Webinar: The Africa Continental Free Trade Area

Wamkele Mene was elected by the 33rd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of States & Government of the African Union, to the position of Secretary-General of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat.

Prior to being elected Secretary-General of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, he served as Chief Director: Africa Economic Relations, at the Department of Trade & Industry of South Africa. In this role, he was South Africa’s chief trade negotiator in the AfCFTA and Tripartite FTA negotiations. During his tenure as chief negotiator, South Africa ratified both the AfCFTA and Tripartite FTAs agreements, providing new export markets in fast-growing and dynamic markets in East and West Africa.

Prior to assuming this position, Wamkele was Director: International Trade Law & Investment Law at the Department of Trade & Industry, a role in which he was principal legal counsel on international trade law and international investment law.

From 2010 until 2015, Wamkele represented South Africa at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in Geneva, Switzerland. During his posting to the WTO, Wamkele was elected by over 130 governments to the position of Chairman of the Committee on International Trade in Financial Services, a committee comprising trade negotiators, financial regulators, and financial policymakers from over 160 countries.

Prior to joining the government, Wamkele worked for the law firms Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP in London and Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP in Hong Kong.

Wamkele has written and lectured internationally on international trade law, international investment law, and international business law. He holds a Bachelor of Arts (Law) degree from Rhodes University in South Africa, a Master of Arts in International Studies & Diplomacy (with specialization in International Economics) from the School of Oriental & African Studies (SOAS), University of London and an LL.M. (Master of Laws) in Banking Law & Financial Regulation from the Law Department of the London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE).

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Hajia Saratu Iya Aliyu is the 5th President of Federation of West African Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FEWACCI) since its revival in 2010 with the support of the ECOWAS Commission to serve as the umbrella of Private Sectors actors In West Africa.
She is also the 20th President of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines, and Agriculture (NACCIMA).
Hajia Saratu Iya Aliyu is the Second Female President of FEWACCI as well as NACCIMA.

Farmer and Managing Director of Sarat Group of Company, Hajia Saratu Iya Aliyu is a graduate from the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Nigeria. She lectured at Kaduna State Polytechnic and at Ahmadu Bello University.

Before this position of President of FEWACCI, she used to be the President of various Police Officers’ wives Associations and has occupied various positions in the Nigerian private sector notably:
• Chairperson of Job Creation and Sustainable Livelihood UNDP Assisted program,
• Commerce Vice President of Nigeria American Chamber of Commerce Kaduna Chapter,
• Vice Chairman Agricultural Trade Group of Kaduna Chambers,
• Member UNDP Stakeholders Board on job Creation & Sustainable Livelihood, Kaduna,
• Member Coordinating unit of poverty eradication Programme in Kaduna,
• Member of Nigerian Shippers Council,
• Treasurer of Nigeria Niger Chamber of Commerce.
She is a recipient of the “Paragon of Excellence and Impetus for Greater Services to our Fatherland (Nigeria)” by Abubakar Tafawa Foundation and “Ambassador for Peace” by Inter-Religious and Interactional Federation for World Peace.
Hajia Saratu Iya Haliyu has honored with the Award of :
• Paragon of Excellence and Impetus for Greater Services to our Fatherland” by Abubakar Tafawa Foundation
• Ambassador for Peace” by Inter-Religious & Interactional Federation for World Peace.

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Hon.Dr. Peter Mathuki holds a Ph.D. in Strategic Management & Regional Integration from the University of Nairobi, Kenya. He currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer / Executive Director of the East African Business Council (EABC), driving the Private Sector agenda in the EAC Region. Hon.Dr. Mathuki is an expert in regional integration and has served in several regional organizations. He is a former Member of Parliament of the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) and chaired the EALA Committee responsible for good governance and also served in the Committee of Trade and Investment.

He sits on several boards such as Kenya Investment Authority (KenInvest) and Inter-University Council for East Africa (IUCEA). He is also a member of the Kenya Institute of Management (KIM).
He is passionate about regional integration and has been heavily involved in the negotiation of EAC Common Market Protocol and Regional economic issues since 2004, he strongly supported the formation of various EAC platforms instrumental in the EAC regional integration process. These platforms include the formation of East African labor and employees’ organizations in the EAC.

The East African Business Council (EABC) is the apex body of Private Sector association and corporate from the 6 East African countries. It was established in 1997 to foster the interest of the Private Sector from the East African Community. Being the representative of Private Sector associations in the region, EABC was granted observer status in organs and activities of the East African Community (EAC).EABC, therefore, participates in the various sectoral meetings, a meeting of the Coordination Committee, the EAC Council of Ministers, and the Summit of the EAC Heads of States; with a view to ensuring that agenda of the Private Sector is well articulated and received by the policymakers.

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Olivier Kamanzi is Capital markets expert, International Financial Sector Development Consultant, Global Speaker, and Philanthropist. He is Co-Founder and Chairman of Africa Global Chamber of Commerce headquartered in Chicago. Mr. Kamanzi is Chairman of the African Union African Diaspora Sixth Region – Illinois Chapter. He is Founder and CEO of Globrock Financial Group Inc., a global management Consulting and investment advisory firm with its headquarters in Chicago and its subsidiaries both in the US and Africa. He is former Deputy CEO of Capital Market Authority of Rwanda, former Senior Investment Specialist of Citigroup (Citibank), and Executive employee at JPMorgan Chase. He is Founder and Chairman of The Olivier Kamanzi Foundation – a public charitable organization. Also, he is President of the Board of Directors of Saint Sabina Academy an affiliate to Saint Sabina Catholic Church based in Chicago, United States.

Mr. Kamanzi assisted in the establishment of the Rwandan capital markets industry and the creation of the Rwanda Capital Market Authority and Rwanda Stock Exchange. He initiated different policies including the East Africa Regional Financial Market Infrastructure Development and Regional Capital Markets harmonization and integration. Mr. Kamanzi is current Doctorate Candidate in Philosophy Organizational Leadership and Entrepreneurship with specialization in Entrepreneurship and Innovation. He holds an MBA in Finance from Ashford University, the Forbes School of Business in Iowa, and a bachelor's degree in Business Administration from the University of Fribourg in Switzerland.

Kamanzi's hobbies are running, reading, and serving the community by mentoring youth, providing financial literacy classes, and he teaches the Stock Market Program to 8th Grade. He appeared on various radios, TV, and written media including WVON Radio, BBC World Services, Voice of America, African Union Magazines, CNBC Africa, Reuters, Nation, East African, GhanaWeb, and many more. He has written multiples articles on financial and leadership matters.

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GITEK Inc. represents one of the best sources for made in the United State of America Farming, Agricultural, Food Processing Equipment, and Chemical. Dedicated to providing affordable Food Processing technology; renewal energy solutions that help reduce dependence on fossil fuel for Food and Agricultural processing. With expertise in the fields of feedstock, bioprocessing, and bio-fuel production, we are uniquely positioned, as a consultant, for cellulosic ethanol and other advanced biofuels production on a commercial scale.
We are an International Manufacturer Representative. We help American companies market their products in Africa and African exporters of high-quality products, export to USA, Canada, and South America

Gene Spahija serves as the Vice President of Global Sales and has focused on developing MedGyn’s worldwide presence by promoting the company’s product line in women’s healthcare. He has traveled to over 70 countries with a particular focus on developing MedGyn’s cervical cancer prevention line and has been instrumental in developing partnerships with distributors and NGOs.

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