GrowthAfrica

Ian Lorenzen is an Advisory Board Member at the Africa Startup Ecosystem Builders Summit & Awards and a Partner and Director at GrowthAfrica focused on African entrepreneur support and ecosystem development. His work involves convening stakeholders, facilitating partnerships, and supporting business development initiatives within African entrepreneurial ecosystems.

Connie Nekesa is a Finance and Admin Lead at GrowthAfrica with experience managing financial projects for international donors including USAID, JICA, and UNDP. Her background spans grant management, accounts receivable and payable processes, and financial operations optimization, including procurement streamlining that reduced cycle time by 50% and lowered costs by 15%. Nekesa has maintained 100% compliance and audit success rates across her roles in finance, administration, and grants management.

Doreen Odera is a finance and accounting professional with over three years of experience in financial reporting, reconciliation, budgeting, and general accounting support. She holds a degree in Commerce from Maseno University and is proficient in QuickBooks and Excel. Currently in a finance and operations role at ICF Macro Kenya, she has supported financial operations and audit processes in both corporate and NGO settings.

Edward Ken-Zorre Angyinaa holds a Master's degree in Development Communication and works as a Communications Associate at GrowthAfrica, bringing experience in broadcast journalism and public relations. His work focuses on climate change, governance, youth engagement, and sustainable development, with an emphasis on translating policy research into accessible narratives for public discourse. He has won the UK-Ghana Science, Technology & Innovation Media Pitch and engages in advocacy and capacity-building initiatives centered on youth empowerment and underrepresented communities.

Emmanuel Mbogholi is a Growth Catalyst at GrowthAfrica focused on programmes delivery for SME development. With over five years of experience in entrepreneurship support, he works on programme design, business systems strengthening, founder coaching, and investment readiness across African markets.

Jesse Baddoo is a Growth Specialist at Orange Corners Ghana/GrowthAfrica with experience in organizational development, program management, and venture building in the non-profit sector. He specializes in program design, workshop facilitation, and business development, with a focus on supporting entrepreneurs and small and medium enterprises across Africa in climate, circularity, and ESG-related initiatives. His work encompasses strategic planning, stakeholder engagement, and ecosystem development to support organizational effectiveness and scalable growth.

Joyce Nyoro is a Communications Associate at GrowthAfrica with over three years of experience in public relations and strategic communications, plus six months in marketing. She develops communication strategies, manages campaigns, and produces content across social media, stakeholder engagement, and brand positioning, with experience in the NGO sector focused on girls' and women's empowerment.

Nicholas Goko is an IT and Cloud Productivity Specialist with three AWS certifications who designs automation and AI systems for organizations using Microsoft Power Platform, AWS, Python, and large language models. At GrowthAfrica, he serves as IT & AI Productivity Associate, focusing on workflow optimization and infrastructure-as-code implementations. His technical expertise spans Microsoft 365 tools, Power Automate, Power BI, Terraform, prompt engineering, and frontend development across React and JavaScript.

Richard Wiafe is an SME Consultant at GrowthAfrica with background in management consulting across strategy, operations, M&A, and business design. He holds a BSc in Resource Enterprise and Entrepreneurship from the University of Energy and Natural Resources and has experience in analytical skills, project management, and customer success.

Sheila Mumbi is a Senior Communications Associate at GrowthAfrica with over 5 years of experience in marketing and communications. Her work encompasses digital marketing, social media strategy, brand management, and stakeholder engagement across sectors including accelerator programs and technology companies. She has led initiatives that increased online engagement, improved SEO rankings, expanded social media followings, and executed event management and trade show strategies.

Trudy Natabona is a communications leader with over 10 years of experience in strategic communications across African markets. She has held roles at GrowthAfrica, Oxygène, and previously worked with organizations including the World Bank, Mastercard Foundation, USAID, and the IKEA Foundation, focusing on narrative development and ecosystem visibility. Her work spans multi-country initiatives in Kenya, Rwanda, and pan-African regions, with experience in brand positioning, digital expansion, and campaign management.

Violet Akinyi is Head of People, Culture & Growth at Dhamana Guarantee Company with over 13 years of HR experience, including 7 years in leadership roles. Her work spans talent acquisition, performance management, compensation and benefits, and employee relations across African markets, with demonstrated achievements including a 20% reduction in time-to-hire, implementation of continuous feedback performance systems, and diversity initiatives that increased underrepresented group representation by 45%. She holds technical proficiency in HRIS systems, Microsoft Office, and Google Suite.

Winnie Nyokabi is a Senior Human Resource Associate at GrowthAfrica, where she works on HR process optimization and alignment of people strategies with the organization's mission to support entrepreneurs across Africa. Her HR expertise includes talent acquisition, employee engagement, performance management, and policy implementation.