Kwaku Boateng is an Energy Economist with over 20 years senior management & leadership experience in the oil and gas industry and proven record of Oil and Gas Project Management, Regulation and Energy Policy formulation. He has an excellent knowledge of the commercial, policy and regulatory issues in the sector.

Currently, he is a Director for Local Content at the Petroleum Commission, Ghana (a Petroleum Upstream Regulator). He was a member of the Project Implementation Committee that set up Ghana National Gas Company and prepared the Project Execution Strategy for Natural Gas Project. He later worked with that company as a Senior Manager for Gas Commercialization and Business Development.

Earlier on, he worked at BOST as the Head Natural Gas Division, responsible for the company’s natural gas business development. Before joining BOST, Mr. Boateng worked with the Ministry of Energy as Head Petroleum Upstream and later acted as the Director Petroleum responsible for both upstream and downstream operations. During this period, he led the Ministry’s team in negotiating Petroleum Agreements and develop Energy Policy, Local Content Policy, Local Content Regulations and other Regulations.

As a member of the Core team, Mr, Boateng took part in the negotiation of West African Gas Pipeline Project and prepared several project agreements including the WAGP Treaty, IPA and WAGP Regulations. He took part in the preparation of the draft Petroleum Exploration and Production Bill and preparing petroleum upstream regulations.

He also took part in the preparation of important policy and legislative documents including: National Energy Policy, Gas Pricing Policy, Petroleum Revenue Management Regulations and Oil & Gas EITI.

Mr. Boateng has acquired many years of international consulting and business experience having worked with international consulting firms in many countries. He also has several years of teaching and research experience in some academic institutions such as South West Business School, Rasio, Finland, Helsinki School of Economics and Business Administration, Helsinki, Finland and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science & Technology.

Dr. Petina Gappah is the Principal Legal Advisor in the African Continental Free Trade Area Secretriat. A Zimbabwean national who was born in Zambia, she has law degrees from the Universities of Zimbabwe, Graz and Cambridge, where she was a Livingstone Scholar.

One of the pioneer lawyers at the Advisory Centre on WTO Law in Geneva for more than a decade, she was the advisor to more than 70 African, Asian, Caribbean and Latin American governments on all aspects of trade law and policy. Before that, she worked for three years as a legal officer in the Appellate Body Secretariat of the World Trade Organization.  Petina was one of the founding faculty of Trapca, the Trade Policy Centre for Africa and served on its Advisory Academic Board.

From 2017-2019, Petina worked as a special advisor on trade policy and investment law in the Office of the President and Cabinet of the Government of Zimbabwe.  She was nominated by the Kingdom of Lesotho to serve on the Experts List for disputes arising from the SACU-MERCUSUR free trade agreement, and is currently serving as a panellist in a WTO dispute between the United States and the Russian Federation.

As well as being a lawyer, Petina is a novelist and playwright with work published in more than a dozen languages. She is the recipient of the Chautauqua Prize, the McKitterick Prize, the Guardian First Book Award and Zimbabwe’s NAMA Award.

Chicovia Scott is the GM of Commercial and Business Development of the West African Gas Pipeline Company Limited (WAPCo). Chicovia has 18 years of experience in both the technical and business and commercial functions with degrees from Florida A&M University in chemical engineering and a MBA from Rice University. She has held positions in or related to the oil and gas industry including process and facilities engineering and consulting and investment banking.

Within Chevron, Chicovia has held various positions over the last 13 years in the commercial and business development space within Midstream and finance in Upstream.  Additionally, Chicovia then helped to drive Chevron’s digital transformation as a team member then the GM of the Digital Innovation and Acceleration team to develop strategy and accelerate innovation across Chevron.

Currently, Chicovia is providing commercial, business development and strategic planning leadership for WAPCo.

Reshma has over twenty years’ experience across a broad and rare combination of expertise spanning Business Strategy & Performance, Risk Management, Change Management, Tax and Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG). In the last fifteen years her work has focused on the Energy, Extractives and Infrastructure Sector primarily in Africa and the Middle East.  She has held several roles at Corporate and Operational levels including Senior Manager for KPMG UK’s Energy and Natural Resources Team, International Tax Manager for Tullow Oil Plc, Business Performance Manager and until recently Head of External Affairs for Tullow Kenya leading the Land, Water, Local Content, Security and Conflict Management, Government & Public Affairs and the Social Performance Teams.

She is now the CEO of InteStrat Services Ltd, a Kenyan company, which works with Kenyan and international clients to optimize stakeholder value (profits, environment and society) through integrative strategies and risk management with a specific focus on sustainability.

Reshma holds a Bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Manchester in the UK and an Executive MBA from École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées in Paris. She is also a UK qualified Chartered Accountant, a Chartered Tax Advisor and holds certificate in Sustainable Finance from the University of Cambridge in the UK.

Oliver Maponga is an Economic Affairs Officer at the United Nations Economic Commission (UNECA) for Africa is currently based at the regional office in Lusaka, Zambia.  Since joining UNECA in 2004, Oliver’s work has included providing technical support on socio economic development, energy, mining and land policy analysis and development, industrialization and regional integration to member States and regional economic communities in the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

Oliver has supported work on developing regional frameworks for the minerals sector including; the SADC Mining Policy Harmonization Framework, the SADC Regional Mining Vision, the Africa Mining Vision and its Action Plan and the Economic Community of West African States Minerals Development Policy. Recently his support to COMESA and SADC has focused on domestication of the Mining Vision in member States, industrialization and industrial policy development and profiling regional mineral value chains, mineral beneficiation and mining skills development. Between 2012 and 2018 Oliver coordinated and lectured in the annual course on Mining Policy and Contracts Negotiation for senior government officials organized through UNECA’s African Institute for Economic Development and Planning (IDEP).

Prior to joining the Commission, Oliver held the post Minerals Economist, Lecturer and Chairman of the Institute of Mining Research at the University of Zimbabwe where his responsibilities included supporting regional and national minerals sector development through fundamental and applied research and introducing and unpackaging new technologies for the sector, teaching and supervising the provision of analytical services for mineral determinations for investment in exploration and mining development and for export purposes. The outcomes of some of his research work in small scale mining, minerals and development, mining policy development, regional integration and mining and socio-economic and environmental impacts has been published in journals such as Natural Resources Forum, Minerals and Energy, Cleaner Production and Resources Policy. He also held the post of Visiting Fellow and Senior Lecturer at the Western Australian School of Mines in Karlgoorlie (2000 and 2001).

Oliver holds a PhD in Mineral Economics from the Western Australian School of Mines and is also a graduate of McGill University, Canada and the University of Zimbabwe.

Babatunde Fagbayibo is currently a Professor in Law at the University of South Africa. His research primarily focuses on continental integration in Africa. Other research interests include international politics, transnational policy analysis, new paradigms of inter-state relations, critical approaches to international law, and governance and democratisation in Africa. He has written widely on issues of African integration, democracy and good governance, and development in Africa.

He also provides commentary in print and broadcast media on African affairs. His writings have appeared in academic journals, as chapters in books, and other online platforms. In 2014, he was recognised by the Young People in International Affairs (YPIA) as one of the top 35 Africans under the age of 35, for his research on supranational integration in Africa. He is the editor in chief of the Southern African Public Law Journal and serves on the editorial boards of the African Journal of Democracy and Governance (RADG), the Nigerian Yearbook of International Law (NYIL), and the Caribbean Law Review.

Victoria is a lawyer and an Energy and Mining expert, with extensive experience working on various projects in the different parts of the Globe. She is a holder of a PhD in International Energy Law and Policy (Dundee). Victoria is the Founder and Executive Director of the African Energy and Minerals Management Initiative. She is the CEO and lead consultant at Nalule Energy & Minerals Consultants (NEM- www.nemenergyco.com).

She is an Energy Arbitrator at the Energy Disputes Arbitration Center (EDAC), Turkey. She is also a Senior Research Fellow in Mining Law & Governance at the Institute for Oil, Gas, Energy, Environment and Sustainability Development (OGEES). She is a committee member at the International Law Association (ILA): and at Access for Women in Energy-an international NGO.

Victoria is an author and has widely published on topics relating to oil, gas, renewable energy, climate change, mining and International Arbitration. Her latest five books covering energy, mining, land access and Extractives, energy arbitration, and negotiation in Extractives.

Victoria offers extensive experience in the Energy and Mining sectors having worked with various institutions; regional and international organizations including assignments for The Queen Mary University of London (EU Energy Project); The International Energy Charter Secretariat in Belgium; The Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment in New York; the East African Community Secretariat in Tanzania; the University of Dundee; the Southern African Development Community Secretariat in Botswana; International Arbitration Case Law in New York; Institute of Petroleum Studies; Uganda Christian University; Journal of Mines, Metals and Fuels (Editorial Board Member); She has also worked with both the private and public legal sectors of Uganda including Kakuru & Co. Advocates and the Anti-Corruption Court.

She has presented as a speaker and panellist in several forums and conferences. She has also advised African governments on oil, gas and mining projects including appearing as an expert witness before the Commission of Inquiry into Land matters in Uganda; presenting comments on the South African Petroleum Bill before the country’s Policy Makers; leading a team of energy experts in reviewing Energy/Mining laws and policies for countries such as Namibia, Ethiopia, Uganda etc.

Victoria has an active YouTube Channel and Podcast both focused on energy and mining discussions. She is one of the few people who got her PhD in less than 3 years below the age of 30 years. For more, visit www.victorianalule.com.

Danlami Gomwalk is the Principal Domestic Linkages Officer with the African Natural Resources Centre of the African Development Bank.

He is responsible for coordinating the provision of advisory services to regional members countries on policies on economic and infrastructure linkages of natural resources activity to local economies in renewable and non-renewable resource development projects; increasing the impact of resources development on national economies through local content and value addition.

Danlami has experience with private sector development as well as expertise in infrastructure service delivery, infrastructure asset management and project financing.

Danlami earned a BA Engineering from Lafayette College and MS Public Policy and Management from Carnegie Mellon University.

Charles is currently the Policy Lead on Climate Change & Energy Transition at the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP).

His research focus is into risk mitigation and investment decisions in renewable energy investments in Africa.

Charles holds a Master’s degree in Operations Management and a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Statistics, all from the University of Ghana.

Dr. Arron Tchouka Singhe is a low carbon pathways expert, and key advisor to African countries on policies and strategies to maximize the benefits of exploitation of their petroleum resources in the context of energy transition. He currently serves at Chief Oil Sector Officer at the African Development Bank. Previously, he held technical, managerial, and business development positions in energy research institutions, petroleum industry and strategic management consulting. He holds a PhD in subsurface energy systems and MBA in Oil & Gas Management.

Pauline Anaman is a consultant with technical expertise in the law, economics, and governance of the energy and extractives sectors, as well as issues of climate change and sustainability. 

She is an External Advisor on Africa to the EU H2020 Negative Emissions (NEGEM) project; a €5.8 million project by a core group of scientists and a consortium of 16 partners across 11 European countries exploring  negative emissions technology and practices, as well as scalability pathways. She is also a Net Zero expert to the Oxford Climate Alumni Network (OxCAN); an Oxford University alumni organisation dedicated to expertise sharing and collaborations to achieve a just transition to net zero emissions. Pauline previously worked at the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP) as a Senior Policy Analyst and Head of Policy where she led research, policy analyses, and evidence-based advocacy on policy and governance issues across the energy and extractives sector value chain. 

Pauline has a multidisciplinary background in Law (GIMPA & Ghana School of Law), Public Policy (Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford), and Land Economy (KNUST). She is also an alumna of the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) of the U.S. Department of State (Energy Policy, Security, and Innovation).

Dr. Andrews Amankwah, an Investment Banker with over 20 years managerial experience is a Director at the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) and currently the Treasurer, and also in charge of Resource Mobilisation in the Bank.

Prior to EBID, he worked for three years at Societe Generale Ghana as the Head of Structured Finance; ten years on Wall Street as a Vice President and Client Service Manager in the Structured Finance – CDO at the Bank of New York; and four years at The Vanguard Group as a Financial Analyst/Repo Trader.

He has a Doctorate degree in Business Administration from the SBS Swiss Business School, Zurich – Switzerland, three Master’s Degrees and a Bachelor of Science (Hons) degree.

Dr Theophilus Acheampong is an economist and political risk analyst with over ten years’ experience working with governments, private investors and international organizations on natural resource governance and public financial management issues. He has worked as an independent consultant on over 40 projects in the global energy industry, particularly in upstream oil and gas, and in providing economic analysis and market research focused on frontier emerging markets. He is currently co-editing a Palgrave MacMillan book titled “Petroleum Resource Management in Africa: Lessons from Ghana”, which examines the challenges and opportunities from ten years of oil and gas production in Ghana.

Dr. Juliette Twumasi-Anokye is an extractive governance, legal and regulatory expert in Ghana and Africa. She has worked in both public service and private legal practice rendering consultancy and advisory services to government, companies and civil society locally and internationally for over two decades. She is a lawyer and an independent consultant specialising in energy, oil and gas, local content and business development. She is the Co-Founder and Principal Consultant at Anojul Afriyie & Co. a regulatory, law, and policy consultancy firm specialising in energy and natural resources.

Victoria Ibezim-Ohaeri is the founder and director of research and policy at Spaces for Change [S4C], a non-profit organization based in Nigeria that conducts cutting-edge research and advocacy focusing on strategic sectors such as urban governance, gender inclusion, energy policy and defending the civic space. She is an SXSW 2013 honoree, 2016 Desmond Tutu Fellow and 2015 Harvard University alumni.  In her 15 years of legal career and involvement in social and economic rights research and advocacy, she has traversed four continents: Africa, Europe, North America and South America, leading research investigations, documenting and exposing human rights violations, formulating and analyzing social and economic policy at national, regional and international levels.

Victoria has spent the past eight years at S4C conducting rigorous research studies and policy analysis, empowering under-served communities, advising private and public institutions, speaking at high-level national and international convenings and facilitating multi-stakeholder policy dialogues on critical social and economic justice issues. As the organization’s director of research and policy, she has led and participated in major international studies commissioned by UN-HABITAT, COHRE, MSI Integrity, Ford Foundation, International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), Energia, Women Learning Partnership, University College London’s (UCL’s) Bartlett Department of Planning Unit, Conectas, among others. She writes for numerous national dailies and also sits on the board of a number of national and international non-governmental organizations, such as Publish What You Pay International, Journalists Initiative for Sustainable Environment, Good Women Association, Legal Resource Center etc.

Maybel is an extractive and energy professional with Bachelors’ and Master’s degrees in Economics, from the University of Ghana. She is currently the Head of Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning and a Senior Policy Analyst at the Africa Centre For Energy Policy (ACEP). Maybel leads the implementation of multi-donor projects in the energy and extractive industries on behalf of ACEP.

Her interest areas include optimizing extractive resources for inclusive and sustainable socio-economic development in Africa, promoting gender diversity in natural resource governance, and the differential impact of the energy transition on citizens.

Rachael Akosua Antwi is an environmental and sustainable finance expert.

She holds a Master of Science (MSc) degree in Environmental Change and Management from the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom (UK) and the School of Geography and the Environment. She also holds a Bachelor of Laws (LLB), and a Bachelor of Commerce (BCom) degree with a specialization in Corporate Law from the University of Pretoria, South Africa.

She has over 12 years of experience, of which 10 years were spent in the financial sector in SA and sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) from Absa Capital (formerly Barclays Africa Group) and Standard Bank Investment Banking, where she assumed many roles. She also has experience in financial markets regulations and has worked in both London and Johannesburg.

She is currently a director at Nochua International, where she advises clients in SA and the rest of Africa on environmental and sustainable finance as well as the UN SDGs.

Her work spans many sectors such as renewable energy, project finance, water, infrastructure, ESG, debt and equity. She is also an expert reviewer for the UNFCC Climate Change Reports and IPCC Sixth Assessment Report (AR6).

Giuseppe Valenti has over 30 years of experience in the oil and gas sector. He holds a degree in Geology from the University of Parma (Italy) and an MBA from Robert Gordon University of Aberdeen (UK).

He Joined Eni Upstream in 1988 as a Geophysicist and moved from R&D to Geophysical Services, and then to Exploration & Production, working on different areas of the world.

Giuseppe is present, Managing Director of Eni Ghana, after spending 3 years at the Eni Headquarters in Milano (Italy) as Executive Vice President, Geology & Geophysics for Eni SpA, managing the Well & Seismic Operations, Services and Integrated Studies worldwide.

He was previously assigned to Moscow as Chief Representative Office of Eni SpA in the Russian Federation, and General Manager of Eni’s local branch. Before his assignment in Moscow, he had spent few years as President of Eni Oil do Brazil in Rio De Janeiro (Brazil), following his long years of experience in the USA where he served as Senior Vice President – Exploration, at Eni US affiliate for E&P based in Houston (Texas), dealing with Gulf Mexico Deepwater, Alaska and onshore Unconventional Resources.

Dr. Olufunso Somorin is the Regional Principal Officer at the African Development Bank. He leads the Bank’s work on climate change and green growth in the 13 countries which consist of the Eastern Africa region. In addition, he leads policy dialogues with national/regional governments on developing policy frameworks for managing local and regional economic and social issues, resilience, state-building goals, regional integration, food security, climate change and inclusive growth.

Prior to joining the Bank in 2011, Dr. Somorin was an Associate Professional Officer with the Centre for International Forestry Research, based in Cameroon. He led a number of policy-relevant research analysis on mainstreaming climate change adaptation and mitigation into national development policies of Central African countries.

Dr. Somorin holds a PhD in International Environmental Policy from Wageningen University, in the Netherlands.

He has also received numerous executive training on development issues at Cambridge and Oxford Universities in the UK.

Yorm Ama Abledu is a bilingual Legal Practitioner and a Harvard Certified Negotiator, holding a postgraduate degree in Oil and Gas Law (International Investment Arbitration) from the University of Aberdeen, Scotland.

Yorm is a Critical thinker with a high-performance rate in court proceedings. In 2014, she obtained her master’s degree in Oil and Gas Law with professional skills from University of Aberdeen, Scotland, where her outstanding academic performance won her the Ede & Ravenscroft 2014 Prize for Academic Excellence. Within the same period, Yorm attained certification from the Oil and Gas Academy of Scotland as an Oil and Gas contract negotiator. She was called to the Bar in 2016 after which she joined Bentsi Enchill, Letsa & Ankomah, a leading law firm in Ghana, practising primarily in the areas of Corporate Law, Litigation, Oil and Gas and Mining Law. Yorm is also certified in Human Rights and Oil and Gas Law from the Fordham University and her passion for Human Rights Law was reflected in how she won a total of 57 human rights cases on behalf of several indigents over a 12 months’ period in her position as Assistant Public Defender under the Legal Aid Commission, where she continues her pro-bono service.

Currently, she consults on Petroleum Agreements, Regulatory and Compliance Framework, Tax, Labour and Employment issues for local and multinational companies in the Energy Sector. She is also an  Assistant Law Lecturer at the University Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), where she teaches Energy Law and Legal Environment of Business.

Yorm loves legal research and currently collaborates on research on the regulatory framework on decommissioning in Ghana and the diversity and inclusion of women in the Energy sector.  Outside the classroom, Yorm enjoys travelling. She is passionate about the increase in women’s inclusion, leadership and participation towards development in the energy sector.  Yorm also volunteers as the Policy & Advocacy Committee Head with the African Women in Energy Development Initiative (AWEDI). Yorm is a member of the Ghana Bar Association and the International Bar Association.

Mandy Rambharos is Eskom’s Climate Change and Sustainable Development Manager. She also heads up Eskom’s Just Energy Transition (JET) Project Office, overseeing the development of the utility’s JET vision and strategy.

She has over 20 years’ experience in the energy sector which has allowed her to gain deep insights into various aspects of the sector, at the international, regional and national levels.

Mandy is a member of the South African delegation to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. She also serves on the Boards of the NBI (South Africa’s National Business Initiative), Verra and Global Change Institute (University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg).

She represents Eskom on the World Bank’s Carbon Pricing Leadership Coalition advisory committee and serves as the co-chair of the African Working group for this initiative.

Mr. Prosper Ahmed Amuquandoh is an Energy, Infrastructure Development and International Trade professional, with over 10 years of combined working experience that spans Academia, International Development and Public & Private Sectors. He has consulted for several organizations, including the United Nations Environment Program and the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves and Fuels. He has previously worked at the Global Institute of Sustainability, at the Arizona State University (Tempe, USA).

Mr. Amuquandoh currently serves on the National Risk Management Team for the implementation of Ghana’s Paperless Port System to facilitate international trade; and the Technical Select Committee of the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce & Industry’s Business Awards. He is also the Energy Advisor to the Integrated Water & Agriculture Development Ghana Ltd. Furthermore, Mr. Amuquandoh works with the Ghana Energy Commission, where he helps with the development, as well as leads the enforcement, of Regulations, Standards and Codes of Practice in Ghana’s renewable energy industry.

He has received a number of awards and recognition for his professional service and achievement. Notable among these are: the African Initiative for Governance Award, which he received in 2018; and the Rising Star of the Year in Ghana’s energy sector, which he received at the 2018 Ghana Energy Awards. In 2017, he was adjourned the winner of the Energy category at Ghana’s maiden 40 Under Forty Awards. In 2016, he was a finalist for the Future Energy Leader Award in West Africa, at the West African Power Industry Awards, held in Nigeria. In the same year, Mr. Amuquandoh received the Mandela Washington Fellowship Award by President Barack Obama and the US State Department.

His training is in Public Policy, at the University of Oxford; Theoretical Physics at the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (Trieste, Italy); Zero–Net Energy Systems & Policy, at the University of California (Davis, USA); Hydropower & Sustainable Development, at the International Center on Small Hydro Power (China); and in Physics & Computer Science (with First Class Honours), at the University of Ghana.

Shamini Harrington is the Vice President of Climate Change at Sasol. She has worked for Sasol for 15 years and holds a Master of Science degree in Climate Change.

Shamini is both the Environment and Just Transition Chair of the Business Unity South Africa committees, representing mandated business views on climate change related policy issues into government processes. She has been involved in climate change policy development since 2005, in South Africa.

Shamini is also an experienced international climate change negotiator and represented business on the South Africa negotiating team at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change for 5 years.

Venan A. Sondo is a Sustainable Business & Management Professional with over 16 years of experience in sustainable business and climate consulting, especially with integrating ESG in traditional business environments.

He is a Co-Founder of CHAiNT Afrique LTD, a Change, Innovation & Transformation Hub that focuses on helping households, organisations and communities realise value through the eco-efficiency & eco-innovation lens. CHAiNT is an aspiring circular StartUp in Africa, focusing on promoting inclusive sustainable lifestyles as the main solution towards addressing sustainable consumption and production (SDG12).

Venan formerly led the PwC Ghana Sustainability & Climate Change Services for West Africa, where he steered the development of the Sustainable Banking Principles in close collaboration with the National Steering Committee for Sustainable Banking Principles and the Bank of Ghana as Lead Consultant with PwC Ghana.

He also currently consults for Diageo Africa on plastics recycling and MPower AG Switzerland on inclusive energy access.

Dr Linus Mofor is presently the Senior Environmental Affairs Officer, leading the portfolio of work on energy, infrastructure and climate change at the African Climate Policy Centre (ACPC) of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). He also provides  technical lead on the ECA’s SDG7 Initiative for Africa, which aims to accelerate private sector investments in clean energy in Africa in support of access and the continent’s climate action ambition.

Before joining the ACPC, he was Renewable Energy Innovation and Technology Analyst with the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).

Prior to joining IRENA, he was an industrial development expert with the Energy and Climate Change Branch of the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) in Vienna, where he worked  on various Global Environment Facility (GEF) and technical assistance renewable energy projects in various countries in Africa, including Cameroon, Zambia, Sudan and Chad.

Linus joined UNIDO from academia where he was a senior lecturer, postgraduate programme director and senior consultant at the Centre for Engineering Research and Environmental Applications at the University of Glamorgan (now University of South Wales), UK.

Mr. Mark Ofori Kwafo is the Regional Coordinator, Environmental Sustainability at Ecobank Anglophone West Africa.

He has held various other positions at Ecobank Ghana Ltd, including head of Procurement and Project Manager, Ecobank-Trust Bank Integration. Prior to his engagement with Ecobank, he worked with the Electricity company of Ghana and Tema Municipal Assembly.

Mr. Kwafo is an alumnus of Cambridge Institute of Sustainability Leadership. He also participated in the Climate and Sustainability Energy Finance Summer Academy in Frankfurt, Germany.

He holds a degree in Engineering from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, KNUST and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Ghana Business School.

Professor Chukwumerije Okereke has over 20 years of active engagement with, and leadership in Africa’s climate change and development agenda.

He is currently the Director of the Centre for Climate Change and Development (CCCD) at Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu-Alike, Nigeria and a visiting Professor of Environment and Development at the University of Reading.  Professor Okereke was previously a Senior Research Fellow and Head of Climate and Development Centre at the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment at the University of Oxford.

He is the Coordinating Lead Author of the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Working Group III, Sixth Assessment Cycle Report. Professor Okereke was founding project manager of the Rwandan National Green Growth and Climate Resilience Strategy, which was the first-ever National Green Economy Strategy in Africa; the Principal Investigator of the African Development Bank funded project on Assessing the Adaptation components in Africa’s NDCs; and the Principal Investigator of the African Adaptation Initiative, funded by the UNDP.

Dr Festus Asaaga is an Environmental Social Scientist based at the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.

Broadly, his research focuses on advancing a better understanding of the interdependence and synergies between human health, animal health and the environment, with a view of improving policy outcomes for safeguarding livelihoods, health and well-being.

Through this interdisciplinary engagement, Festus’ research revolves around three key inter-linked foci: health, agriculture and environment with climate change as an underlying crosscutting theme in developing contexts.

Festus is currently working on two interdisciplinary projects, in which he is exploring the socio-ecological drivers of (re)emerging zoonotic disease vulnerability in the Western Ghats region of India.

Ekemini John is a first-class graduate of Mechanical engineering from the University of Uyo, Nigeria, who is committed to service and nation-building.

A Student of Msc Energy Systems at the University of Oxford for the 2020/2021 academic year, Ekemini is also a green energy enthusiast and a Sustainable Development knowledge facilitator in Nigeria. She is passionate about the use of artificial intelligence in proffering green energy solutions to end the challenges of energy in Africa.

In 2020, she received a “40 under 40” award for “Inspiring African Future Mechanical Engineers (IAFME)”, in recognition of her “distinguished services, accomplishments and endeavours towards the activities of engineering in Africa at a young age”.

She is a member of the International Association of Engineers (IAENG) and presently, a participant of the Young Professionals for Sustainable Development Goals (YPSDG) Seminar Series 2020, organised by the United Nations Association of the USA, San Francisco Chapter.

Julius Karanja Mbatia is a Climate Justice Advocate and governance expert with 3-years of experience working in the non-profit sector, where he advocates for climate action at local, national, regional and global levels.

He is an expert in climate finance, working particularly on the Green Climate Fund (GCF). He is currently an Alternate Active Observer to the GCF, representing developing countries.

As a young climate leader in Kenya and Africa, Julius has volunteered for more than 5 years in various youth movements. As a young climate leader, he has been driving public climate discourse and been involved in global climate policy processes, representing Kenyan youth in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change as a young negotiator.

Rosalind Kainyah, MBE, is a trusted advisor to Boards and Senior Executives of global companies on sustainability, responsible business investment and partnerships in emerging markets. She is also an experienced professional non-executive director.

In 2014, she was awarded an MBE for services to CSR for the benefit of youth in Africa.

Rosalind is a member of the Bar of England and Wales and of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.

She is a Non-Executive Director of CAL Bank Limited, Ghana; Board member of Results for Development (R4D); Vice Chairperson of the Africa Gifted Foundation; and Founding President of International Women’s Forum Ghana. Rosalind is also a Non-Executive Director of Aker Energy AS and of GEMS Africa.

Chibeze Ezekiel is the Executive Coordinator of the Strategic Youth Network for Development (SYND), a youth-oriented NGO that promotes youth inclusion in the governance of Natural Resources & Environmental (NRE) sector.

He is a strong advocate on Climate Change and Renewable Energy issues. He is a certified Youth Master Trainer on Climate Change, National SDGs Champion, Climate Reality Leader and serves on the Board of 350.org. He was recently appointed as Panel Member of International Experts on the Environment of Peace 2022 (EP 2022) project.

Ezekiel chairs the Youth in Natural Resources and Environmental Governance (Youth-NREG) Platform, which provides space for knowledge learning and sharing among young people working on different environmental actions as well as create opportunity for joint advocacy in a concerted manner.

Simphiwe is a PhD candidate in Human Geography at the University of Oxford where her thesis is focused on the political geography of populism. The research is funded by the Oppenheimer Memorial Trust.

She is an Eldred Scholar at Linacre College, Oxford and a Civil Society Scholar through the Open Society Foundation (2018-2019).

Prior to Oxford, she was a research fellow at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Science Policy in Washington D.C.

Rosalind Kainyah, MBE, is a trusted advisor to global companies on responsible business investment and partnerships in Africa.  She has decades of experience in corporate and environmental law, government relations, political risk management and sustainability.

As an environmental lawyer for almost a decade from the early 1990s, Rosalind advised international organisations and governments on environmental policy and legislation. She went on to become a corporate lawyer at the international law firm, Linklaters. And later, a corporate and commercial lawyer and Executive Director at De Beers Group. Prior to founding Kina Advisory in 2013, she was Vice President, External Affairs and CSR at Tullow Oil plc.

Rosalind is a member of the Bar of England and Wales.   She is a Non-Executive Director for Aker Energy, and CAL Bank Limited Ghana; Vice Chairperson of the Africa Gifted Foundation; and also serves on the Advisory Board of Invest in Africa.

In 2014, Rosalind was awarded an MBE for services to CSR for the benefit of youth in Africa.  Recently, she was selected as one of the top 50 leading female professionals by Cranfield University.  She was named in 2008 as one of Britain’s most influential people of African and African Caribbean heritage by The Power List. In 2016, she was again named by Forbes Afrique Magazine as one of the 100 influential women on the African continent.

Dr (Mrs) Jemima Nunoo is a Lecturer with over 17 years of teaching experience at the Tertiary level. She teaches Leadership (undergraduate and executive levels) and Business Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility at the Business School of Ghana Institute of Management & Public Administration (GIMPA).

She has also facilitated programmes for various organisations including the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, Databank and DANIDA.

Dr Nunoo was the Speechwriter and Principal Researcher for Ghana’s former president, John Agyekum Kufuor and was instrumental in the establishment of the John A. Kufuor Foundation for Governance and Leadership.  She also served as a Research Fellow at the Institute for Democratic Governance (CDD).

She holds a BSc (Hons) in Biochemistry from the University of Birmingham, UK; an MA in International Studies and Diplomacy from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London; a Research Track MA from the University of Nottingham, UK; and a PhD from the same institution.

Dr Nunoo was early this year awarded the Outstanding Female Executive of the Year and Best Achiever in CSR at the 2019 Feminine Ghana Awards.  She is the Board Chair of the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP), as well as a government-appointed board member of the Petroleum Commission, Ghana and the Ghana National Service Scheme.

Dr. Justice Tei Mensah is an Economist at the International Finance Corporation, The World Bank Group, in Washington DC.

Previously, he was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences in Uppsala-Sweden.

He holds a PhD in Economics from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences; an MPhil in Economics from the University of Ghana; and a BA in Economics from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology.

His research is mainly on development economics, energy economics, and natural resource economics. His research has been published in reputable peer-reviewed international journals.

Charles Wanguhu is a social activist and the Coordinator of the Kenya Civil Society Platform on Oil and Gas. At the platform, he coordinates civil society organizations to provide a collective voice on Oil, Gas and broader extractive issues.

He previously headed the programmes department at the Africa Centre for Open Governance (AfriCOG) – a think tank with a focus on the structural causes of corruption. Prior to joining AfriCOG, he worked with the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) and also spent a period at the Danish Institute for Human rights (DIHR) in Copenhagen.

Mr. Wanguhu is an alumnus of the Draper Hills Fellow Program at Stanford University’s Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law. He holds an LLM in International and Commercial Dispute Resolution.

He has contributed to civil society reports, academic pieces, as well as a recent book – Africa’s New Oil – by former BBC journalist Celeste Hicks. Mr. Wanguhu has also delivered keynote presentations at various institutions including Chatham House, and as a panellist at the Brookings Institute, as well as at key African Union meetings.

Rita is the Executive Director at the Ghana Federation of Disability Organizations (GFD)

She is a development practitioner with over thirteen (13) years’ experience in development work, ten years (10) at senior level in advocacy, human rights and social inclusion.  She has strong passion and expertise in promoting human rights of marginalized groups especially persons with disabilities.  She has contributed to national policy development and reforms on disability, gender and social inclusion in Ghana and at the global level.

Among other achievements, Rita directly contributed to setting priorities for Ghana’s Medium-Term National Development plans from 2006 to date; contributed to the advocacy for the promulgation of Persons with Disability Act, 2006 (Act 715), ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Guidelines for the utilization and management of District Assemblies Common Fund for persons with disabilities, African Disability Protocol adopted  by the African Union, and prioritization of disability indicators for inclusion in the Sustainable Development Goals at the national and global levels.

She has held key senior management positions and responsibilities in both public and private sectors.  Apart from her current position as the Executive Director for the Ghana Federation of Disability organizations (GFD), she also serves on the Advisory Board of the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection as well as the Governing Board of the National Council on Persons with Disabilities.

Rita volunteers her time to Mentor young persons with disabilities and young women.  She is a beneficiary of the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) of U.S Department of State; the Commonwealth Professional Fellowship Program of the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in the UK; and the Australian Leadership Awards Fellowships.

She graduated from the University of Cape Coast with a Bachelor’s degree in Management Studies, and holds a Master of Arts degree in Development Management from the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA).

Rita Kusi Kyeremaa looks forward to contributing to society so that no one is left behind in the world’s development.

About 7 years ago, what began as a part time research and a social media advocacy to save Lake Turkana, evolved into an environmental justice and a community rights role through citizen-activism and environmental advocacy.

The Founding Director of Friends of Lake Turkana, Ikal Angelei, is an environmental thinker, activist, philosopher of science and ecological policy advocate who has key interest in Environmental justice, Resource governance and Community rights. She has the specific belief that development is for the people and thus, this development cannot in any way be an injustice to the very people it is meant for.

Her interests include Political Ecology, analyzing the politics and human ecology of ecosystems management, and the institutional aspects of natural resource governance.

Ikal works towards increasing the participation of grass roots and local communities in governance of their resources. She is keen in understanding the inter-relationships between politics, good governance and sustainable resource management and in exploring approaches to ensure equitable access, control and ownership by local communities.

She is the winner of the Goldman Environmental Prize in 2012, and is currently a PhD candidate at the University of Leicester, researching into the Political Ecology of Oil: The Struggle for Land and Livelihoods in Turkana’s Pastoral Commons.

Jennifer Boca is the Head of Responsible Investment at Lekela Power.

She joined Lekela Power in October 2015 and is responsible for providing oversight for all of Lekela’s projects across Africa, to ensure they are delivered to the highest standards. In her role, she engages with various stakeholders including governments, lenders, contractors, and local communities to ensure the delivery of clean energy across Africa.

Her experience spans across a number of African countries including South Africa, Senegal and Egypt. She is currently developing the Ayitepa Wind Project in Ghana.

She also leads the company’s ESG due diligence on projects.

Jennifer has more than 15 years of experience working in the areas of environmental sustainability and consulting for a wide range of public and private sector clients, including the World Bank, Development Finance Institutions, commercial banks and project developers.

She was early this year, named in the Cranfield School of Management’s list of annual Women to Watch for 2020.

Dr. Rahman has more than 30 years of experience in the oil sector and has particularly extensive knowledge of Sudan’s energy sector.

From 1981 to 1989, he served as Head of Engineering for ADNOC’s Ruwais Refinery in Abu-Dhabi. From 1989 to 1994, he served as Head of General Petroleum Corporation, Sudan which was fundamental in the emergence of the oil industry in the country.

In 1991, he developed Sudan’s model for the Exploration and Production Sharing Agreement (EPSA). He further established Ben Barkhiya consulting and training office in Khartoum in January 1994, with key emphasis on Energy and Engineering sectors. From October 1996 to January 1998, he headed Government teams to establish GNPOC consortium for oil E&P.

Dr. Rahman is Chairman of the Consortium (representing the government) for oil production from Blocks 1, 2 and 4; head of the Government project team; Head of the Joint Co-ordination Committee for the upstream; and head of the Joint Management Committee for the COPA (the pipeline and Marine terminal). He served as Member of the Board of Directors of Sudapet to 2010.

He served as the Sudanese Minister of Petroleum & Gas from May 2017 to May 2018, and has worked as a special consultant with several national and international companies in the oil sector.

Dr. Rahman is a Member of the Faculty Board of the Faculty of Petroleum Engineering at the Sudan University of Science and Technology and a Member of the Advisory Board for the Ministry of Petroleum, Sudan.

He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Birmingham, UK.

Ezekiel Adebayo Adesina is a chemical engineer by profession and is the current Executive Secretary for the Africa Energy Study Group – a think tank which specializes in the advancement of energy solutions for Africa, & Head of Strategy and Planning at the Nigeria LNG Limited.

He has a career experience which spans over 20 years in various capacities including Project Management, Plant Operation Management, Commissioning & start-up, Process Technology, Project Integration Management, Strategy and Planning.

Ezekiel has presented many topical papers and presentations at various Oil & Gas Conferences around the world. Notable among them are: the 1st Nigeria Gas Summit; Nigeria oil & Gas Conference; Nigeria Power Summit; West Africa Power Industry Conference; Africa Assembly & West Africa Assembly of Oil council; Africa Future Energy Conference in Nairobi, Kenya etc.

He was recently invited by the US Assistant Secretary for Energy as one of the selected global gas experts in the writing of an LNG handbook with the US Department of Energy.

He is a pioneering member and first Vice President (Professional Development) of the Project Management Institute (PMI) in Nigeria. He is also a member of the Nigerian Society of Chemical Engineers, Nigerian Gas Association and the Nigerian Society of Engineers.

Mr. Daniele is an Engineer with 24 years’ experience in the Oil and Gas Industry, including various African countries such as Nigeria and Egypt. He is currently the Managing Director for Eni Ghana E&P Ltd.

He began his career in Eni in 1995 with the Reservoir and Petroleum Department in Agip S.p.A. In 1999, he served as a Reservoir Engineer for Nigerian Agip Oil Co. Ltd, Port Harcourt. He then served in the Petroleum, Petrochemical and Power Production, and Environment department in Agip, Congo, SA.

In 2010, he was the General Director for OOO ‘Eni Energhia’ in Moscow, Russia; became the Operator’s Management Committee Member – Gas Division for Mellitah Oil & Gas B.V. in Tripoli, Libya, in 2013. He then went on to serve as the MOG Gas Division Director for Mellitah Oil & Gas B. V., Malta in 2015. Prior to his appointment in Eni Ghana, he served as the General Manager for Cardoni IV, S.A., Venezuela.

Mr Daniele holds a degree in Geoinformatics Engineering from the University of Parma, Italy.

Oliver Maponga is an Economic Affairs Officer at the United Nations Economic Commission (UNECA) for Africa.

His work at the Commission includes providing technical support on socio-economic development, energy, mining and land policy analysis and development, industrialization and regional integration, to member States and regional economic communities in the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

Oliver has supported work on developing regional frameworks for the minerals sector. These include: SADC Mining Policy Harmonization Framework; SADC Regional Mining Vision; Africa Mining Vision and its Action Plan; and the Economic Community of West African States Minerals Development Policy. His recent support to COMESA and SADC focused on domestication of the Mining Vision in member States, industrialization and industrial policy development and profiling regional mineral value chains, and mineral beneficiation and mining skills development.

Between 2012 and 2018, Oliver coordinated and lectured in an annual course on Mining Policy and Contracts Negotiation for senior government officials organized through UNECA’s African Institute for Economic Development and Planning (IDEP).

Prior to joining the Commission, Oliver served as the Minerals Economist, Lecturer and Chairman of the Institute of Mining Research at the University of Zimbabwe. He was also a Visiting Fellow and Senior Lecturer at the Western Australian School of Mines in Karlgoorlie from 2000 to 2001.

Oliver holds a Ph.D. in Mineral Economics from the Western Australian School of Mines, and is also a graduate of McGill University, Canada and the University of Zimbabwe.

His research work in various research work have been published in journals such as the Natural Resources Forum, Minerals and Energy, Cleaner Production and Resources Policy.

Mr. Bagooro is a Development Economist with over ten years’ experience in policy research, analysis and advocacy in Africa.

His areas of focus include Multilateral, Regional and Bilateral Trade, Investment and Finance regimes, and Africa’s political economy. In the last ten years, he has been working on these areas and their implications on Africa’s Structural Economic Transformation and Integration.

Mr. Bagoroo has approached these areas from a political economy perspective with particular focus on Africa’s location in the global economic order and the continent’s continuous dependence on primary commodities.

He is currently a Programmes Officer within the Political Economy Unit of the Third World Network-Africa (TWN-Africa).

Benjamin Boakye is an Energy Governance Professional and the Executive Director of the Africa Centre for Energy Policy.

Prior to becoming the Executive Director, he served as the Deputy Executive Director, Programmes Director and Operations Director, managing the Research Unit and the Programmes Unit.

He has made contributions to the extractive sector governance in Ghana and Africa with much focus on corporate governance, institutional development, fiscal governance, contract governance and evolution of legal framework for effective management of extractive resources. He has also consulted for the World Bank Group, UNDP, and many research institutions in the resource sector.

Benjamin has delivered presentations at various international conferences on the extractive sector, particularly on revenue generation and expenditure. He works with host communities, analyzing the communities’ issues relative to the development of extractives’ projects and revenue redistribution. He also has extensive experience on power sector reforms.

Benjamin holds an MSc in Energy Studies from the University of Dundee, UK and a BA Hon. in Sociology with Information Studies, from the University of Ghana.

Gunnar Andreas Holm is the current Norwegian Ambassador to the Republic of Ghana.

He has over 20 years extensive experience in international diplomacy and foreign affairs, beginning in 1994 as a Desk Officer with NORAD in Tanzania.

Prior to his appointment as the Norwegian Ambassador to Ghana, he had served as Norwegian Ambassador to South Sudan (2016); Minister Counsellor, Norwegian Embassy, South Sudan (2014 to 2016); Acting Special Envoy for South Sudan & Sudan (2013 to 2014); Senior Advisor and Coordinator of the South Sudan/Sudan Desk (2011 to 2013); Counsellor, Royal Norwegian Embassy in Pretoria, South Africa (2008 to 2011); Senior Advisor, European Department, Section for EEA Financial Mechanism (2006 to 2008); Senior Advisor, Africa 1 Section, responsible for Ethiopia and Eritrea (2005 to 2006); Acting Assistant Director General, Section for East and Southern Africa (2005), among others.

Mr Holm obtained a Cand.Polit in Social Anthropology from the University of Oslo in 1988.

Dr. Amin Adam is Ghana’s Deputy Minister of Energy responsibility for the petroleum sector.

Before this appointment, he was the Founder and Executive Director of the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP). He had previously worked as an Energy Policy Analyst at the Ministry of Energy, Ghana; Commissioner for Ghana’s Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC); former Deputy Minister of State for the Northern Region; and former Mayor of Tamale. He was also the Africa Coordinator of extractive industries in Ibis.

Globally, Dr. Adam has worked extensively on extractive industries and resource management.

He currently serves on two international advisory boards: The Open Contracting Partnership; and the Natural Resource and Community Review.

Dr. Adam is a member of several global initiatives including the Thematic Network on Good Governance of Extractive and Land Resources under the Sustainable Development Solutions Network; the Executive Session on the Political Economy of Extractive Industries; and the International Research Collaborative on Natural Resources Governance, Inequality and Human Rights, Law and Society.

In Africa, he has worked on petroleum policy and resource governance projects in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Uganda, Tanzania, South Sudan and Kenya, advising governments, supporting parliamentary committees, and Civil Society Organizations.

An accomplished investment banker, leading as originator and financial advisor to many landmark transactions on the Ghanaian and West African capital markets in the past 20 years.

Abena’s experience covers business and project conception and development, mergers and acquisitions advisory, stock market trading and listings, private placements of equity and debt instruments, asset management, investment research and capital markets development work across diverse sectors. She is respected in her industry for her outstanding professionalism and integrity.

She has served on boards of several companies since 2001. Aside Kosmos Energy Ghana, she currently serves on the boards or councils of Access Bank Ghana Plc, University of Ghana, Quantum Terminals Plc, Wapic Insurance Ghana Ltd and The Foschini Group Ghana Ltd. She previously served as a member of the Investment Advisory Council of the Ghana Petroleum Funds, and as director of the Ghana Stock Exchange, the Ghana Venture Capital Trust Fund, the African Women’s Development Fund, amongst others.

Abena is passionate about youth development and has mentored over 300 young people in the past 15 years, several of whom have become successful CEOs and business leaders. She is also passionate about bringing world-class healthcare to children and assisted the Princess Marie Louise Children’s Hospital to raise over US$3 million from the Jubilee Oil Field Partners.

Omowumi O. Iledare, Ph.D. occupies the professorial chair in Oil & Gas Economics and Management at the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation’s Institute for Oil and Gas Studies, University of Cape Cost.

He is the Africa Region Director and member of Board of Directors of the Society of Petroleum Engineers International. Iledare serves as the Executive Director of Emmanuel Egbogah Foundation; he is the immediate past director of Emerald Energy Institute, University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria.

His work experience includes well-site petroleum and reservoir engineering with Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC); reservoir/production engineering trainee with Mobil Producing Nigeria (MPN); and briefly as energy specialist with the California Energy Commission, Sacramento.

Iledare is an expert in international petroleum economics and geopolitics of oil and gas resources and supply. He is also a former President and Fellow of Nigerian Association for Energy Economics (NAEE); Senior Fellow and past President of United States Association for Energy Economics (USAEE); past President of International Association for Energy Economics (IAEE), and Executive Vice President, International Institute of Petroleum, Energy, Law and Policy (IIPELP), Abuja, Nigeria.

A professor emeritus of petroleum economics and policy research at the Center for Energy Studies, Louisiana State University, USA, Iledare holds a BSc degree in Petroleum Engineering with honors from University of Ibadan, Nigeria; MS in Energy Resources from University of Pittsburgh, USA; and a PhD in Mineral Economics from West Virginia University.

He is a recipient of several professional awards, recognitions and honors, serves on the eighth Nigeria National Assembly Technical Advisory Team on petroleum industry reforms in Nigeria.

Dalila is an advocate for development of local content in the African oil and gas value chain. She is the current Business Development Manager at Friburge Oil and Gas, a wholly owned Angolan Company.

Since joining the oil and gas services company, she has been instrumental in growing the company’s footprint within Angola and to other regions in Africa in line with the firm’s corporate ambition.

Dalila’s experience spans across different segments of the oil and gas value chain as well as the continent. Before joining Friburge Oil and gas, Dalila worked for Oando where she was part of the company’s regional diversification strategies to different countries in Africa. She also has experience in multilateral stakeholders’ engagements with UNCTAD (United Nations Commission for Trade and Development) on the beneficiation of extractive industries in Africa.

She sits on the boards of Propetrol South Africa and Friburge Oil and Gas Mozambique, where she imparts her in-depth knowledge of the oil and gas industry to provide strategic guidance to local African businesses.

At ACEP, Pauline focuses on evidence-based research, policy analyses, and advocacy to inform decisions in the oil and gas, power, and mining sectors in Ghana and Africa.

Her experiences span legal and regulatory reviews, contract transparency, fiscals, corporate governance, local content and economic linkages, domestic resource mobilization, revenue governance, etc. along the extractive value chain.

Prior joining ACEP, Pauline worked in research, policy, and business development at TrustWorks Global Ltd. (Netherlands) and Tullow Oil Plc (U.K).

Her background is in Law from GIMPA with specialization in Natural Resources Law and International Trade and Investment Law; Public Policy (Masters) from the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford, with specialization in Economic Development: Political Foundations and Economic Strategies; and Land Economy from KNUST.

An alumna of the International Visitor Leadership Program run by the U.S. Department of State, Pauline is passionate about optimization of Africa’s energy resources for economic transformation and human development.

Mr. Darku is an electrical engineer by profession with varied experiences working in the energy sector for over 30 years.

He is currently the Chairman of the Ghana Upstream Petroleum Chamber.

Prior to this, he served as the first Ghanaian General Manager for Tullow Oil Ghana from 2013 to 2018. Before Tullow, Mr. Darku worked in the Ghana power sector where he served as Chief Executive Officer of Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo). In earlier years, he held senior positions with the Volta River Authority.

Mr. Darku is an alumnus of Harvard University, from where he obtained a Master’s degree in Public Administration. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology.

Senyo Kwasi Hosi is a Ghanaian thought leader, finance and economic policy analyst.

He is the CEO of the Chamber for Bulk Oil Distributors (CBOD), Ghana.

He is an experienced management professional with several years of experience in the downstream petroleum industry, public policy, industry advocacy and commodity trading, among others.

As a renowned industry advocate, Senyo has been instrumental in the development of major policies in Ghana’s energy sector.

He is an advisor to the Ministry of Energy and serves on the boards of some public and private organisations, including the Ghana Highway Authority, the Private Enterprises Foundation, Legacy Bonds Limited and NDK Capital Ltd.

Mr. Hosi holds an MBA in Finance and an MA in Economic Policy Management from the University of Ghana, Legon.

Dickson Kwaku Osei is a business solutions professional with over 15 years continuous experience in the oil and gas value chain management. Kwaku is the Head of Commercial Planning for the West Africa Gas Pipeline Company (WAPCo).

He has been involved in managing the day-to-day commercial gas movement transactions and gas utilization structure on the West African Gas Pipeline (WAGP) value chain, including in-depth analysis of the sub-regional gas and power markets.

He is an Oxford trained scenario planning facilitator. Kwaku also holds BSc. Admin – Banking and Finance Option, and Master of Art in International Business Management (MAIBM) degrees from the University of Ghana and the University of Cumbria, UK, respectively.

He has been an ACCA member since 2005 and again holds a Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A) qualification from the Association for Financial Professionals in the USA.

Dr. Ibrahima Aidara is the Deputy Executive Director for OSIWA Regional Office, Dakar, Senegal. Prior to this engagement, Dr. AIDARA managed OSIWA’s Economic Governance and Advancement Program (EGAP) between 2013 and 2019.

He was the Country Economist at UNDP Senegal between 2010 and 2013 and was responsible for the formulation of strategies and plans for solving economic problems relating to the Millennium Development Goals. From 2006 to 2010 Mr. AIDARA was the Regional Extractive Industries Program Coordinator with the West Africa Regional Office of Oxfam America.

Ibrahima also worked as the Economic and Trade Policy Officer at UK-based Consumers International from 2004 to 2006. From 2002 to 2004, he was Public Utilities Program Officer at Consumers International Regional Office for Africa based in Harare, Zimbabwe.

Dr. Aidara has written several articles on trade, taxation, development and economic governance related issues. He has also conducted several capacity building activities on issues related to the extractive industries, trade negotiation and economics processes, as well as policy dialogue between different stakeholders.

He holds a Ph.D. in Economics and an MA degree in Economics from the University of Cheikh Anta Diop, Dakar, Senegal.

Mr. Opoku is a Principal Industrial Promotions Officer.

He is a member of the Strategic Anchor Industries and Special Projects Team of the Ministry of Trades and Industry. He also doubles as Special Assistant to the Deputy Minister in charge of Trade.

Michael has worked extensively on energy for industry as an integral part of both industrial and trade policies.

He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry and a Master of Arts degree in International Trade and Policy.  His background in Chemistry and International Trade affords him the opportunity to develop policy from a broader prospective, both in the science and in the economics scope.

Eva Kouka-Quenum works in West Africa from the foundation’s Lagos office. Her grant making has supported government transparency and accountability and civil society efforts to promote political, economic, and social rights.

Before joining the foundation in 2014, Eva worked with Oxfam for 11 years, as a regional program officer at Oxfam America and later as a governance program officer for Oxfam Novib. In both positions, she collaborated with community leaders, civil society, media, and senior government officials to promote extractive industry transparency, tax justice, land reform, gender equity, the control of small arms proliferation, and peace building.

Eva has extensive field experience in Ghana, Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, and Gambia, and she has served on the ECOWAS Commission and facilitated the participation of West African civil society in advocacy for and development of key regional policies and initiatives, including the ECOWAS Convention on Small Arms, the ECOWAS Mining Directive in 2009, and the ECOWAS Mineral Policy in 2011.

She holds master’s and bachelor’s degrees, both in law, from Gaston Berger University in Senegal. She received additional training in international law from The Hague Academy of International Law in the Netherlands and the Institute of International Public Law and International Relations in Thessaloníki, Greece

Dr. Obeng-Asamoa is the first blind person to have obtained a Ph.D. in African Studies from the University of Ghana. He was also responsible for the introduction of ICT to blind persons in Ghana, and the catalyst behind the establishment of a Materials Resource Center for Persons with Disability (PWDs).

As an advocate, Dr. Obeng-Asamoa was part of the group which spearheaded the development of the National Policy on Inclusive Education for Ghana.

Peter is the Ghana representative for the International Council for the Education of all Visually Impaired persons, (ICEVI), and led the advocacy for the ratification of the Marrakesh Treaty. He is also a former executive member of the CBR Africa Network.

Dr. Obeng-Asamoa is an author, with his first book being an expose on the Krobo ethnic group of Ghana.

Esther Akua Gyamfi is a Disability Rights lawyer and an Inclusive Policy Analyst, who has technical expertise and experience in building the capacity of stakeholders on disability inclusion.

She is the current Executive Secretary of the National Council on Persons with Disability, which is the State agency responsible for coordinating disability activities in Ghana.

Before being called to the Ghana Bar as a professional lawyer, Esther played a key role in the formulation and passage of the Persons with Disability Act, 2006 (Act 715). Esther is passionate about educating members of organisations of persons with disabilities including Ghana Society of the Physically Disabled on their rights, as well as challenging lawyers to make use of the Persons with Disability Act, 2006 (Act 715).

She is a Faculty member of ISLA, and the Chairperson for the Disability Rights and Inclusive Education Scholarship Association – Africa.

Esther holds LLM in International and Comparative Disability Law and Policy.

Nader is a petroleum economist with 13 years of diverse experience in the petroleum sector.

He is currently a Senior Petroleum Economist at the Ministerial Executive Office, Ministry of Energy & Mining in Sudan.

Key areas of his expertise include Petroleum Economics, Petroleum Law & Policy, Fiscal Terms, Petroleum Contracts Negotiations, Business Strategy & Development, Public Policy and Extractive Resources Governance.

Nader holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering (with Honors) from the Sudan University of Science & Technology; a Post Graduate Diploma in International Business from Fundesem Business School in Spain; and an MSc in Oil & Gas Economics from CEPMLP at the University of Dundee in Scotland, U.K.

He has also attended leadership and petroleum sector Fellowships in the USA, Norway, and Hungary.

Fourera Sotty Maiga has over 16 years’ experience in technical and managerial roles in the extractive industry. This experience spans from working as the Head of Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) in the Uranium processing facility of COMINAK in Niger for six years through her role in HSE management in Areva Mines (now Orano) in Paris for four years,  to serving as the Head of Sustainability and Environment at COMINAK.

She is currently the Vice Coordinator for Women In Mining of West Africa (WIMONA), founding member and president of the Association of Women in the Extractive Industry of Niger (AFSEIN) and a representative of mining companies on EITI’s Multi-Stakeholder Group in Niger.

Fourera Maiga holds an undergraduate degree in Minerals Processing from the Ecole des Mines de l’Industrie et de la Geologie (EMIG) as well as an M2 in Sustainable Management from Institut d’Administration des Entreprises (IAE) at Université de Poitiers, and an M2 in Sustainable Development Strategy from Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de La Rochelle – an Excelia Group University in France.

Jo Ann is a Senior Policy Analyst at the Africa Centre for Energy Policy.

She obtained a BA in Economics from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and a MSc in Energy Economics and Policy, with distinction, from the University of Surrey, UK. In addition, she holds a Professional Certification in Energy Management from University of Energy and Natural Resources in Ghana.

Prior to joining ACEP, she worked with Nestlé Central and West Africa Ltd as a Cost Analyst.

Jo Ann is the co-founder of the Love’s Closet Foundation, an NGO that focuses on supporting childcare and childhood development. She is also an award-winning actress who has starred in many theatre productions and a TV family comedy series.

Her research interests include; value for money analysis of projects funded with petroleum revenues, petroleum revenue management and the role of renewable energy in promoting electricity access for sustainable development.