Dr. Agnes Kalibata is the President of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), where she leads the organization’s efforts with partners to ensure a food secure and prosperous Africa through rapid, sustainable agricultural growth that focuses on building systems required for farmers to access technologies that improve productivity and livelihoods of millions of smallholder farmers in Africa. Prior to joining AGRA, Dr. Kalibata was Rwanda’s Minister of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI) from 2008 to 2014. Dr. Kalibata has also held several other leadership positions, and she has a distinguished track record in Africa and globally as an agricultural scientist, policymaker and thought leader. In December 2019, she was appointed the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the 2021 Food Systems Summit. In this capacity, Dr. Kalibata works with the United Nations system and key partners to provide leadership, guidance, and strategic direction towards the 2021 Food Systems Summit. Dr. Kalibata sits on various boards, councils and commissions including the Global Commission on Adaptation, the Global Agenda Council of the World Economic Forum, the Malabo-Montpellier Panel, the Food and Land Use (FOLU) Coalition, the Architecture for REDD + Transactions (ART), the International Fertilizer Development Corporation (IFDC), Bioversity International, and Africa Risk Capacity, among others. Dr. Kalibata has a distinguished track record as an agricultural scientist, policymaker and thought leader. She was awarded the Yara Prize, now the Africa Food Prize, in 2012, Honorary Doctorate from the University of Liège in 2018, the National Academy of Sciences’ Public Welfare Medal in April, 2019 for her work to drive Africa’s agricultural transformation through modern sciences and effective policy thereby improving livelihoods of smallholder farmers and the Honorary Doctorate from MacGill University, Canada, June 2019.

Jean Claude U. MUNYANGABO, is the Chief Executive Officer of BK TecHouse since October 2018. Jean Claude has accumulated 15 years of experience in the Telecommunication and Technology Business. Prior to joining BK TecHouse, Jean Claude has worked in the Business Development Capacity with different Telecommunication and Technology companies including but not limited to KT Rwanda Network (KT RN) from 2014 to 2016, Broad Band System Corporation (BSC Ltd) from 2012 to 2014 and New Artel Ltd. from 2008 to 2012. Jean Claude MUNYANGABO holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Maastricht School of Management (MSM) and is a Certified Business Mediator from London International Dispute Resolution Center.

Dr. Rose Omari is a Senior Research Scientist at the Science and Technology Policy Institute, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR-STEPRI), Ghana. She is a multidisciplinary researcher with experience in policy development, analysis, monitoring and evaluation as well as stakeholder and high-level policy engagements and advocacy at the national and continental levels. She has conducted several policy studies and situational analysis that, among others, assessed policies and legislative frameworks for biofortification, aflatoxin management, continental food safety systems and digital applications for improving food safety traceability and monitoring systems. Dr. Omari has coordinated the development of Ghana’s National Policy and Technical Regulation for Aflatoxin Control in Food and Feed. She was part of the team of experts who developed the FAO/WHO Food Safety Risk Communication Handbook, ECOWAS Aflatoxin Control Action Plan and the Strategy for the Partnership for Aflatoxin Control in Africa (PACA). Rose is also a food safety and risk communication trainer and has conducted several trainings for varied audiences including researchers, regulators, Codex Contact Points and various segments of the public. She has facilitated many technical meetings and has authored several peer-reviewed food safety-related papers and technical reports. Dr. Omari is a member of the International Association for Food Protection (IAFP) and the African Continental Association for Food Protection (ACAFP). She holds a PhD Degree in Rural Sociology (Food Studies) from the Wageningen University and Research Center in the Netherlands, MPhil Degree in Food Science and BSc. Degree in Biochemistry and Food Science from the University of Ghana, Legon.

Kwame A. Boateng is the founder and CEO of Sahel Grains Ltd., based in Techiman, Ghana. Sahel Grains is a vertically integrated integrated value chain provider with upstream operations in farm mechanization and downstream primary and secondary processing. Sahel Grains is about applying the highest quality food safety standards to traditional African food, with no trade-off between tradition and health. Sahel Grains' focus on quality has made it the primary supplier of maize to Nestle Ghana for their Cerelac brand. Sahel Grains also has the Faast Mmori brand, the only FDA approved fermented corn dough product (for the preparation of Koko and Banku), that is widely available in Ghana.

Kwame previously worked as a Consultant with McKinsey & Co. in New Jersey, and as an Integrated Circuit Design Engineer with the IBM Microelectronics Division in Rochester, Minnesota. Kwame holds an MBA in Finance from the Wharton School, and BSc in Electrical Engineering from the University of Washington, Seattle.

François Nsengiyumva is the CEO of KILIMO GENERAL BBUSINESS (KGB) Limited, a professional seed company and actual Chairperson of the Chamber of Agriculture and Livestock in Rwanda Private Sector Federation (PSF).

He is an agribusiness expert who has previously worked for the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources where he successfully implemented the Crop Intensification Program and generation of momentum that led to scaling up and scaling out in Rwanda. While at Ministry of Agriculture, François NSENGIYUMVA was in charge of coordination of seeds and fertilizer importation, auctioning and efficient private sector driven distribution in Rwanda. He was also assigned to introduce the development of post-harvest storage best practices and infrastructures in Rwanda which led to successful management of the Food Strategic Reserves in Rwanda and played an active role to build capacities for farmers, value chains actors and supporters in line Ministries, Local Administration and Private Sector.

Mr. Patrice Hakizimana joined USAID/Rwanda in December 2012 as Agriculture and Rural Development Specialist. He is a MSc holder in Agriculture and Biology Engineering from Catholic University of Louvain (UCL/Belgium). He has twenty-one years of experience in Agricultural Development including management of projects and programs in domains of agricultural research and extension, higher education and rural development. Prior to USAID, Patrice respectively worked for the Government of Rwanda as a scientist on rice and sorghum crops at the National Institute for Agricultural Research called ISAR (a French acronym), then He served as Director of Rwanda Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) and later as Deputy Vice Chancellor of Higher Institute of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry (the French acronym was ISAE). He has also worked for FAO-Rwanda as consultant on the Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (PGRFA) project. Patrice is passionate about culture and contemporary history, economics and in his free time he likes running

Carol Jenkins is the Office Director for the Center for Agriculture-Led Growth in USAID’s Bureau for Resilience and Food Security (RFS). As a career member of the United States Foreign Service with more than 20 years development experience in the field, she has had a diverse career working on issues around agriculture, food security, environment, and humanitarian assistance. She has served in Nepal, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Uganda and Bangladesh, and assisted with USAID’s emergency Ebola response in Liberia.