Keynote Speaker (To be confirmed)

H.E. Dr. Joyce H. Banda is the former and the first female President of the Republic of Malawi and the first female President of the SADC region in 2012. H.E. Banda is the Founder of Joyce Banda Foundation International. She is the current Chairperson of Women’s Empowerment and Development (WED) Africa – Asia.

Special Guest Speaker (To be confirmed)

Hon. Reta Lewis is the President and Chair of the Board of Directors of the Export-Import Bank of the United States. Chair Lewis was sworn in by Vice President of the United States, Kamala Harris, on February 16, 2022. Ms. Lewis is a senior executive with over 25 years of leadership experience in international affairs, legal, public policy, business and regulatory affairs, and subnational diplomacy.

Keynote Speaker (To be confirmed)

Sharon Bowen joined the Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE) Board of Directors in December 2017. She serves as the Chair of the New York Stock Exchange Board of Directors, its subsidiary, and on the boards of certain NYSE U.S. regulated exchanges. In addition, she co-chairs the NYSE Board Advisory Council.

Ms. Bowen brings more than 35 years of regulatory, securities, and public policy expertise. She served as a Commissioner of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) from 2014 to 2017. During that time, she sponsored the CFTC Market Risk Advisory Committee. Ms. Bowen was previously confirmed by the U.S. Senate and appointed by President Obama on February 12, 2010, to serve as Vice Chair of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC).

She assumed the role of Acting Chair in March 2012. Before her appointment to the CFTC, she was a partner in the New York office of Latham & Watkins LLP. Ms. Bowen’s broad and diverse corporate and transactional practice of almost 32 years began in 1982 when she started her career as an associate at Davis Polk & Wardwell. She joined Latham as a senior corporate associate in the summer of 1988, became a partner in January 1991, and continued at Latham & Watkins LLP until 2014.

Ms. Bowen also serves on the board of directors of Neuberger Berman Group LLC and Akamai Technologies, Inc.

Ms. Bowen earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Virginia, a Master of Business Administration from the Kellogg School of Management, and a Juris Doctor from Northwestern Pritzker School of Law. She also holds an Honorary Doctor of Laws from Northwestern University.

Enoh T. Ebong is the Director of the U.S. Trade and Development Agency. Nominated by President Biden to serve as USTDA’s Director, she was confirmed by unanimous consent of the U.S. Senate.

As Director, Ms. Ebong leads USTDA in its efforts to develop sustainable infrastructure in emerging economies, while also supporting U.S. jobs through exports.

Ms. Ebong started her public service at USTDA and rose through the ranks as a career civil servant, including as General Counsel and as Deputy Director/Chief Operating Officer.

In March 2023, President Biden appointed Ms. Ebong as a Federal government member to serve on the Board of Trustees of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.

Ms. Ebong’s professional experience includes time in the nonprofit sector, where she
served as the Head of Strategic Partnerships at the Milken Center for Advancing the
American Dream.
Before joining USTDA, she practiced business and finance law, representing public and private companies in offerings, financing transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and corporate governance issues.

Ms. Ebong earned her JD from the University of Michigan Law School, a Master of Arts in Communication from the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania, and a Master of Arts in History, with honors, from The University of Edinburgh, Scotland. She is a member of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Bar.

Special Guest Speaker (Confirmed)

The Rev. Prof. Florence Isabirye Muranga is currently the Research Team Leader, the Director of Business Enterprise, and the founding Director of the Presidential Initiative on Banana Industrial Development Project (PIBID), now succeeded by the Banana Industrial Research and Development Centre (BIRDC). PIBID/BIRDC's mission is to provide rural farmers with services, outreach, and research and development opportunities in sustainable banana productivity, business and product process development, product assurance and safety, and process/product technology transfer and commercialization. She has been instrumental in the rollout of BIRDC and is also a founding member of the Department of Food Science and Technology at the former Faculty of Agriculture, Makerere University.

Additionally, she served as an Associate Chaplain at St. Francis Chapel, Makerere University. Under her leadership, PIBID has become one of tAfrica's most recognized agro-industrial projects receiving numerous accolades at the national level, in the COMESA Region, and across the continent. Prof. Muranga has personally been decorated with several awards, including the pioneer winner of the Presidential Scientific Innovation Excellence Award 2005/06 for her pioneering work utilizing Matooke (banana) as a principal raw material in the food processing industry and promoting its commercialization for food security. She also received the Platinum Winner for the Lifetime Achievement Award in East Africa for 2023/24, and the Valorous Award from the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation for her contributions to research and development in the banana value chain. She was recognized among the top women of 2006 by the Management Forum of the British Council, Uganda.

Prof. Florence Muranga has held membership at the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) and the Third World Organization for Women in Science (TWOWS). She has pioneered scientific research on Matooke, securing several competitive grants, including the Africa Career Award (ACA) from the Rockefeller Foundation and the Africa Institute for Capacity Development (AICAD) from the Japanese Government which all have been crowned by the PIBID grant from the government of Uganda. She has filed and obtained five patents and a trademark from her research, with six more in progress.
She is an ordained priest of the Church of Uganda, a mother and grandmother of four, and married to Rev. Prof. Dr. M.J.K. Muranga, former Director of the Institute of Languages at Makerere University and Principal of Bishop Burham UCU University College and currently Professor of Languages at Kabale University Uganda. She loves children and productive work.

Special Guest Speaker (To Be Confirmed)

Hon. Lynn Martin is President of NYSE Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE). She is also Chair of Fixed Income & Data Services at ICE.

Speaker

Tigist Reda founded Demera Restaurant in Chicago, renowned for its authentic Ethiopian cuisine. Born in Tigray, Ethiopia, Tigist grew up during the civil war, learning traditional Ethiopian cooking from a young age in a large household. After immigrating to the United States in 1997, she combined her passion for cooking and entertaining, leading to the opening of Demera Restaurant in 2007.

Tigist is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Africa Global Chamber of Commerce. In response to the current conflict in Tigray, she has dedicated herself to supporting survivors of gender-based violence. She collaborates with HPN4TIGRAY to fundraise for mental health services in refugee camps and continues to support these women through medical aid and small business development initiatives.

Speaker

Monica R. Cooper has worked in front of the camera and behind it for over 30+ years.
Monica was born in Baton Rouge, La. Raised in Pittsburgh, PA and studied theater at the University of North Carolina. She started her career in the entertainment industry as an actress performing in local theater and national commercials. Unable to find reliable representation, Monica formed her own model and talent management agency which she ran successfully for 4 years, ultimately finding a niche in discovering talent as a casting before making the leap of faith to relocate to the entertainment capital.
Upon moving to Los Angeles, she immediately began casting films and television projects such as Panther, Posse, Moesha, The Parkers, Friday, The Steve Harvey Show, Ned and Stacey, Civil Brand, The Wash and Waist Deep to name a few.
While casting, she found a fervent desire to be more involved in the creative process as a Producer. This led her to form the film and television entertainment production company, Make It Happen Entertainment to develop, package and produce "in- house" with the best in the business. The company's home base is in Los Angeles with production teams globally. Recent casting and producing works include "MR-9" with Frank Grillo, Michael Jai White and Abm Sumon and "Skeletons in the Closet" with Terrance Howard and Cuba Gooding Jr. and numerous projects currently in development.
Along with educating and providing opportunities for our next generation of filmmakers, her personal passion, is to find a cure for breast cancer. After losing her mother to the disease, she formed The Silent Majority Breast Cancer Foundation (www.smbcf.org) whose goal, is to raise awareness and funding for research, mentorship programs for youth and families and providing hope for more survivors.
She is also the founder and visionary behind the development of Peaceful Tides Health & Wellness Centre. (www.peacefultides.org) A 360 health and wellbeing facility being developed globally.

Speaker

Appreccia D. Faulkner is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Global Strategists Association, an international nonprofit striving to increase global engagement among the African Diaspora. She founded the organization in 2013 to promote diversity, racial equity, inclusion and justice in global affairs. The organization is committed to Changing The Face of Global Affairs
Appreccia is a 2023 International Career Advancement Program fellow with the University of Denver/Aspen Institute focused on diversifying global leadership, 2021 Truman National Security Project Fellow and a 2020 Emerging Leader with the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. She is a 2019 Global Ambassador with the Institute of Economics and Peace hosted by the Global Peace Index and a 2019 Fellow at Upswell hosted by Independent Sector. She has hosted and curated several thought provoking events designed to platform emerging and established Black leaders on today's most foreign and domestic issues. Under Appreccia's tutelage Global Strategists Association has partnered with University of Chicago, U.S. Department of State, and many other local and global institutions.
In 2017 she was one of seven Co-Chairs for The United State of Women Galvanize Chicago conference. The three day event was attended by over one thousand women looking to contribute to public policy and America's political posterity. She travels the country speaking on disruptive leadership, Black diplomacy, racial equity in foreign policy, and the importance of democratizing global affairs.

Appreccia is a native Chicagoan who graduated from Kennedy-King College with an Associates and later studied Political Science and International Affairs at George Washington University in Washington D.C. before obtaining her Bachelors Degree at Chicago State University. She is currently a regular contributor on WJOU's radio program 'Reimagining Our World' where she discusses the importance of civic engagement and Black diplomacy. "

Demitrus Evans, JD, LLM has served as the Secretary of the African Global Chamber of
Commerce for five (5) years. Most notably she is the managing Attorney for TEIL Firms
which began in Westchester in 2009. The firm’s three (3) focus areas are Contract Drafting/
Litigation, Intellectual Property Protection and International Trade. Demitrus also arbitrates for
Cook County Courts and is a Mediator in the Federal District Court. She often is asked to speak
on international contractual matters and does so under issues and Women in Law and Business.

Moderator

Catherine Franklin is a wife and mother of two adventurous boys who keep her on her toes. She resides in Heath, Texas; a suburb of the city of Dallas. She loves homemaking and decorating, traveling, horseback riding and movies.
In her profession, Mrs Franklin is a certified public accountant with over 20 years of experience. Most recently she worked as a Director of Tax and Compliance at a Private Wealth Management firm before leaving in November 2021, to establish a private practice and focus on her family. In her private practice she provides Concierge CFO services helping business owners to flourish financially.
Mrs. Franklin believes that to whom much is given, much is required. She is passionate about seeing women flourish. It is from this premise that she endeavors to help women Master Money through training and coaching.
She has served in many organizations supporting women including being President of Queens Ministry USA, a Christian women empowerment ministry. She also served as an advisory board member and finance expert trainer of the women's mentoring organization - Woman Act Now. Ms. Franklin has authored articles featured in Epitome Magazine, Live Magazine and Thrive Magazine.
Mrs. Franklin was recognized as one of the top 40 inspirational Kenyan Women in Diaspora by African Warrior Magazine. She has also been recognized and awarded a national statesman award by I-Change Nations. She holds a master's degree in Business Administration and a BA in Professional Accounting & MIS from Texas A & M University Commerce.

Speaker

Katherine Hennessey Gronberg serves as the head of government services for NightDragon, a venture capital firm investing in and advising innovative growth and late-stage companies within the cybersecurity, safety, security, and privacy industry. Prior to NightDragon, she served as the vice president of government affairs for Forescout Technologies, a global cybersecurity company. As a leading voice on cybersecurity policy issues, Ms. Gronberg has appeared on and provided commentary for Bloomberg, Fortune, National Public Radio, the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and other media outlets. She is currently a part-time lecturer at Rice University's Jones Graduate School of Business and has previously taught master's-level courses in cybersecurity and business-government relations at Georgetown University. Earlier in her career she founded and managed her own consulting firm, Gronberg Consulting, L.L.C., where she advised Fortune 500 companies on their government relations strategies. She also previously served as staff director on the Senate Appropriations Committee, Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State, the Judiciary and Related Agencies (CJS). A former Fulbright Scholar, Ms. Gronberg holds a bachelor's degree from Yale University and an M.B.A. from the University of Virginia's Darden School of Business.

Agnes N Kitumba is a social entrepreneur, CEO, mentor, wife, mother of 4 children, and dog lover!
With 10 plus years driving exceptional operational performance end-to-end in startups, she is a proven leader of diverse global teams; having led supply chain planning for Sseko from 2010 to 2017 and East Africa; Sseko business integration between Ethiopia, Kenya, and Uganda units.

She is the founder and CEO of The Arise Kollections; an ethical leather and textile value-addition company. Arise manufactures and exports leather and textile high-end products like bags, sandals, apparel, jewelry, and home décor items. Under her leadership during Sseko designs operations, more than 300 girls were skilled and sent to University, and more than 100 permanent jobs created.
The company also runs a youth Gap Year Program. Through her work and commitment, she is making a significant impact on the lives of Ugandan women and youth with hundreds having accessed mentoring and training programs, eventually receiving scholarships to pursue higher education.
Amongst her many recognitions Aggie has featured as the African - Modern day woman during the 2014 US-Africa Leaders' Summit Spousal Program in Washington DC, USA. She is passionate about manufacturing, gardening, planting trees, exports, and spending.
She believes in empowerment for all and using each one's talent to bring out the best in others.

Her personal motto being: "Stand up for yourself and those who cannot."

Organizer

Mrs. Ochigbo is the CEO & Founder of The Career Mompreneur (TCM), a financial coaching business teaching leaders and business owners
how to effectively manage their finances and become access to capital
ready to grow and scale in business.

Speaker

Since 1997, in Washington, DC, Yvonne has successfully implemented a venue for aspiring business owners to receive feedback and funding opportunities. Yvonne has been spotlighted in Black Enterprise Magazine, Walker’s Legacy, and other media outlets. DC Shark Tank has now become ‘Phoebe Pitch Tank Competition’. Yvonne has been a business speaker on conferences and webinars across the Globe.

Yvonne has developed grass roots collaboration with community organizations to establish a mentorship and micro-enterprise program for women through Phoebe Women Network since 2002. She established the Nonprofit Boot Camp in 2005 to provide training and technical assistance to emerging and established nonprofits through consulting and webinar training reaching over 1250 students.

She is experienced in coordinating and promoting events for nonprofit community organizations and conducting business workshops for Small Business Administration (SBA) and Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Yvonne, also known as Phoebe, is an organized, articulate self-starter with a proven ability to develop positive business relationships using public relations skills. Phoebe planned and hosted two global conferences , She Power Conference in Nairobi , Kenya in 2022 and 2023 at Strathmore University which included a Fireside Chat, Keynote by Kenyan government official , She Power Pitch Competition and Expo and Trade Deal Room for over 250 African women .

Dr. Deloris Thomas serves as President of The Joseph
Center® executing the vision to eradicate poverty through entrepreneurship. Her responsibilities include the strategic and global operational leadership for the nationally accredited Joseph Business School and its related entities.
Dr. Thomas traveled to over 60 countries expanding the flagship entrepreneurial program to 22
locations across six continents, and empowering people to become successful entrepreneurs.
Previously, Dr. Thomas held leadership positions in brand management and strategic
planning at Fortune 500 companies such as Xerox, Kraft Foods, and Sears Roebuck &
Company.
Dr. Thomas was selected for a Notable Woman in Education Award in the May 28, 2018
edition of Crain’s Chicago Business. Dr. Thomas authored the book, Awaken to Leadership
and is a contributing author for the book titled, Organizational Metaphors – Faith as Key to
Functional Organizations: Chapter Nine, Vineyard as a Metaphor.
Dr. Thomas holds a bachelor's degree in Marketing from Bentley University, a Master’s in
Business Administration from Harvard University Graduate School of Business, and a Ph.D.
in organizational leadership from Regent University. Dr. Thomas is happily married with
children.

Speaker

Efe is an experienced private equity lawyer and currently serves as Vice President and Assistant General Counsel at JP Morgan, where she advises institutional investors. She has extensive experience in private and public investments arising out of frontier markets.

Previously, Efe served as a Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer at Kuramo Capital Management, an independent investment management firm focused on alternative assets in emerging and frontier markets, where she advised on numerous cross-border investments deals across Africa and managed the firm’s fund formation processes. At Kuramo, she participated in the firm’s Investment Committee meetings, advised on structuring cross-border private equity transactions, negotiated transactions, and drafted agreements. She managed the legal transaction processes from inception to close and worked on diverse deals ranging from consumer goods to financial services. In addition, Efe also advised the firm and its portfolio companies on compliance and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act matters.

Efe received her A.B. from the University of Chicago where she was a Jeff Metcalf Fellow and her J.D. from Washington and Lee University School of Law. Efe is a member of the New York State and New Jersey State Bars. She was an elected member of the University of Chicago Black Alumni Association board and Vice President of the Association of Black Women Attorneys NYC.

Speaker

Dr. Elizabeth Wachira, affectionately known as 'Dr. E,' serves as an Associate Professor and Public Health Program Director at Texas A&M University-Commerce, bringing over 15 years of experience in nursing, health promotion, and education. Recently tenured, Dr. E is the first Black woman to achieve this milestone in her department. Her career in academia is driven by her belief that education should catalyze personal and societal transformation. From teaching to service, she consistently seeks opportunities to facilitate meaningful conversations and create spaces that empower individuals to discover and pursue their authentic purpose.

As a scholar, Dr. E’s research aims to inform and expand our understanding of health inequities, ensuring that marginalized voices are heard and respected in academic and policy-making circles. Her work extends to initiatives centered on women’s empowerment, mental health promotion, and clergy health.

As a community mobilizer and faith leader, Dr. E actively engages in initiatives fostering a culture of belonging, wellbeing, and commitment to others. She passionately works to empower and mobilize communities, particularly youth, to reach their greatest potential despite societal odds. Her community engagement reflects her dedication to breaking conventional boundaries and inspiring others to embrace originality boldly. Currently, she focuses on creating spaces for women of diverse ages and backgrounds to connect, be empowered, and supported to bloom into the greatest version of themselves. She does this through the BecomingEngaged book club and hosting “The Bloom Experience”.