Africa summit: What Africa wants from Europe

Christoph Beier began his professional career working for the Ministry of Economics in the Saarland, being responsible for European policy and regional development programmes. He subsequently went on to teach economics and social geography at the Ruhr University Bochum, and advised the Indonesian Ministry of the Interior on decentralisation issues. Currently member of GIZ’s Management Board, Beier oversees GIZ’s priorities and activities across the globe, including in Africa, where a focus is put on peace and security, good governance, infrastructure and the promotion of agriculture.

A certified accountant and mathematician by training, Annicent Busingye is specialised in Power Purchase Agreements, hydropower development, risk management and environmental analysis. Prior to joining Frontier Energy, a leading investor capitalizing in the development, construction and operation of renewable energy projects across Africa, Busingye worked on a hydro power project for nine years under TronderPower Ltd (now Bugoye Hydro Ltd), serving as Managing Director and Board Member in the last years. Busingye started off her career at Stanbic Bank in Uganda.

A lawyer by training, Arancha Gonzalez acquired a range of experience from the field before joining the International Trade Center. Having begun her career as an associate advising companies on trade, competition and state-aid matters, she then went on to holding several positions within the European Commission, including being the spokeswoman for trade and advisor to the European Union Trade Commissioner. Since her time in Brussels, Gonzalez has been closely involved in setting up the WTO Aid for Trade initiative and served as the WTO Director-General’s representative (Sherpa) at the Group of 20 (G-20). Alongside her current position, Gonzalez co-chairs the World Economic Forum Agenda Council on the Future of Trade and Investment. 

Elisabeth Guigou is president of the Anna Lindh Foundation, a network of civil society organisations dedicated to promoting intercultural dialogue in the Mediterranean region. Before this appointment, Guigou served as French Minister of European Affairs, member of the European Parliament, and member of the French National Assembly, among numerous other posts. In addition to this, Guigou was the first female to be appointed Minister of Justice in France, where she distinguished herself for her fight for a more independent justice system.

21 year old Latifa Salissou Hassane from Niger was selected out of a group of 200 women from across the continent and crowned ‘Ms Geek Africa’ by a high level panel of tech industry heavyweights. Her winning design is the “First responder” app, which facilitates communication between people caring for accident victims and emergency services. It also allows medical staff to give advice on basic first aid before they arrive at the scene. Ms. Geek is a continental competition, designed to inspire African girls to be part of solving the continent’s challenges using technology and encourage them to choose a career in science, ICT, engineering and mathematics. 

Sudanese-born Mo Ibrahim built his fortune in telecommunications, landing him a place on the Forbes 2011 Billionaire list. One of his many successful ventures was Celtel International, operating as one of Africa’s leading mobile telephone companies which pioneered mobile services in the continent. In 2006, he established the Mo Ibrahim Foundation in order to support good governance and exceptional leadership on the African continent. His approach is two-fold: to reward responsible leaders through the annual Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership, and to highlight countries with good governance through the Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG). In shedding light on democracy and human rights in African nations, Ibrahim aims to re-brand Africa and change the perceptions many have of the continent.

Fashion and empowerment is what Sindiso Khumalo feels very passionate about. She founded her eponymous label with a focus on creating handmade modern sustainable textiles with a strong emphasis on African story telling. Over the years, she has developed a uniquely colourful visual voice, which draws upon her Zulu and Ndebele heritage, and also speaks to the land of Kwazulu Natal, where she is from. She cooperates very closely with NGOs in developing handmade textiles for her collections and currently works with the International Trade Centre’s Ethical Fashion Initiative. Khumalo has already showcased her work in South Africa, the UK, the US and Denmark, and won the Vogue Italia “Who’s On Next Dubai” competition in 2015.

Pauline Mujawamariya Koelbl has a passion for African people, and dedicates her efforts to their economic and social empowerment by promoting entrepreneurship and home-grown innovations. Her current work at AIF aims to catalyse market-orientated solutions for African-led development across the continent, building innovation ecosystems that will invigorate economic growth across Africa. Koelbl has over 15 years of international development experience with various UN bodies and international organisations in Africa, Europe and the US. Parallel to her work at the AIF, Koelbl also serves as a board member of the Flame Tree Initiative, a US-based NGO that uses ICTs to address the digital divide through collaboration with African universities. 

Frank Matsaert is an experienced senior economic development and private sector specialist with an extensive track record in strategy, programme delivery and management in Africa and Asia. Prior to joining Trademark East Africa (TMEA), Matsaert worked in Nairobi for the DFID as the Senior Growth, Trade and Investment Adviser for East Africa. Thus far, he has created and overseen over 40 major innovative programmes totalling over $1 billion in the fields of trade, financial sector development, privatisation, investment climate reform, market development and skills development. Matsaert is well-positioned to discuss African-EU economic cooperation as his work at TMEA focuses on promoting regional trade and economic integration within East Africa. 

At 17, Esther Nakajjigo was named Uganda’s Ambassador for Women and Girls. She donated her university tuition and started a community health facility with a Teenage Centre supporting child mothers. She owns a popular reality television show on teenage pregnancy called “Saving Innocence Challenge” applauded by the EU in Uganda as one of the best self-sustaining girl-lead models in the world, championed as well as financed by local girls for local girls. Amidst the world’s refugee crisis,  Nakajjigo is championing “Lift up her Voice” expedition where girls from selected universities around the world innovate for a decent life for refugee women and girls in a Global Girls Movement. She has won five National Awards and a Geneva Women’s World Summit Prize. Her passion is to give migration a human face.

Prior to joining Smart Africa, Jean Philbert Nsengimana served successively as Cabinet Minister of Youth and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the Government of Rwanda for 6 years. In that capacity, he spearheaded several flagship initiatives including TransformAfrica Summits and YouthConnekt Africa Initiative. Nsengimana led the design and implementation of the Smart Rwanda Master Plan with policies on broadband for all, digital Literacy, cybersecurity, digital Health, education, Governance, and Innovation in the 4th Industrial Revolution. His 15 years’ experience includes successful stints in the private sector and international development as well as academia where he started his career.

The German political figure Günther Nooke, dubbed as ‘Merkel’s man in Africa’, has long been involved in EU-Africa relations. Prior to his current position, he was appointed federal commissioner for human rights policy and humanitarian aid in the government of Chancellor Angela Merkel. He has been critical of both sides when examining economic cooperation. Whilst stating that the African Union needs institutional change, he likewise has been stern on the EU, arguing that the Directorate General for Trade in Brussels must change in order to improve relations with the African Union. With his considerable political experience in the German government, Nooke provides a unique opinion on the future of Africa-EU relations.

Having been a member of the Italian as well as the European Parliament, Lapo Pistelli has a wealth of experience in European and international affairs. During his time as MEP he was the president of the EU-South Africa Delegation and a member of the Italian Delegation to the OSCE, where he conducted several monitoring missions in transitional democracies. Pistelli regularly contributes to research centres specialised in international relations whilst he also is a board member of the European Council on Foreign Relations.

Williametta Piso Saydee-Tarr  has been recently appointed as the Liberian Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection. She has a passion for human rights, equality, social protection and inclusion. Previously Saydee-Tarr was the Executive Director of the Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa where she promoted the importance of women and girls education and its invaluable benefits to society. She is also the Founder of Deahkonti WEST Consultancy, which supports community and education development by providing strategic direction, knowledge sharing and transfer to non-profits. 

Having worked for the private and public sectors in both Africa and Europe, Carole Wainaina provides an expert voice to the discussion on economic cooperation between the continents. She has held senior positions at the Coca-Cola Company and Philips, and was the former Assistant Secretary General for Human Resources of the United Nations. In her current role, Wainaina leads the multi-disciplinary Africa50 team, which is the pan-African infrastructure investment platform capitalised by the African Development Bank. Africa50’s work actively contributes to Africa’s growth by developing and investing in bankable projects, catalysing public sector capital, and mobilising private sector funding, with differentiated financial returns and impact.