Howard University

James Makawa
Co-founder of The Africa Channel and originally from Zimbabwe, Mr. Makawa is one of the few executives from Sub-Saharan Africa to have enjoyed a successful career in both local and network television in the United States. For more than 10 years, Mr. Makawa worked as a local news reporter and anchor with leading local stations before joining NBC News as a correspondent in New York and Chicago.

Mr. Makawa returned to South Africa and co-founded the African Barter Company (ABC), in partnership with Grey Advertising Worldwide. ABC was the first barter syndication company ever launched in Africa. Mr. Makawa cleared hundreds of hours on TV stations across the continent reaching an audience topping 150 million. In 2000, Mr. Makawa co-founded the African Broadcast Network, a pan African network of television stations with affiliates in 18 countries throughout sub-Saharan Africa. As ABN’s executive vice president for program acquisition and distribution, Mr. Makawa acquired programming from such U.S. program suppliers as NBC, CBS, MGM, Columbia Tri-Star, Endemol and Paramount. During his tenure with the African Broadcast Network, Mr. Makawa also served as a member of the Board.

 

Kola Karim

Mr. Kola Karim is the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Shoreline Power Company Limited (formerly ABB Electrical Systems Limited). Mr. Karim’s first job was at the Guardian Royal Exchange, U.K, which he joined in 1988 as a trainee manager shortly after graduating from City University London. The experience he gained at the Guardian Royal Exchange lead to a senior management role at the prestigious H.K Beaumont & Associates. Shortly after, Mr Karim left the company to start Koda Trading Limited, a heavy machinery import and export company.

Currently, Mr Karim serves as a director of Industrial & Mechanical Services Limited, Davof Technical Services, Fortis Construction Limited and Shoreline Energy International Limited.His constant thirst for knowledge has lead him to attend many courses both locally and internationally including management courses at the prestigious Harvard Business School to satisfy his constant quest for knowledge.

Kola Karim is married to Olufunke Karim and they are blessed with three children. His interests include playing polo and football. He is an Associate of the Institute of Directors in Nigeria and also an executive member of the Lagos Polo Club and Lagos Motor Boat Club.

 

Dr. Titi Banjoko

Dr. Titi Banjoko is the founder and director of AfricaRecruit, a program designed to inform and reach out to people worldwide about the plethora of job opportunities in Africa. Ultimately, AfricaRecruit is a networking tool that connects employers in Africa with those seeking to work in building the developing African job market. Since 2002, AfricaRecruit has utilized online programs such as (http://www.findajobinafrica.com/) to promote Diaspora involvement throughout Africa.

In her repertoire, Dr. Banjoko has served on the executive board of the Commonwealth Business Women’s Network and is a member of Women in Business International. Due to her illustrious position globally, Dr. Banjoko has been a guest speaker at many international conferences such as the Women in Business Forum

 

Jacques Els
Jacques has in-depth knowledge of various regulatory regimes, debt capital market products as well as international markets and credit ratings. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Law as well as a Master’s Degree in Commerce and Finance from the University of Johannesburg, South Africa. Jacques has experience in international trade finance, South African corporate and financial institution credit risk, emerging market credit risk as well as local and international debt capital markets. His debt capital markets experience range from credit ratings advisor to debt structurer and lead arranger on Bonds in South Africa, Europe, Kenya, Ghana, Botswana and Zambia.

Jacques has thirteen years experience in investment banking. He started his career with Absa Bank in 1995 as a graduate in the International Banking Division where he gained experience in international trade finance. Following this, Jacques worked in the credit risk management division of Absa Corporate and Merchant Bank as a credit analyst for Emerging Market banks and South African financial institutions.

In 2001 Jacques joined Fitch Ratings South Africa as a senior Corporate Analyst responsible for assigning credit ratings to a wide range of South African corporates and bonds. Jacques also spent time at Nedbank Capital where he pioneered the Bank’s fixed income credit research and ratings advisory functions and became a top rated fixed income credit analyst in 2003 and 2004. At CitiBank South Africa he headed up CitiBank’s Debt Capital Markets business for Sub-Saharan Africa.

In September 2007Jacques joined Absa Capital as Head of Bonds, Convertibles and Hybrids for Sub-Sahara Africa. He currently manages Absa Capital’s debt capital markets business across Sub-Sahara Africa. In this role he advises corporates, banks, State Owned Enterprises and Sovereigns on a wide range of funding alternatives available in both local and international debt capital markets.

 

Stanley Jegede

Stanley Jegede, CEO and Director of Phase 3 Telecom, is a man on a mission. Mr. Jegede has more than 10 years of experience in the telecommunications industry. He holds a high reputation for being a dynamic telecommunications engineer. Mr. Jegede has a Masters in Business Information Technology from Middlesex University in London, England. He is also a certified Systems Application Product Expert in Material Management.

Phase 3 Telecom is a privately owned long distance telecommunications firm. Recently, the company made headlines when it acquired the High Voltage Telecommunications Infrastructure which belonged to the Power Holding Company of Nigeria. The concessions deal entails coverage of the northwest, Midwest, and southwest regions of Nigeria, and will last for 15 years. This deal involves the use of optic fiber backbone that will allow mobile telecommunications to transmit data and voice data over long distances. This deal was signed by Mr. Jegede on behalf of his company, in a step towards progress for creating a functional data backbone in Nigeria.

 

Nwaji Jibunoh

Nwaji Jibunoh, born and raised in Nigeria, currently serves as Senior Analyst with Phillips Consulting Limited in Lagos, Nigeria. Mr. Jibunoh, a 2001 Howard University graduate from the School of Business made the decision to leave Howard with dreams of returning to Nigeria. He resigned from his position as Assistant to the Vice Provost of Student Affairs to enter into the political world in Nigeria. Through his position with Phillips, Mr. Jibunoh is truly able to involve himself in the democratic process in Nigeria. As a Senior Analyst with Phillips Consulting, Mr. Jibunoh works with government organizations in relation to change management programs for the country.

 

Olukunle Malomo

Olukunle Malomo is the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Strategy Officer of Mobile Application Technologies Inc, a communications infrastructure joint venture with Application. He is partner at Renaissance Consulting Partners, and serves as the Co-Chairperson of the African Venture Capital Fellows Program in the GLT program of the World Economic Forum. Olukunle is also Chairman of Malomsy Group LLC, parent company of MalomsyArt and Malomsy Ventures Nigeria.

Malomo was a recipient of both the Shils Zeidman Fellowship for Entrepreneurship and the Henry Morgenthau Fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton Business School, as well as the winner of Wharton’s Whitney M. Young New venture competition. Olukunle holds a Bachelor of Science in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria, an MBA from Wharton Business School, University of Pennsylvania . He is happily married to Olusola Malomo, MD with a daughter.

 

Abimbola Olashore

Mr Olashore is an Engineering Graduate of the University of Hull, U.K ad a fellow of the institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria. A seasoned investment banker, he has over the years acquired in-depth knowledge and vast experience in the capital markets as well as financial advisory services in the public and private sector.
Mr Olashore joined the LeadBank Group in 1991 and became the Managing Director in 1997. As Managing Director of Lead Bank, he established the bank as one of Nigeria’s top investment banks. The bank has repeatedly won the Reuters/SBA award as the leasing Nigerian Issuing House for three consecutive years. After the end of banking consolidation exercise in December 2005, he went on to join the Board of Ecobank Nigeria Plc as Executive Director. In this role, he helped set up their Investment banking arm before returning to LeadCapital (A member of Leadbank Group) in July 2007 as he Chief Executive Officer.

 

Mr. Foluso Phillips

The Managing Director of Phillips Consulting Limited (PCL), graduated as an Industrial Economist from the University of Wales, Cardiff in 1974. He joined the British Gas Corporation as a graduate Trainee Accountant where he qualified as a Cost and Management Accountant in 1976.
In 1977, he joined the Lucas Electrical Company before leaving the UK for Nigeria in 1979 to work with the Pfizer Group. Mr Phillips later took on a role as Management Consultant at Coopers & Lybrand International, a UK based company in 1985. During his tenure, he undertook and managed, financial management, costing, computer systems and organization development assignments in the UK, Northern Ireland, parts of Europe and West African countries. In 1990, he returned to Nigeria after being appointed the General Manager, Finance for the SCOA Group in Nigeria. He held the position for two years before setting up Phillips Consulting Limited. He is a certified Management and Chartered Accountant.

 

Farooq Oreagba

Mr. Farooq Oreagba is currently the Head of Strategy and New products at the Nigerian Stock Exchange and the Managing Director of NSE Consult (the financial advisory arm of the Nigerian Stock Exchange). He is a member of the Nigerian Bond Market Steering Committee which has been key to the development of the Nigerian Bond Market over the last couple of years as well as the Presidential Commission on Affordable Housing which is looking to address the problem of affordable housing in Nigeria. In 2004, Mr. Oreagba joined AFS, a Dutch Institutional trading group as the head of the Eurostoxx 50 derivatives desk, catering for a strictly institutional client base. Before then, he served as Head of Equity Products at Cube Financial. Mr. Oreagba received his B.Eng in Civil Engineering and BTEC HND in Business and Finance. He is an SFA Futures and Options Representative.