Guest Speakers
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Thomas S. Robertson
Dean of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
Dr. Robertson has deep roots in the Wharton School, where he previously served as Associate Dean for Executive Education from 1984 to 1988. As a faculty member at Wharton (Professor 1976-94; Associate Professor 1971-76), he held the Pomerantz Professorship from 1987 to 1994 and served as Chair of the Marketing Department (1978-84 and 1988-94). From 1994 to 1998, he was Sainsbury Professor, Chair of Marketing, and from 1995 to 1998, Deputy Dean of the London Business School. Earlier in his career, he taught as an Assistant Professor at UCLA’s Anderson School (1966-68) and Harvard Business School (1968-71). An expert on marketing strategy and competitive behavior, the diffusion of innovation, and consumer behavior—particularly the impact of advertising on children—Dr. Robertson is author, co-author, or editor of a dozen books, including the Handbook of Consumer Behavior and Perspectives on Consumer Behavior (both with Harold H. Kassarjian, editors; Prentice-Hall, 1991) and almost a hundred scholarly articles and book chapters. Dr. Robertson sees business schools as a “force for good” in the world, and his strong commitment and experience in internationalizing business education is matched by his entrepreneurial spirit and strong fundraising experience. During his tenure as Dean of the Goizueta School of Business, he reformed and strengthened virtually every aspect of its academic program. He increased the size of the faculty by 73%; dramatically strengthened the undergraduate program and quality of the student body; doubled revenues; nearly doubled the School’s endowment; developed new international alliances; spurred major growth in executive education programs; expanded the school’s facilities with the construction of a major new building; and launched a new Ph.D. program. He is known as a statesman-like, soft-spoken, accessible, and visible leader, who combines a highly collaborative, consensus-oriented approach with decisive decision-making, high energy, and great enthusiasm for business education. A native of Scotland, Dr. Robertson earned his Ph.D. and M.A. in Marketing from Northwestern University in 1966, after completing his B.A. at Wayne State University in 1963. He has three children with his wife, Diana, a Professor of Organization and Management at the Goizueta School and a former Assistant Professor at the Wharton School.
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Keynote Speakers
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Akere T. Muna
Vice-Chair Transparency International, he is founder and former president of Transparency International Cameroon. A lawyer by training, he is President of the Pan African Lawyers Union and former president of the Cameroon Bar Association. Muna is a member of several national commissions on legal reform and curbing corruption.
He was a member of the National Ad-hoc Commission for the Fight against Corruption and has served as a Commonwealth Observer for Zanzibar's elections in 2000.
He was actively involved in the TI working group that helped to draft the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption and has written a guide to the convention published by TI.
He was elected to the TI Board at the 2004 Annual Meeting. He was elected as Vice-Chair of the TI Board at the 2005 Annual Meeting.
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Mandé Sidibé
Chairman of the Board of Director of Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI), he was born in Bafoulabé, Mali, and raised in Bamako, Mali. Mr. Sidibé attended the Terrasson de Fougères High School in Bamako, before leaving for France in 1959, where he obtained his Baccalauréat in 1960 at the Académie de Bordeaux. He also graduated with a degree in Economic Sciences (Licence ès-Sciences économiques) in 1965 from the University of Paris. Upon his return to Mali, he started working at Bank of the Republic of Mali (BRM). Then, in 1967, he was offered an opportunity at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as an Economist in the Africa Department. He held several positions at the IMF, including a Resident Advisor role in Chad from 1975 to 1977. He went on to become a divisional head, Africa Department. While at the IMF, he attended the George Washington University, from which he graduated with a Master in Business Administration in 1974. In 1985, Mandé Sidibé left the IMF to join the BCEAO (Banque Centrale des États de l'Afrique de l'Ouest) in various capacities, including Secretary General in charge of monetary policies and special advisor to the governor of BCEAO. From 1992 to 1995, he was the Director of BCEAO-Mali, while still retaining his role as a special advisor to the governor. In 1996, Mandé Sidibé became special advisor to the Malian president, Alpha Oumar Konaré. From 2000 to 2002 Mandé Sidibé served as Prime Minister and Chief of Government of the Republic of Mali. In 2006, he was appointed Chairman of the Board of Directors of Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI), a private sector banking group based in 18 countries of West Africa, Central Africa, and East Africa.
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H.E. Amina Salum Ali
Ambassador Amina Salum Ali is the Permanent Representative to the African Union’s Mission to the United States. Ambassador Ali, a highly respected member of the House of Representatives in Zanzibar and Tanzania, is known for her academic and political attributes. She holds an MBA in Marketing from the University of Pune, India; a BA in Economics from the University of Dehli, India; a Diploma in Financial Management from the Institute of Management, Development, and Research, India; and a Diploma in Trade Promotion and Export Marketing Research from Finland.
Ambassador Ali served as Minister in several government ministries in both the Union Government of Tanzania and in Zanzibar. In the Union Government of Tanzania, she has served as the Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and was in charge of regional and international cooperation. She also served as the Deputy Minister in the Ministry of Finance and was in charge of economic affairs and planning. In the Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar, she served as the Minister of Finance, where she engaged in World Bank, and IMF negotiations for Tanzania, and was in charge of financial reforms for Zanzibar. She most recently served as Minister of State in the Chief Minister’s office in Zanzibar.
Ambassador Ali has also served in various institutions such as the Catalyst Organization for Women Progress in Zanzibar (COWPZ), a non-governmental organization, where she is the chairperson. She has also been a board member of External Trade, and Uhuru/Mzalendo newspaper. She has been the vice chairperson of Tanzania Women Organization (UWT); a member of Mzumbe University Council, and Zanzibar Education Fund. She has also been a Trustee of the Zanzibar NGOs’ Cluster (ZANGOC), a network of NGOs that deals with HIV Aids issues; a patron of Zanzibar Women Welfare Trust (ZAWOTE); and a member of the Eminent Women’s Panel to Mainstream Women’s Development Activities in the Islamic Development Bank (JEDDAH).
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Yibrah Tesfazghi
Yibrah Tesfazghi is GE President & Corporate Regional Executive for Africa Region responsible for working on behalf of all GE businesses to expand customer and government relationships, and to develop new business opportunities across Africa. He has an office in Nairobi, Kenya.
Yibrah joined GE Power Systems in March 1980. In his more than 25 years with GE, Yibrah has served in a range of managerial positions such as in Finance, Administration, contracts and Logistics with GE Energy.
In 1989 Yibrah moved and joined GE International as the National Executive for Mediterranean Countries from Baghdad, Iraq.
In 1993 Yibrah became GE Power Systems Regional Projects’ Finance Manager covering Middle East and Nigeria and continued on this position until May 2003 when he joined back GE International as its President & Corporate Regional Executive for Africa Region.
The GE footprint in Africa has grown significantly under Yibrah’s leadership. During his tenure orders in the region have grown by 44% and sales by up to 40%. The company’s presence has expanded from offices in 3 countries to 16 countries.
He continues to identify new growth opportunities in the continent mainly in infrastructure sectors including mining vertical.
Yibrah is actively driving GE’s unyielding Compliance and controllership culture with great success. He leads the Black Empowerment efforts for GE in South Africa and all over Africa and has introduced local GE training programs in Africa to support and enhance localization.
Yibrah, a native of Eritrea, has a degree in Business Administration & Economics and is married with children.
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Euvin Naidoo
In June this year, Euvin Naidoo delivered the opening address at TEDGlobal 2007, a seminal gathering of world leaders in Arusha, Tanzania. The speech generated international acclaim for the reframing of significant challenges facing Africa as exciting opportunities. Mr. Naidoo, a fourth generation South African, is the President & CEO of the South African Chamber of Commerce in America (SACCA), an organization committed to the expansion of business, trade and investment opportunities between Africa and the America’s. SACCA’s core mission is job creation and sustainable economic development achieved by connecting African entrepreneurs with US investors. The organization strives to assist African businesses to scale internationally. SACCA recently received the honor of having its job creation program featured at the Clinton Global Initiative. Prior to assuming the leadership of SACCA, Mr. Naidoo was an investment banker at Standard Bank, one of Africa’s largest financial services institutions, where as part of the Acquisition Finance Group, he worked across emerging markets focusing on large-cap Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) transactions (South Africa) and Private Equity led transactions (Latin America). Mr. Naidoo is an alumnus of McKinsey and Company where he worked across a multitude of sectors and industries over a four year tenure. A graduate of the Harvard Business School, where he was co-President of the Social Enterprise Club, Mr. Naidoo co-authored the business school case “Nelson Mandela, Change Leader” with Professor Rosabeth Moss Kanter, highlighting how the leadership lessons of Africa’s great role models can be applied to the board rooms of the world. Mr. Naidoo has served as Distinguished Faculty at Synergos’ “University for a Night”; is a member of the Admissions Committee of the Harvard Club of New York; sits on the Board of MaAfrika Tikkun USA, the award winning South African NGO endorsed by President Mandela; is an Advisory Board Member of the Impact Young Lives Foundation; and is a member of the Harvard Business School’s Centennial Social Enterprise Steering Committee. He is a Fellow of the “Emerging Leaders Program” founded by James Joseph, former
US Ambassador to South Africa, aimed at mentoring the next generation of global leaders. |
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