Our Board

BOARD TREASURER

Kodjo is the CEO and Founder of Unscramble Africa. He is an entrepreneur with experience building businesses and many year of experience across investment banking, management consulting, and business development. Prior to starting Unscramble Africa and AfriCollateral Ltd., he was VP and Global Head of Commodities and Credit Derivatives Product Valuation at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in Houston, New York, and London.

He is a certified wine sommelier and is the first and only African certified Vinitaly Italian Wine Ambassador. He started Africa Wine Academy to train young Africans working in restaurants, hotels, and hospitality in wines and spirits. Africa Wine Academy is currently the only WSET APP (Wine & Spirit Education Trust Approved Program Partner) in West Africa.

Kodjo has an MBA from the Yale University School of Management with a focus in Strategy and Asset Management. He holds a Master of Science degree in Financial Mathematics from the University of Chicago and Bachelor of Science degree in Physics and Mathematics from Hampton University.

Sonya Hairston has a wealth of experience working with both nonprofit and for-profit companies. She is an executive with demonstrated success in financial management, organizational leadership, staff and board development, production, sales, marketing, strategic planning, and negotiation. She was a financial advisor at Smith Barney, and is the former Founder and CEO of her own companies, Classic Affairs, Inc. and Noteably Nashville, LLC and has worked in the film, television, and music industries. Sonya received a bachelor's degree in education from the University of Virginia and an MBA from the University of Phoenix with an emphasis on Organizational Leadership and Global Marketing.

Sonya is very active in her local community serving on the boards and committees of several organizations, and also holds membership with several civic groups. Demonstrating a passion for DEI and women’s issues, Sonya served as one of the founding leaders of All About Women in Middle Tennessee. She served as a facilitator for community discussions on racism, equity, and transit in the Metro Nashville community. Her passion for youth and social justice issues drives her volunteer work with the GAP Youth Training Services, Junior Achievement, and the youth ministry at her church. Hairston has served as a mentor for inner city teen girls and given time to several youth-related organizations in both volunteer and fundraising capacities.

Sid Mofya's journey began in Zambia through the UK to Silicon Valley where he presently works with world-class leaders and organizations at the intersection of venture capital and entrepreneurship. He collaborates with innovators and capital allocators to fuel best-in-class innovators, create cross-sector collaborations, build sustainable ecosystems and scale solutions and impact globally. He has led teams across global ecosystems with organizations like the Draper Venture Network, Shell, the UK Ministry of Justice and PricewaterhouseCoopers. 

As a Kauffman Fellow, he has supported organizations cultivating the next generation of innovators including Restless Development, BongoHive Technology Hub, and LIONS@frica. Creativity and a love for the outdoors is in his DNA. He also enjoys composing music, coaching soccer, and hiking in the San Francisco Bay area, where he lives with his wife and two daughters.

BOARD PRESIDENT

Nozomi is the Founder and Director of Msterio.org and Msterio.jp, organizations that uniquely connect young people through shared experience for mutual understanding and respect. She worked at the American Embassy in Tokyo, Fuji Television’s morning show, Itochu International in New York, and Morgan Stanley where she was employed for 18 years, ultimately as an Executive Director. She devotes her full time to MSTERIO and several charity organizations as a board member and Princeton in Asia (PiA) as a country advisor for Japan.

Dhiren is a senior executive, advisor, and co-founder with over 20 years track record of advising, investing and underwriting debt transactions across multiple jurisdictions. His professional and entrepreneurial accomplishments in the UK and Spain, alongside having been raised in Kenya, brings about a unique blend of experience, cultural awareness and energy that thrives in both commercial and philanthropic environments.

Dhiren has an MBA from Rome Business School, and a BA (Hons) in Industrial Economics from the University of Nottingham.

Beyond the corporate and academic world, Dhiren is deeply passionate about Africa, and making a positive impact on society through sports, education, philanthropy, and personal investments. Some his interests and activities include:
- Under-14s Development Coach for Ealing Hockey Club.
- Guest Lecturer in the Masters in Finance degree at IE University, Madrid.
- Advisor, Consultant and Fundraiser for start-ups in Media, Real Estate, Fintech and GenAI.
- Donor to several homes for orphaned children in Kenya.

Veselina is a finance professional and an accomplished academic at Haas School of Business at University of California, Berkeley.

She teaches courses in accounting, finance and stock valuation and excels in transforming complex financial concepts into straightforward, actionable insights, driving strategic sustainable growth and efficiency.

Her life’s mission is to help her students develop the skills, knowledge and attitude needed for professional and personal success and become the leaders who work every day to make the world a better place for everyone.

Murat Erden holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Bogazici University and an MBA in Finance from San Diego State University, with further executive education from London Business School, Wharton, and Harvard Business School. With nearly 30 years of experience, he has built a distinguished career in private equity, telecommunications, emerging technologies, and critical resources.

Murat dedicated 15 years at Turkcell, a NYSE-listed integrated telecoms and technology company, where he played a key role as Group CFO in debt and capital market transactions and led the company’s finance digital transformation. He currently serves as an Independent Non-Executive Director and Chair at ARCH Emerging Markets Partners, an FCA-regulated private equity firm, overseeing ESG and compliance.

Murat has also been a mentor at the Young Guru Academy (YGA), supporting the development of ethically minded young leaders.

Patrice Tanaka is a best-selling author, public speaker on business and life purpose, serial entrepreneur, and co-founder of three award-winning, PR & Marketing agencies, and the consultancy, Joyful Planet LLC, focused on building “purpose-driven” individuals and organizations to help them unleash greater success, fulfillment and joy in their personal lives, workplaces, and communities.  Her VISION of a JOYFUL PLANET is eight billion people actively living their purpose and leveraging their talent, expertise, and passion in service of other people and or planet.  Patrice has lived in New York City for most of her adult life but calls Hawaii “home” and she is committed to living her life with the “Aloha Spirit.”  

Prof. Mieko Ikegame is national of Japan with academic back ground in business administration, political science and anthropology from Tokyo Women’s University, Simon Fraser University in Canada and graduate school of Stockholm University in Sweden. She is one of the first Japanese women employed by the United Nations and served 33 years in the UN system including UN Secretariat, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP). In 2006 she was nominated as one of the 100 most influential Japanese women in the World by the Newsweek Japan.

In 2013 she joined African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD) as Special Adviser to the CEO. In 2023 she  was appointed as Special Envoy of Thabo Mbeki Foundation 2023 by the former President Mbeki. In 2024 she was designated as honorary professor of global governance and international diplomacy at the University of South Africa. Currently, she holds also various positions including high level executive senior adviser of Japanese companies and private sector associations in enhancing trade and investment in Africa. 

After graduating in languages from Cambridge University, Ian taught for a few years in Switzerland and Hong Kong before starting his diplomatic career with the UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Office. In addition to a range of jobs in London, including on the Commission for Africa chaired by then Prime Minister Tony Blair, this profession took him to postings on four continents, among them China, Venezuela and Samoa as well as three countries in Africa. Ian considers himself very privileged to have been able to work in - and learn from - many different cultures and meet a wide array of impressive and interesting people, something he still enjoys when the opportunity arises. Some personal highlights from a varied career include heading the British embassy in Guinea during the West African ebola crisis; hosting a royal visit in Turkmenistan; and organising a large concert by British soul singer Joss Stone in Asmara. 

During this time Ian has maintained a keen interest in international development, notably health and children's issues; and enjoyed combining this with a personal interest in music by helping and encouraging young Eritrean musicians. When time permits he enjoys travelling, photography and cultural outings.

Sese is an International Development Specialist with deep and varied experience in private sector investment and related advisory services, particularly in the areas of strategy development, design of business development interventions for businesses and project management. Previously, she worked for many years with the World Bank Group, serving in several different positions with the Multinational International Guarantee Agency (MIGA) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC). Presently, she works as a consultant, leading teams to develop strategies for private sector development in several countries in Africa.

Sese is passionate about philanthropy and giving back to society. In the past 5 years, she has successfully applied her experience international development to the non-profit space in Ghana. Currently, she’s the President of Caring Sisters of Anlo Traditional Area, a non-profit organization established over 30 years ago to tackle the challenges facing the women and girls in the Anlo area. She also serves as a Trustee on the boards of the National Partnership for Children’s Trust (an education-focused Trust) and the Vodza Ecotourism Initiative.