His Excellency Anselm Ransford Adzete Sowah is the High Commissioner of the Republic of Ghana to Canada. He was a banker in London for 30 years and has worked extensively in the erstwhile Ghana Commercial Bank London Branch, Ghana International Bank London, and Bank of Montreal Capital Markets.

Her Excellency Fatima Braoule Meite is the Ambassador of Mali to Canada, in addition to her role as Permanent Representative of Mali with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). She graduated from the University of Quebec in Montreal (UQAM) and the State University of New York at Stony Brook.

His Excellency Sidique Abou-Bakarr Wai is Sierra Leone’s Ambassador to the United States of America and High Commissioner to Canada. For over twenty years, Ambassador Sidique Abou-Bakarr Wai has been discharging several high-profile leadership responsibilities in the United States of America in spheres of diplomacy, public safety, public health care advocacy, community relations, and social empowerment.

His Excellency Bafétigué Ouattara is an expert in disarmament and international security issues and a specialist in international organizations. He is a graduate of the diplomatic cycle of the National School of Administration (ENA) of Côte d’Ivoire and holds a Master’s degree in Law (public career) from the University Alassane Ouattara of Bouaké.

Tony Simons has worked for over thirty years on issues at the agriculture/forestry interface. This experience has been gained in over 50 countries in the private sector (Shell), academia (University of Oxford), official development assistance (ODA/DFID) and research (CIFOR-ICRAF). He holds a Bachelor’s degree from Massey University (NZ) as well as Masters and PhD degrees from Cambridge University (UK).

Dr. Pat Utomi is a prominent professor of political economy and management expert. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Management Consultants of Nigeria and has twice been a candidate for the office of President of Nigeria. He has served in senior positions in government, including as an adviser to the president of Nigeria, the private sector, and as Chief Operating Officer of Volkswagen Nigeria.

As Vice President, Global Technical Services and Chief Technical Advisor at Nutrition International, Mandana Arabi oversees the technical quality of Nutrition International’s programming in 10 countries, and leads a global team of experts to address the most challenging gaps in evidence and practice in order to improve nutrition.

Dr. Fred Olayele brings extensive capability and all-round professional experience to technical economic analysis, strategy consulting, and public policy advisory. A professor, distinguished economist, and public policy expert, his research interests and practice areas cover trade policy, innovation, FDI, urban policy, political economy, and inclusive development.

Steve Tipman is the Executive Director of TFO Canada and leads the organization in fulfilling its mission of improving lives through international trade. Leading the successful execution of TFO Canada’s strategic and business plans, Steve is responsible for overall administration, strategic management, and reporting to the Board of Directors.

Dr. Hynd Bouhia has accumulated more than 20 years of professional experience in high-level leadership positions. She was nominated by Forbes among the 100 most influential women and most influential Arab Women in Business (2015), and honored as a member of the Johns Hopkins Society of Scholars (2018).

Bill’s combined passions for agriculture and innovation were the driving forces behind his career. Initially, this led him to private sector jobs at a biotech start-up, in the canola industry and at a large multi-national agriculture company.

Dr. Alex Awiti is a consultant at the CIFOR-ICRAF (Center for International Forest Research – World Agroforestry). He was Vice Provost and professor at Aga Khan University. He also served as Dean of the Graduate School of Media and Communication and Founding Director of the East Africa Institute of Aga Khan University.

Dr. Nedelcovych is the Founder and Chairman of AfricaGlobal Schaffer (AfGS), a strategic consulting firm focused on project development, project finance, trade facilitation, and public-private partnerships in developing countries, with a particular focus on Africa.

Chris Dekker assumed the role of President & CEO with Saskatchewan Trade and Export Partnership (STEP) in May 2015. He obtained an Honours Degree in Commerce from the University of Saskatchewan and worked in marketing with Maple Leaf Foods in Edmonton before joining the provincial government in a number of executive positions including Chief of Staff to the Leader of the Opposition.

Faridah O. Ibrahim is the Global Lead for Business Development and Partnerships at WorldFish, and leads the development of the Fish for Africa Innovation Hub.

Dr. Yiagadeesen Samy is Director, Norman Paterson School of International Affairs (NPSIA), Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada. Professor Samy joined NPSIA in 2003 and since then has taught graduate courses in development economics, international trade, macroeconomics, development assistance and quantitative methods.

Dr. Ed Mabaya is a scholar and a development practitioner with more than two decades of experience working on development, agribusiness value chains and food security issues with a regional focus on Sub-Saharan Africa. He is a Research Professor in the Department of Global Development where his teaching, research and outreach work focuses on economic development in Africa.

Fergus Maclaren is a sustainable tourism and cultural heritage management professional with 25 years of experience consulting in Canada and internationally. As Principal of MAC-DUFF Tourism | Heritage | Planning, his work includes a broad range of tourism planning, destination management and community development.

Sherry Lee is Director, Partnerships and Public Affairs at the Economic Innovation Institute for Africa. Ms. Lee has worked in the magazine publishing industry for close to a decade. Throughout her professional career, Ms. Lee has served in a variety of roles in the private, public, and non-profit sectors and has done extensive consulting work at the community and government levels.