base of NDF to enable NDF to expand the annual work program by approximately 50%.

Prof. Petteri Taalas
Secretary-General
World Meteorological Organization (WMO)

Professor Petteri Taalas has been the Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization since 1 January 2016 and is now serving his second four-year term in office. Prior to that he was Director General of the Finnish Meteorological Institute. Professor Taalas advises the United Nations Secretary-General on issues relating to climate change mitigation and adaptation. He is a leading advocate for increased investment in the basic weather and climate observation and multi-hazard early warning systems, especially in Africa and Least Developed Countries. These are fundamental to achieving the international agenda on climate action, disaster risk reduction and sustainable development.

H.E. Ibrahima Cheikh Diong
United Nations Assistant Secretary General (ASG) and Director General, African Risk Capacity (ARC) Group
Africa Risk Capacity (ARC)

Ibrahima has over 30 years of professional leadership and management experience in Africa, USA, Europe and Asia. He is currently serving as United Nations Assistant Secretary General and Group Director General (GDG) of the African Risk Capacity Group. Graduated from the prestigious School of Int'l and Public Affairs (SIPA) at Columbia University in New York City with a Master’s degree in Int'l Affairs (MIA) specialized in int'l finance, public and environmental policy. He also holds a BSc. of Civil Eng. specialized in water res. mgmt from Hohai Int'l Un., Nanjing, People's Rep. of China. He also holds a diploma in PPP Design.

Dr. Anthony Nyong
Regional Director – Africa
Global Centre on Adaptation (GCA)

Dr. Nyong, a Nigerian, holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Geography and Regional Planning from the University of Calabar, Nigeria; a Master’s Degree in Land Surveying from Ahmadu Bello University, Nigeria; a Ph.D. in Geography (Environment and Natural Resources Management) from McMaster University, Ontario, Canada and a Post Graduate Diploma in Global Business (Energy) from the University of Oxford, UK. He is also a Senior Executive Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, USA.

Michael Rattinger
Senior Officer
European Investment Bank (EIB)

Speakers

Tendayi Marowa (Panel Chair)
Chairman of Technical Committee on Energy/ Energy Management and Climate Change Mitigation Consultant
Business Council for Sustainable Development Zimbabwe.

Tendayi Marowa is a mechanical engineer by profession, and is working as an Energy Management and Climate Change Mitigation Consultant at Comprehensive Energy Solutions, and is Chairman of the Energy Technical Committee of Business Council for Sustainable Development-Zimbabwe (BCSDZ). Currently, he is actively involved in Zimbabwe’s national programmes.

Atef Marzouk
Acting Director, Department of Infrastructure & Energy,
African Union Commission (AUC)

Mr. Marzouk is a holder a Master degree in New and Renewable Energy Faculty of Engineering, Cairo University. Over 20 years, Mr. Marzouk has served in the electrical energy production from renewable energy especially from wind turbine, energy strategies and policies, international cooperation, he has held various posts among which: Manager of the Zafaran, wind farm the biggest wind farm in the Middle East and North Africa, in the New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA), Egyptian Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy, Senior Engineer at the Haurgahada demonstration wind farm.

Andrew Dowell
CEO
GRV Global

Founder and CEO of GRV Global, Andy is passionate about addressing global challenges related to climate change, clean energy, disaster resilience and relief, health, and peacekeeping through world class events and digital communities that deliver positive environmental and humanitarian impact. He was previously Board Director of the senior management team that created Cavendish Group - a B2B media company with a special focus on the BRIC emerging markets. Andy was awarded "Best Environmental Events Business Leader UK" in the Global CEO Excellence in 2018.

Hancox Jaoko
Regional Energy Advisor
United States Agency for International Development (USAID)

Hans Jaoko is an international award-winning energy professional with 30 years of experience leading and managing multimillion-dollar projects for organizations across such sectors as energy, environment, and business and entrepreneurship. He is a respected leader of innovative teams, energy projects and corporate communications departments. Hans is currently focused on Regional Power Trade and power pool development and the lead for Geothermal Resource development under Power Africa in addition to issues related to programming development in post-conflict countries. Hans is currently with the Power Africa team based in Nairobi, Kenya. He is currently supporting partnership between the US Government and regional authorities and utilities to achieve the goal of establishing an integrated power market in Eastern Africa for 10 countries in Eastern and the Horn of Africa. He also detailed with USAID’s Development Democracy and Innovation developing evidence base that explains the importance of climate change mitigation activities in emerging economies that do not currently have high emissions, refining USAID’s and global reporting system for greenhouse gas emissions reductions to harmonize global climate reporting as well as support the development of DDI services to the USAID field mission as well as methodologies for USAID missions to develop programming options with the maximum impact on climate objectives. Hans holds Ph.D. in Environmental Science, MSc in Renewable Energy and BSc as well as Postgraduate Diploma in Communication specializing in development support communications and certificate in Project Finance, among others.

Nopenyo Dabla
Programme Officer Sub-Saharan Africa
International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA)

Nopenyo Dabla is Programme Officer for the Sub-Saharan Africa region at the International Renewable Energy Agency, which he joined in January 2016. He currently coordinates the Agency’s engagement in the Sub-Saharan Africa region. In that capacity, Nopenyo works to support governments, sub-regional and continental efforts and initiatives for an increased uptake of renewables with the view of increasing socioeconomic development that comes with the energy transition.
Prior to joining IRENA, Nopenyo has gained experience in working amongst others at the World Wind Energy Association as well as national NGOs working to promote renewables in rural electrification and rural development approaches.

Eng. Alison Chikova
Chief Engineer (Planning & Operations)
Southern Africa Power Pool (SAPP)

Engineer Alison Chikova is the Chief Engineer responsible for Planning and Operations at the Southern African Power Pool. He holds a Master of Science Degree in Electrical Engineering from Kharkov Engineering Institute, in Ukraine, having specialised in Electrical Power Networks and Systems. He graduated in 1992. He worked for the Ministry of Energy as an Energy Research and Development Officer in Zimbabwe for 3 years. In 2001 he joined the Southern African Power Pool where he is responsible for technical issues including generation and transmission integration studies for the Interconnected SAPP Grid. He is also taking part in the development of the competitive, balancing and ancillary services markets in SAPP. He has been instrumental in developing transmission pricing arrangements in SAPP

Nadja Haakansson
Managing Director for Africa
Siemens Energy (Pty) Ltd

Nadja Haakansson was appointed Managing Director of Africa for Siemens Energy, on April 1, 2021. Based in Morocco, Nadja is responsible for supporting Siemens Energy’s business across the continent and developing opportunities to meet the challenges of the energy transition, while improving access to stable, affordable, and sustainable energy. A major focus for her in the role of Managing Director is empowering women and minorities, supporting diversity, and advancing the development of local skills, talents, and industry. Since October 2019, Nadja Haakansson has been the Vice President for Energy Services, Region Africa and Managing Director Morocco and Ivory Coast at Siemens Energy. In her spare time, Nadja loves spending time with her husband and two children, reading, jogging as well as listening to music.

Dr. Rafatou Fofana
Director of the Observatory of Water Resources and Associated Ecosystem
Volta Basin Authority

Rafatou Fofana, PhD in Hydrology and Integrated Water Resources Management at the International Chair in Mathematical Physics and Applications (www.cipma.net). She has a background in Hydraulics with Master degree in water and Environmental Engineering at the International Institute for Water and Environmental Engineering (2iE) Ouagadougou- Burkina Faso. She has been working in the water sector since 1998 at national and regional level. Since 2020 she has been appointed as the Ag. Director of the Observatory of Water Resources and associated Ecosystem at VBA headquarter in Ouagadougou Burkina Faso. Currently she is mainly involved in climate change and water resources issues, especially in flood and drought management at transboundary level in the Volta Basin. She is member of ECOWAS Climate change Expert Group. She is also member of PIDA Water Expert Group ; (Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa – PIDA)

Dr. Kanta Kumari Rigaud (Panel Chair)
Lead Environment Specialist, Climate Change Coordinator, Africa Region
World Bank Group

Dr. Kanta Kumari Rigaud is a Lead Environmental Specialist and Regional Climate Change Coordinator in the Africa Region of the World Bank Group. She is a leading expert on climate adaptation and resilience and works on climate policy, strategy and knowledge management. She led the development of the World Bank’s Next Generation Africa Climate Business Plan; and is working on programs in Kenya and Uganda and provides advice on multiple other countries. Her passion and leadership is reflected in the pioneering flagship report on Groundswell - Preparing for Internal Climate Migration; the World Bank’s Climate and Disaster Risk Screening tools; and most recently in the Resilience Booster tool. She has a doctorate from the University of East Anglia in the United Kingdom.

Stuart Mangold
Senior Policy Advisor: Africa & Bilateral Relations
Department of Environmental Affairs, Government of South Africa

Stuart Mangold currently holds the position of Senior Policy Advisor: Africa and Bilateral Relations, National Department of Forestry and Fisheries and the Environment, based in Pretoria, South Africa since 2007. He is responsible for policy, research, negotiation, as well as monitoring and reporting on African and South-South international engagements. He studied at Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa and holds a B.Sc. in Life Sciences, an Honours Degree in Ichthyology and Fisheries Science as well as a Higher Diploma in Journalism and Media Studies. He is a graduate and Fellow of the Leadership for Environment and Development (LEAD) Programme, an international post-graduate programme for mid-career professionals in environment and sustainable development.

Aklilu Fikresilassie
Director, Thriving Resilient Cities, WRI Africa
World Resources Institute (WRI)

Aklilu has more than 17 years of professional leadership and technical experiences in the field of Urban Development and Management as well as managing government and non-governmental programmes. Prior to joining WRI, Aklilu spent 7 years at United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) as a Programme Manager, representing the agency in Ethiopia. while working with the UN-Habitat, among others, Aklilu has successful represented the agency in the United Nations Country Team and played a key role in position the urban agenda in the UN joint plans/programs (UNDAF/UNSDCF). He also worked with UNDP in South Sudan as Planning Specialist and team leader. Further, Aklilu led the bureau of Finance and Economic Development, managing government, bilateral and multilateral programmes.

Eng. Raphael Sigauke
Acting Deputy Director
Ministry of Transport & Infrastructure Development, Zimbabwe

Raphael is an Engineer with presentations that challenge audiences to leverage their focus and pay attention to infrastructure development and financing in this climate change era. He has 9 year experience in Transport and Infrastructure development. Raphael has an MSc in Climate change and Sustainable development. His strong background in Civil engineering and Project management makes him a perfect fit in sustainable Infrastructure development. His strong desire and interest are to present solutions in future-proofing Infrastructure ranging from its design, financing, development, and maintenance.

Ali Osman
AFR100 Focal Point
Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources and Physical Development, Sudan

Mr. Ali Hamid Osman Ali has a B.Sc. Juba University 1994 and M.Sc, Gezira University 2009 in the fields of Environmental and Natural Resources Management. Extensive experience in rural development more than 20 years, in the fields of natural resources, forestry, agriculture, poverty alleviation, resilience and human development (including gender mainstreaming) in arid and semi-arid zones, baseline surveying, socio-economic surveying and biophysical surveying, land restoration and food security. He is experienced in Environmental and Social Safeguards ESMF, ESMP and EIA , Climate Change Adaptation, Mitigation and Resilience for about 12 years. He also has a good of experience in in post conflict areas of the African continent for about 6 years. He is well versed in program and project management, with good coordination, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation (results-based M&E) skills and the AFR100 Sudan Focal Point under the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

Nora Berrahmouni
Senior Forestry Officer
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

Ms. Nora Berrahmouni is a forest ecologist, specialized on Drylands. With over 20 years of experience, she is currently the Senior forestry officer and Secretary of the FAO African Forestry and Wildlife Commission, at the FAO Regional Office for Africa. She leads climate action and sustainable natural resources management work in the region. Nora’s interest and focus is the role of forests and agro-silvo-pastoral systems in food security and nutrition, combating climate change, desertification and biodiversity loss. She leads FAO’s support programme to Africa’s Great Green Wall Initiative and AFR100.

Stephen Dorey
Public Health Specialist
World Bank Group

Stephen is responsible for the operational and technical work of the Health - Climate and Environment Program (H-CEP) managed by the Health, Nutrition and Population (HNP) Global Practice (GP). Also coordinating the Cross-Sectoral Pillar (CSP) of the World Bank's COVID-19 Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) in the HNP GP.

Sanjay Srivastava (Panel Chair)
Practice Manager, Environment, Natural Resources and Blue Economy
World Bank Group

Sanjay Srivastava is the World Bank Manager of the Environment, Natural Resources and Blue Economy Global Practice in Africa. He is a trained Environmental Engineer with more than 30 years of development experience with focus on environment and climate change agenda, including 15 years in Africa and South Asia region; and several years with private sector (manufacturing and environmental consulting companies), public sector , donors and non-government organization (conservation NGO). He has been involved in high level policy dialogue with on managing environmental risks in infrastructure and sustainable development, making a business case to mitigate environmental degradation, protecting biodiversity, and promoting cleaner production process to improve productivity and prevent pollution Currently, he leads a team promoting green, clean and resilient development outcomes in multiple countries and development sectors in West and Central Africa.

Dr. Philip Osano
Center Director
Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) - Africa Center

Philip Osano is Director of Stockholm Environment Institute Africa Center. He previously served as Deputy Director, Capacity Development and Partnership, and Programme Leader, Natural Resources and Ecosystems at SEI. His interest is in environmental policy, development, and international affairs. Philip has 20 years of experience in applied research, project coordination, policy analysis, and teaching and has worked in 20 countries in Africa and Asia, as well as Canada and the United States. He is currently the Vice-Chair of the Advisory Board of the United Nations University – Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS) in Japan.

Teresa Gitonga
Kenya Programme Manager
International Tree Foundation

Teresa Gitonga work with International Tree Foundation as Kenya programme Manager, Previously she worked as a Senior Programme Manager (Gender, Livelihoods and Advocacy) at the Green Belt Movement which was founded by the late Nobel Laureate Wangari Maathai. Teresa Studied Environmental Science at the undergraduate level and a Master’s degree in Project Planning and Management from the University of Nairobi. Teresa has 15 years’ experience empowering Grassroot community-based organisations in managing the environment, forest and water resource management, programme Coordination, livelihoods diversification, Resource Mobilization and gender integration in Natural resource management. In her free time, Teresa love walking and Exploring nature.

Excellent Hachileka
Climate Change Specialist
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

Excellent Hachileka holds an MSc in Environmental Management and a Bachelor of Arts in Physical Geography. He has over 30 years of experience in Applied Ecology, Biodiversity and Ecosystems Management, Environmental Science and Management, Climate science and Climate change policy, Development work, Capacity development and in Programme/project development and Management. Excellent is a Climate Change Policy Specialist at the RSCA since January 2015 with a focus on all aspects of climate change action and policy.

Dr Peter Mbile
Senior Field Programs Coordinator
World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)

Dr Peter Mbile is currently, Senior Field Programs Coordinator at the World Wide Fund for Nature, Cameroon. Peter holds a PhD in Forest Economics and Management from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria; a MSc in Resource Management from Edinburgh University, Scotland - UK and a BSc in Forestry and Soil Sciences from University College North Wales - UK. Before joining WWF, Peter has been Technical Coordinator West Africa Biodiversity and Climate Change Program, Ghana; IUCN Regional Coordinator, West and Central Africa for Landscape Restoration, Yaoundé; Senior Associate at the World Resources Institute, Washington DC; Associate Scientist at the World Agroforestry Centre, amongst others.

Elvis Tangem
Coordinator
African Union Commission (AUC)

A Sustainable Development, biodiversity conservation, Climate change, & value chains development professional with over 20 years of professional experience in the United Kingdom, Africa, Asia with various National & International Development Organizations including UN FAO, TREE AID International, Watershed Task Group and others in the domains of research, projects cycle, in the sectors of agriculture and forest products value chains, sustainable development, conservation and Climate change, Sustainable Land Management, restoration, amongst others. He has also initiated and been pioneer member of several initiatives including the Cameroon traditional Rulers against Climate; He is currently serving at the African Union Commission as the Coordinator for the Great green Wall for the Sahara and Sahel Initiative. He holds a Ph.D., an MSc in Ecology from The University of Edinburgh, and other Higher education certificates and diplomas. Member of the Institute for Environment Science and Certified Development Project Manager.

Tabi H Joda
Executive Director
GreenAid International - One Billion Trees for Africa

Tabi Joda is an award winning indigenous agroforester, author and eco-entrepreneur. He works principally on local communities’ forest restoration, ecosystems resilience and value-chain development. He is CEO of GreenAid and leads “One Billion Trees for Africa,” an initiative that has planted over 3 million trees between 2010 – 2020, restored over 80 hectares of land and created 77 forest landscape restoration (FLR) jobs. He is the winner of 2017 Africa prize for Climate Information Services Innovation by ACPC-UNECA and President Yuweri Museveni Environmental Award 2017. He was African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative (AFR100) Youth Ambassador for 2018 and Africa Great Green Wall Initiative.

Dr. Holger Kray (Panel Chair)
Practice Manager, Agriculture and Food Global Practice
World Bank Group

Dr. Holger A. Kray is Practice Manager for Agriculture and Food Security in the World Bank’s Africa Sustainable Development Group, in addition to which he also coordinates economic and other policy work related to sustainable development in the region. Holger is an agricultural economist with expertise in agricultural policy and rural strategy reform, climate-smart and sustainable agriculture and public sector management. He has extensive working experience across Africa, Europe and Central Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. He holds a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics from Kiel University, Germany.

Dr. Jethro Zuwarimwe
Senior Lecturer
University of Venda

I am currently a Senior Lecturer in the Institute for Rural Development in the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Agriculture at the university of Venda. To date I have supervised and successfully graduated more than 22 Masters and 12 Doctorate students and published over 40 articles in peer-reviewed journals plus 5 book chapters. Currently, I am working on two book chapters on Sustainable Development and Food System in the SADC region. I have worked in three countries of the SADC region- Zimbabwe, South Africa, and Namibia over the past 20 years in government, NGO sector, UN agencies, academic institutions, communities, and private sectors. Besides teaching and learning, I am involved in a number of Community Engagement programmes and consultancy work.

Yawo Jonky Tenou
Task Manager
International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)

M. Jonky Tenou is the Task Manager of the Integrated Approach Program for food security and resilience in sub-Sahara Africa, working with IFAD at Environment, Climate, Gender and Social inclusion Division in the Sub regional hub Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. M. Tenou joins IFAD from UNDP, Haiti, where he worked as Chief Technical Specialist and Head of the Disaster and Risk Management (DRM) Unit. Prior to this, Mr. Tenou worked as Climate Change Specialist and Team Leader of poverty reduction and sustainable development unit with UNDP, Togo. He also served as Head of Division at Ministry of environment and forestry resources in Togo where his was in charge of environment sustainability and climate risks management.

Dr. Berhane Gebru
Technical Adviser
FHI 360

Berhane Gebru is an international development practitioner focusing on climate change adaptation and ICT4D focusing on data systems, digital health, digital literacy, digital inclusion, and social network analysis. Over the past 18 years, he successfully led multiple projects in 40 countries involving digital solutions to improve climate change adaptation action, strengthen health and education systems and build the entrepreneurial capacity of small businesses. Throughout his career, he led award-winning projects including the Climate Change Adaptation and ICTs project that received the UNFCCC’s Momentum for Change Award (2015) and the Mobile Health Information System that received the World Summit on the Information Society’s 2015 Prize.

Prof. Afeikhena Jerome
Special Advisor to the Commissioner for Rural Economy & Agriculture
African Union Commission (AUC)

Professor Afeikhena Jerome has over two decades’ experience working on policy issues in Africa. He is currently Special Advisor to the Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture, African Union Commission, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia as well as Visiting Professor of Economics at Igbinedion University, Okada, Nigeria.

Epaphras Ndikumana
Social and Environment Impact Manager
Long Miles Coffee Project (LMCP)

Burundian Epaphras Ndikumana graduated 2013 as an Engineer Agronomist (Ingénieur Agronome Ao). In 2014 started working with Long Miles Coffee Project as a Social and Environment Impact Manager, initiating and coordinating social and environmental projects for their community of farmers.

Kwame Ababio
Snr. Programme Officer, Advisory Services
African Union Development Agency - NEPAD

Kwame Ababio is a Climate Change, Environment Policy and Governance specialist with wide ranging experience at different levels including leading the implementation of many development initiatives in Africa especially on climate change within the African Union system. As Senior Programme Officer of the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD) he oversees Advisory Services and is responsible for the Agency’s Environmental Governance and Climate Change initiatives. Ababio coordinates AUDA-NEPAD’s support to African countries in the implementation of the Nationally Determined Contributions and has represented the Agency in many international fora. He has authored many publications relating to Environmental Governance and Climate Change.

Steve Gray
Regional Representative - West Africa
United Kingdom Export Finance

Steven, based in Ghana, is an accomplished senior manager, seasoned in 30+ years of demanding multinational roles spanning challenging societal and economic environments across Africa and the Middle East within the trading, logistics, construction, infrastructure and mining sectors. As UK Export Finance representative in West Africa Steven is responsible for originating a pipeline of new opportunities across the West African sub-region. Steven has held a number of non-governmental organisation board positions, including Vice Chairman of the UK Ghana Chamber of Commerce, UK, 2016–Present; as the Governing Board Member of the Western Regional Coastal Foundation, Ghana, 2015–2017; and as Board Member of Invest In Africa, Ghana, 2013–2016. Mr Gray has an MBA from Heriot Watt University; and has completed an Executive Leadership Program on Oil, Gas and Mining Governance from the University of Oxford, The Blavatnik School of Government.

Gunter Fischer
Senior Investment Officer
European Investment Bank (EIB)

Gunter Fischer is Senior Investment Officer with the European Investment Bank focussing on Climate Action investments and GEEREF, the Global Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Fund. In this context he is responsible for the sourcing, origination, assessment, negotiation and monitoring of climate mitigation and adaptation investments in emerging markets and developing countries. He has c. 20 years of fund of fund experience incl. from managing the European Investment Fund’s first external mandate Fund of Funds, targeting venture capital and private equity investments in Germany. In this context he gained in depth knowledge of the due diligence and structuring of fund investments. Prior to EIF, Dr Fischer was with the corporate finance practice of Arthur D. Little in Berlin. There he provided corporate finance advisory to a number of industries. Dr Fischer holds degrees in business administration and law from Reims Management School and the University of St. Gallen and a PhD in finance from the European University in Frankfurt, Germany.

Olufunso Somorin
Regional Principal Officer
African Development Bank (AfDB)

Dr. Olufunso Somorin is a Regional Principal Officer at the African Development Bank. He leads the Bank’s work on climate change and green growth in the 13 countries that consist the Bank’s East African region. This includes supporting countries’ access to climate finance for implementing their Paris Agreement commitments, and mainstreaming climate change in all Bank policies and programs. In addition, he leads policy dialogues with national/regional governments on developing policy frameworks for managing local and regional economic and social issues, climate change, renewable energy, resilience and inclusive growth. Dr Somorin leads the Bank’s partnership with development partners in the region on climate actions. Somorin holds a PhD in International Environmental Policy from Wageningen University, the Netherlands.

Angelique Pouponneau
CEO
Seychelles' Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust

Angelique is a lawyer (Seychelles and UK) and she holds an LLM in Environmental law specializing in the law of the sea and natural resources law. Also, Angelique is a trained climate change negotiator under the AOSIS Climate Change Fellowship Programme at the United Nations. Angelique has worked in different countries in the Caribbean, Pacific and the Indian Ocean on a wide range of projects relating sustainable fisheries, sustainable management of marine biodiversity within and beyond national jurisdiction, and climate change, in particular, climate adaptation and climate finance. Further, she served as a legal expert of the African Group of Sixth Committee in works of oceans and law of the sea at the United Nations. Moreover, Angelique has experience working with civil society as a co-founder and board member for not-for-profit organizations in Seychelles and abroad.

Dr. Alain Serges Kouadio
Director of The Green Economy
Ministry of The Environment And Sustainable Development, Cote d'Ivoire

Holder of a doctorate in environmental economics and natural resources, Dr KOUADIO Alain Serges has been a teacher-researcher since 2001 at Nangui-Abrogoua University in Abidjan. He is also an associate researcher at the Swiss Center for Scientific Research (CSRS) in Côte d'Ivoire. Since 2014, Doctor KOUADIO has been the co-president of the African Partnership on Low Carbon Development Strategies (LEDS) and member of the steering committee of the Global Partnership on LEDS. Since 2013, he has been the Director of Green Economy and Social Responsibility at the Ministry of the Environment and Sustainable Development of Côte d'Ivoire.

Markus Repnik

World Meteorological Organization (WMO)

Markus Repnik is an international development executive with 30 years of experience gained with the United Nations, World Bank Group, Austrian Government and NGOs. Since 2017 he is Director of Development Partnerships at the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), leading a team that in collaboration with development and climate finance partners develops innovative mechanisms for increased and more effective hydromet support, including the creation of the Systematic Observations Financing Facility (SOFF). Mr Repnik holds a Master of Economics and Social Sciences.

Lucy Nyirenda
Head of Government Services (East and Southern Africa)
Africa Risk Capacity (ARC)

Acting Programme Coordinator and Head of Government Services for East and Southern Africa. Lucy Nyirenda joined the African Risk Capacity in June 2012 and is currently the Head of Government Services for East and Southern Africa. In this capacity, she is responsible for the daily operations of the Agency and for managing the in-country processes for several ARC member states. Lucy holds a BSc in Agricultural Economics from the College of Agriculture, University of Malawi, and an MSc in Food and Resource Economics from the University of Florida in Gainesville

Dr. Linus Mofor (Panel Chair)
Senior Energy and Climate Change Expert - African Climate Policy Centre (ACPC)
United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA)

Dr Linus Mofor is a Senior Environmental Affairs Officer in charge of energy, infrastructure and climate change at the African Climate Policy Centre (ACPC) of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. His work portfolio at the ACPC includes leading the Africa Climate Resilient Investment Facility (AFRI-RES) – a joint initiative of the ECA, World Bank, African Development, African Union Commission and the Nordic Development Fund.

Aage Jorgensen
Program Manager
Nordic Development Fund (NDF)

Aage Jorgensen has for the past decade been Program Manager at the Nordic Development Fund (NDF) where he has helped built up a portfolio of climate change projects. He works with community-based adaptation, climate resilient infrastructure and urban development and is responsible for the NDF support to several countries in Africa, Asia, and Central America. Prior to joining NDF in 2009, Mr Jorgensen worked for many years as a socio-environmental consultant to World Bank, Global Environment Facility, European Commission, Inter-American Development Bank, UN, Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Danish Ministry of Environment, and NGOs. Mr Jorgensen holds a PhD equivalent degree in social anthropology from the University of Copenhagen.

Evans Kaseke
Programme Manager - Strategic Planning
Zambezi Watercourse Commission

Eng. Evans (Pr. Eng.) holds a Master of Applied Science (MASc) in Civil Engineering from the University of British Columbia, Canada, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Wales’ Saint David’s University College. He is a registered Professional Engineer with the Zimbabwe Institution of Engineers (ZIE) and the Engineering Council of Zimbabwe. He is a Member of IAHS and IAHR.

Hisham Osman
Environmental Engineer
World Bank Group

Dr. Hisham Osman is an environmental engineer in the Environment, Natural Resources and Blue Economy Global Practice at the World Bank. Dr. Osman has an extensive background with over thirteen years of experience in the fields of hydrology, and environmental and natural resources management. He has been involved in a wide range of technical projects and analytical studies that are related to water and environment management in Canada, Africa, South Asia, United Kingdom and Ireland. He has extensive experience in both the academic research side of engineering as well as implementing environmental engineering and design practices. Dr. Osman has a PhD and MSc degrees in Engineering Hydrology from Trinity College Dublin Ireland, and Imperial College London, UK, respectively.

Jostas Mwebembezi
Executive Director
Rwenzori Center for Research and Advocacy

Mr. Jostas is currently the Founder & Executive Director of Rwenzori Center for Research and Advocacy (RCRA) a not for profit organisation promoting health of people and environment in Uganda. Mr. Jostas has over 10 years’ experience in public health and climate leadership–His expertise has seen him manage exciting missions mainly focused on health systems strengthening, youth and women empowerment programs, Sexual Reproductive, Maternal Newborn and Child Health plus nutrition, HIV/AIDS, TB, regenerative agriculture, climate change, gender-based violence and capacity building.

Jae So
Director of Programs (Interim)
Global Centre on Adaptation (GCA)

Ms. Jaehyang (“Jae”) So oversees programs and resource mobilization at the Global Center on Adaptation, an international organization that works as a solutions broker to catalyze action and support for adaptation solutions. Jae comes to the GCA from an extensive career at the World Bank Group, with a proven track record on sustainable development and finance, including infrastructure, water, urban development, gender, and public private partnerships. As Director, Trust Funds and Partnerships, she led the policy and transactional framework for the $45 billion in external funds under management by the World Bank. As Manager of the Water and Sanitation Program, one of the longest running global partnership programs of the World Bank, she led the strategic vision and increased the Program’s financial mobilization to over $250 million through a new business plan process and results-based management.

Benjamin Larroquette
Regional Technical Advisor
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

Benjamin Larroquette is a Regional Technical Advisor for the UNDP Nature , Climate and Energy team, focussing on climate change adaptation. I help countries access vertical funds like GCF and GEF and I have been working among other things on strengthening climate information and early warning systems in countries in Africa

Alex Campbell
Head of Research and Policy
International Hydropower Association

Alex directs IHA’s research and policy work, covering a broad spectrum of policy issues of relevance to sustainable hydropower. These include asset management & modernisation, greenhouse gas emissions, climate change resilience, clean energy systems including hybrid technologies such as floating solar PV and hydropower, and fresh water management. He oversees the collection of data and analysis for the annual Hydropower Status Report. He holds an MSc in Climate Change and an MA in International Political Economy.

Geoff Tooley
Senior Manager: Catchment Management
eThekwini Municipality, S.A.

As a manager of the Catchment Management section, Geoffrey Tooley is responsible for work relating to the rivers in eThekwini (Durban, South Africa) including floodlines, stormwater management plans, master drainage plans, rainfall distribution figures and erosion control as well as adaptation plans related to flooding. He managed the development of the new stormwater management policy for the eThekwini municipality–passed through Council in 2020. Geoffrey is also member of the Business Case Steering Committee overseeing the development of the business case for the Transformative River Management Program, a member of the Water Research Commission reference groups for stormwater related commissions and is currently on the executive committee for the Institute of Municipal Engineers of Southern Africa (IMESA). He currently lectures for SAICE in Durban on Stormwater Design as part of the continued education program.

Michael Schroeder
Member of the board
Desertec Foundation

Michael Schroder was born in Stuttgart in 1981. From 2001 to 2005 he studied technically oriented business administration (BWL t.o.) at the University of Stuttgart. Michael Schroder has more than 10 years of experience in project development, coordination and design. The focus of his projects is on renewable energie

Cathy Oxby
Chief Commercial Officer
Africa GreenCo

Cathy has more than 18 years of professional experience in the infrastructure and renewable energy sectors, both as a principal and an adviser. In her role as Chief Commercial Officer of Africa GreenCo, Cathy is closely involved in structuring and implementing the GreenCo business model, which aims to attract more private sector investment in renewable energy generation in sub-Saharan Africa at lower cost and with less reliance on government support through the introduction of an independently-managed creditworthy intermediary offtaker. GreenCo aligns with the ongoing regulatory changes in the African energy sector to promote green growth and target greater regional integration.

Philip Akello
Programme Manager - Environment & Climate
Royal Danish Embassy, Nairobi

Energy Engineer experienced in programme management with a demonstrated history of working in the non-profit organization management industry. Skilled in Sustainable Development, Energy, Sustainability, Renewable Energy and Climate Change. Strong program and project management professional with a Master's Degree focused in Energy Technology from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology

Diane Aboubakar
Senior Policy Officer
African Union Commission (AUC)

Diane Aboubakar is currently a Senior Policy Officer for Disaster Risk reduction in African Union Commission, DRR Unit.

Dr. Peace Liz Sasha Musonge
Founder
Bakatoa

Dr. Peace Liz Sasha Musonge is a Ugandan scientist and social entrepreneur. She graduated from Makerere University, Uganda, with a BS in food science and technology. She has a MS degree in human nutrition and rural development from Ghent University, an advanced MS in water technology and integrated management form Antwerp University, Belgium, Nanodegree in Android basics UDACITY-GOOGLE and PhD in Biosciences Engineering, Ghent University. Peace is a Mandela Washington alumnus at UC-Berkeley Goldman school of public policy and Schlumberger faculty of future alumnus. She has worked for a fortune 500 company PriceWaterhouseCoopers and World Resources Institute DC. Peace was voted 9th in top 40 Ugandan women under 40. She has collaborated on international research projects in Africa, Asia, Europe, South and North America. She has several publications in scientific journals and three as first author. Peace is a mentor of young Africans in STEM. Peace is passionate about developing innovative sustainable green solutions in water-energy-food-technology nexus to improve livelihoods of vulnerable communities. Her research focus was on freshwater equatorial alpine rivers, the most permanent head waters for the Nile river in Rwenzori region, Uganda. The Rwenzoris are a well-known UNESCO world heritage site and Global 200 biodiversity hotspot. She developed the first ever biotic index (Rwenzori Score) for ascertaining nutrient enrichment in the Rwenzori rivers. Peace was appointed member of the advisory committee of the Our World Heritage Foundation.

Prof. Tom Peter Migun Ogada
Executive Director
African Centre for Technology Studies

Prof. Ogada has enormous experience from senior management levels in research, university, public and private sector. Prof. Ogada holds an MSc in Mechanical Engineering from the Belarusian Polytechnic, Minsk, USSR (1987), PhD in Chemical Engineering from the Technical University Hamburg-Harburg, Germany (1995) and MBA in Strategic Management from Moi University, Kenya (2005).

Cecilia Njenga
Head of South Africa office
UN Environment Programme (UNEP)

Ms. Cecilia Kinuthia-Njenga is an Economist/Urban and Regional Planner with over twenty-seven years of progressive work experience in international sustainable development, environmental sustainability, climate change and conservation. During the last 23 years, Cecilia has worked with the United Nations, building on her leadership and managerial capacity in programme development & management, inter-governmental processes, strategic partnership building, resource mobilisation and inter-agency coordination.

Chikondi Chabvuta
Regional Advocacy Advisor
Care International

Chikondi is a passionate climate justice, climate resilient systems, humanitarian work, women’s rights, resilience and right to food advocate. Chikondi is championing different work streams and global and local campaigns on climate change, water rights, food systems, humanitarian and resilience nexus, with a greater focus on advocating for justice and women’s leadership. Chikondi has experience of providing technical leadership and management in the development and implementation of programs and projects, policy analysis, research, advocacy and lobbying at national level and international level to create synergy between different advocacy themes at the grassroots, national and international policy levels. Chikondi is recognized internationally for her contributions made to society through her volunteerism, leadership and management skills especially her rootedness in working with women in communities in Southern Africa in adapting to climate change and working with women and youth in Southern Africa on climate justice, food and nutrition security and social justice in general.

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Kofi Adu Domfeh
News Editor
The Multimedia Group

Kofi Adu Domfeh is a multiple award-winning media and communications professional, focused on Development Journalism. He is a Media Trainer, Social Entrepreneur, Environmental Advocate, Climate Reality Leader and a Global Goodwill Ambassador. Domfeh is the News Editor at the Kumasi Unit (Luv Fm & Nhyira Fm) of The Multimedia Group in Ghana. He is also the Ghana Bureau Chief of ClimateReporters, a leading African online newspaper focused on climate change, environment and sustainable development.

Sagar Aryal
CTO
Plant for the Planet

Sagar Aryal is the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and member of the board of Plant-for-the-Planet Foundation. A climate activist for over 15 years, he is also a co-founder of ClimateStrike.net and founder of the Sano Sansar Initiative. Sagar currently leads the development of the Plant-for-the-Planet Platform, the Trillion Tree Campaign, and the newly developed TreeMapper tool to democratize restoration mapping. Sagar's work has been featured as one of the "Most Influential Projects" of 2020 by the Project Management Institute. He has also received the WSA European Young Innovator Award in 2020 for his outstanding digital solutions with relevance and immediate impact in local communities.

luca Rossi
Deputy Chief, Regional Office for Africa
United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR)

Environmental Engineer with 20 years of experience in disaster risk management, covering all DRM angles and related phases: prevention, early warning, preparedness, training, international emergency response, post-emergency needs assessment, building back better and capacity development, at operational, strategic, and policy levels. During his career, he worked for International Research centers, the private sector, national Government, and International Organizations.

Dr. Maruf Sanni
Curie Fellow
European Institute on Economics and the Environment, Centro Euro-Mediterraneo sui Cambiamenti Climatici.