Richard Lackey

Chairman & Founder

Mr. Richard Lackey is a serial
entrepreneur with a unique background that includes several years in emergency medical response and medical missions as well as almost three decades as an active trader and fund manager. He has appeared as an expert in the field in magazines, and on radio
and television.

Mr. Lackey has held eight different securities licenses spanning equity, options and futures markets. Mr. Lackey has served as the Managing Director for five private funds. His expertise in emergency response management as well as the inefficiencies of markets led him along with a world-class team of experts to create the World Food Bank. The World Food Bank is responsible for establishing the world’s most valuable commodities as the world’s newest and potentially safest asset class. Mr. Lackey is also passionate about utilizing the World Food Bank as a solution for the inefficiencies that exist between small farmers and regional and global markets.

Mr. Lackey has authored three books on technical analysis and investment management and is a co-developer of the market prediction software, PTI. In addition to leading the World Food Bank, he regularly consults for startup companies needing innovative solutions, marketing direction, or board leadership.

Professional History:
Managing Director, Greatwater Fund, LP
Managing Director, Greatwater Investment Management, Inc.
Principal, The Falls Resort at Manuel Antonio, SA
Founder, Global Food Exchange™, Ltd
Founder, Global Food Share, Inc.
CEO, Predictive Technologies International, Inc.

Present Board Positions:
Colorado Nanotechnology Initiative
Emerging Global Leaders Summit
Titi Conservation Alliance

Past Board Positions:
American Heart Association
American Cancer Society
O. Youth Soccer League
Leadership Program of the Rockies

Authored:
Wall Street’s Ten Greatest Myths, 2004, McGraw-Hill
Technical Analysis for Traders, 1998, Independent Traders Press
Trading the 50% Rule, 1999, Independent Traders Press

Education:
2010 Cornell University
Hotel Finance and Management
1989 University of Georgia
Bachelors Marketing and Management
1987 Harvard University
Certification in Fund Analysis
1986 Athens Tech Institute
Advanced Emergency Medical Technician
1985 Georgia Real Estate Schools
Real Estate

Walter Rakowich

Board of Directors

Mr. Rakowich was Co-CEO of Prologis and member of the Board of Directors from June 2011 through December 2012. Prologis is a leading provider of distribution facilities and services with over $30 billion in assets and operations in the Americas, Europe and Asia. He was a member of the Prologis Board of Trustees from January 2005 through June 2011.

Prior to becoming CEO, Mr. Rakowich was the President and Chief Operating Officer of Prologis from January 2005 through November 2008. He joined Prologis in 1994. From December 1998 to January 2005, he  served as Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer for Prologis. Prior to this position, Mr. Rakowich was the Senior Vice President/Director of the company’s Mid-Atlantic region where he was responsible for expanding the reach of Prologis to the leading logistics markets in the Midwest and Atlantic states. Prior to joining Prologis, Mr. Rakowich spent nine years as a partner and principal with real estate provider Trammell Crow Company. Before that, he was a senior audit and tax consultant for Price Waterhouse in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Mr. Rakowich currently serves on the Board of Host Hotels & Resorts and serves on the Board of Directors of Iron Mountain Inc. He also served as a member of the executive committee and the board of governors for the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts (NAREIT), the primary industry group for REITs in the United States. Mr. Rakowich serves on the real estate advisory boards of the Smeal College of Business at Pennsylvania State University and the Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University, as well as on the global leadership council at Colorado State University. In 2010, the Penn State Alumni Association named Mr. Rakowich a Penn State Alumni Fellow, a lifetime designation and the highest award given by the association, recognizing outstanding professional accomplishment.

In addition, he serves on the board of directors of Colorado Christian University. He is also the Chairman of the Board of Colorado UpLift and board member of the Alliance for School Choice in Education (ACE), two non-profits focused on inner city education. Mr. Rakowich also serves on the board of the CEO Forum. Mr. Rakowich recently served on the Boards of Junior Achievement and Colorado Coalition for the Homeless.

Professional History:
CEO of Prologis, a NYSE company
Partner and Principal of Trammell Crow Company
Senior audit and tax consultant for Price Waterhouse

Education:
M.B.A. from Harvard Business School
B.S. with distinction in Accounting from Pennsylvania State University
Areas of Expertise:
Distribution Facilities and Services, Globa

General (Ret) Dennis J. Reimer

Board of Directors

General Reimer served 37 years in the United States Army retiring as the 33rd Chief of Staff U.S. Army in 1999. Reimer’s career in the U.S. Army spanned the era between Vietnam and the military transformation that started at the end of the Cold War. A two tour veteran of Vietnam Reimer spent over eight years of this time overseas. As a Major he served as the Aide-de-Camp for the then Chief of Staff Army General Creighton W. Abrams. He has commanded at all levels from Company to Army and rounded out his leadership experience with staff assignments at various levels primarily in the operations field. In 1982 Reimer was selected for promotion to Brigadier General. His next three assignments were Commander III Corp Artillery Fort Sill, Oklahoma; Operations Officer in the Republic of Korea and Commanding General Fourth Infantry Division at Fort Carson.

In 1988 he was selected for promotion to Lieutenant General and served as the Plans and Operations Officer for the Army during Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm. Upon completion of that assignment he was selected for promotion and assigned as the Vice Chief of Staff for the United States Army in 1990. In 1995 he was selected as the 33rd Chief of Staff United States Army and subsequent to that served as the Commanding General Forces Command and was responsible for all Army active and reserve components forces in the United States.

Former Chief of Staff U.S. Army

Professional History:
President DFI Government Services, INC., 33rd Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army (June 20, 1995 to June 21, 1999)

Board Memberships:
Mutual of America Life Insurance Company
Director and President, Detica Federal Inc.
IDT Spectrum Inc.
Detica Inc.
Former Chairman, VirtualAgility, Inc.
Microvision Inc.
DRS Technologies, Inc.
Serco Services Inc.

Dr. Rajiv Shah

Board of Directors

Previously, Dr. Rajiv Shah led the efforts of nearly 10,000 staff in more than 70 countries around the world to advance USAID’s mission of ending extreme poverty and promoting resilient, democratic societies.

Under Dr. Shah’s leadership, USAID applied innovative technologies and engaged the private sector to solve the world’s most intractable development challenges. This new model of development brings together an increasingly diverse community—from large companies to local civil society groups to communities of faith—to deliver meaningful results.

Dr. Shah led President Obama’s landmark Feed the Future and Power Africa initiatives and has refocused America’s global health partnerships to end preventable child death. Feed the Future, alone, has improved nutrition for 12 million children and empowered more than 7 million farmers  with climate-smart tools they need to grow their way out of extreme poverty. In April 2014, USAID launched the U.S. Global Development Lab to harness the expertise of the world’s brightest scientists, students, and entrepreneurs. At the same time, the newly formed Private Capital Group for Development forges a more strategic relationship between private capital and development. Dr. Shah also managed the U.S. Government’s humanitarian response to catastrophic crises around the world, from the devastating 2010 Haiti earthquake to Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines to the Ebola epidemic in West Africa.

Through an extensive set of reforms called “USAID Forward,” Dr. Shah worked with the United States Congress to transform USAID into the world’s premier development Agency that prioritizes public-private partnerships, innovation, and meaningful results. He currently serves on the boards of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation and the Millennium Challenge Corporation, as well as participates on the National Security Council.Dr. Shah served as Undersecretary and Chief Scientist in the U.S. Department of Agriculture, where he created the National Institute for  Food and Agriculture. Prior to joining the Obama Administration, he spent eight years at the Bill  & Melinda Gates Foundation, where he led efforts in global health, agriculture, and financial services, including the creation of the International Finance Facility for Immunization.

Previously, Dr. Shah served as Undersecretary and Chief Scientist in the U.S. Department of Agriculture, where he created the National Institute for Food and Agriculture. Prior to joining the Obama Administration, he spent eight years at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where he led efforts in global health, agriculture, and financial services, including the creation of the International Finance Facility for Immunization. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan, the University of Pennsylvania Medical School, and the Wharton School of Business. He regularly appears in the media and has delivered keynote addresses before the U.S. Military Academy, the National Prayer Breakfast, and diverse audiences across Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. Dr. Shah was awarded the Distinguished Service Award by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. He has  served as a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader, been named to Fortune’s 40 Under 40, and has received multiple honorary degrees.

Professional History:
Administrator, USAID
Executive, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Undersecretary & Chief Scientist, USDA

Education:
Wharton School of Business
University of Pennsylvania Medical School
University of Michigan, Undergrad

Nancy Tuor

Board of Directors

Ms. Tuor is a seasoned senior executive and board director, and has served in numerous executive positions over her 32 year career with CH2M HILL. CH2M HILL, a worldwide leader in engineering, design and construction of large infrastructure projects, has 23,000 staff and annual revenues in excess of $6 billion and has long been recognized for its leadership in environmental matters. Ms. Tuor recently concluded her third 3-year term as an executive director at CH2M HILL, an employee-owned company. Ms. Tuor served on the Governance Committee during a 2010 evaluation of corporate best practices, which resulted in sweeping changes to the firm’s corporate governance. Most recently, she served on the Enterprise Risk Management committee.

Ms. Tuor has extensive international operations experience including major project responsibilities in the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom. Among her operating accomplishments, in late 2008, she relocated to Abu Dhabi at the request of the Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company to serve as the program manager for the development of the Masdar sustainable new town. This strategic assignment also led to the firm’s selection as Program Manager for the United Arab Emirates’ development of a commercial nuclear fleet. In the United Kingdom, she led the firm’s efforts in entering the nuclear market, resulting in numerous contracts with both the public and private sector. She returned to the US in 2010 to lead the firm’s efforts in developing a world class sustainability practice, which has resulted in CH2M HILL being recognized as a “leader among leaders” by industry analysts.

Prior to her relocation to Abu Dhabi, Ms. Tuor served as Group Chief Executive for CH2M HILL’s Federal Client Group, where she oversaw the Environmental Services, Nuclear and Governments Facilities and Infrastructure business units, representing over 3,000 staff and $1.5 billion in annual revenue. Previously she served as the firm’s Vice-Chair, where she was responsible for strategic planning, governmental affairs, strategic communications and technology commercialization. In 2006, she was nationally recognized by Engineering News Record magazine as one of the “Top Newsmakers of the Year” for her role in the historic Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons Facility Accelerated Closure Project contracted with the United States Department of Energy.

Professional History:
Ms. Tuor is a seasoned senior executive and board director, and has served in numerous executive positions over her 32 year career with CH2M HILL.

Education:
BS Degree in Economics from Portland State University, located in Portland, Oregon

Areas of Expertise:
Corporate Governance, Risk Management, International Operations, Program and Project Management, Environmental Services, and Environmental and Sustainability Matters.

Brad Busse

Board of Advisors

Brad Busse is President of Busse Ventures LLC. Busse Ventures is an entity Mr. Busse formed to manage his business interests and investments.

Most recently, Mr. Busse provided senior industry coverage across all industry groups for RBC Capital Markets, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Royal Bank of Canada, from April 2012 to February 2014.

Previously, Mr. Busse was Co-Head of the U.S. Communications, Media & Entertainment (“CME”) Group for RBC Capital Markets from January 2007 to April 2012, where he was responsible for the management and strategic development of the CME Group’s business, which includes mergers & acquisitions, equity and debt capital formation and financial advisory engagements.

Mr. Busse joined Daniels & Associates in 1985 after receiving broad experience in finance and accounting. After briefly serving in the Cable Television Group, he took responsibility for building the Telecommunications Group, which completed more transactions in the wireline, wireless and telecom infrastructure sectors than any other investment bank during his tenure. Mr. Busse was President and one of two lead principals at Daniels & Associates when it was acquired by RBC Capital Markets in January 2007.

Mr. Busse began his professional career at Arthur Anderson & Co. in 1980 and, subsequently, became a financial manager for a $1 billion energy concern. He received a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Denver and an MBA from Regis College.

Mr. Busse served as chairman of the PCIA Foundation (1999 – 2001), a leading wireless industry foundation, and was appointed by Governor Bill Owens to serve on the Colorado Commission on Science & Technology (2000-2006). In 2010, he was appointed by Governor Ritter to the Colorado Commission on Early Childhood Leadership and was reappointed by Governor Hickenlooper in 2012. Mr. Busse is a member of the Executive Advisory Board of the Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver which he chaired for three years (April 2009 – April 2012) and is on the Board of Trustees of Mile High United Way which he chaired for two years (July 2008 – June 2010). He also served as Chairman of the Million Dollar Roundtable Council for United Way Worldwide from 2002 to 2007.

Mr. Busse also chairs the CEO Roundtable of EPIC (Executives Partnering to Invest in Children) and is an active member of Colorado Concern, which is a non-partisan association that addresses issues which impact Colorado’s economy and lifestyle and whose membership includes most of the top business executives in Colorado.

Professional History:
President of Busse Ventures LLC
Co-head of U.S. Communications, Media and
Entertainment for RBC Capital Markets
President and Principal at Daniels & Associates
Chairman of PCIA Foundation
Served on Colorado Commission on Science &
Technology

Education:
University of Denver, BA
Regis University, MBA

Doug Holladay

Board of Advisors

The career trajectory of Doug Holladay has been unique and varied with its blend of public service, finance and business, non-profit work, and more recently, teaching and journalism.

J. Douglas Holladay is a co-founder of Park Avenue Equity Partners, L.P. with offices in New York and Washington. Park Avenue Equity Partners is a private equity fund which makes equity investments in operating companies with revenues between $50-350 million. Prior to founding Park Avenue, Mr. Holladay was Chairman of the Thornton Group, LLC, which he co-founded in 1995 to make opportunistic direct equity investments in a range of smaller companies.

While Mr. Holladay continues as an active investor in Park Avenue, the main focus of his time is on several important not-for-profit efforts, including PathNorth, which helps business owners and CEOs define success more broadly, the Buxton Initiative, an interfaith dialogue organization, PlayPumps, focused on clean water in Africa, and ABC² (Accelerate Brain Cancer Cure), working to find a cure for brain cancer.

Mr. Holladay was formerly a senior officer with the international investment banking firm, Goldman, Sachs and Company, headquartered in New York. At Goldman Sachs, he worked in the Investment Banking Division on a range of matters, strategic and administrative as well as on certain international transactions with a governmental component. While with Goldman Sachs, he served as founding President of One to One Mentoring Partnership, an initiative of the New York financial community to bring imaginative solutions to some of our nation’s most pressing urban youth challenges.

Prior to joining Goldman Sachs, Mr. Holladay held senior positions in both the White House and the Department of State. After working under White House Chief of Staff, James A. Baker III, Mr. Holladay was appointed by the President to the rank of Special Ambassador, charged to coordinate major aspects of the U.S. public response to the challenges posed by South Africa prior to the dramatic release of Nelson Mandela.

Mr. Holladay holds degrees from the University of North Carolina, Princeton Theological Seminary, and Oxford University in England and has served as an adjunct professor at the University of Virginia and a guest lecturer at Williams College. He currently teaches at Georgetown University and writes a regular column for the Washington Post. Mr. Holladay was a White House Fellow finalist and played Division I Varsity Lacrosse as a UNC undergraduate.

Professional History:
Co-founder of Park Avenue Equity Partners, L.P.
Chairman and co-founder at Thornton Group,
LLC
Senior Officer at Goldman Sachs
Special Ambassador at the White House
Founder of the non-profit PathNorth

Education:
University of North Carolina
University of Oxford
Princeton Theological Seminary

Ernest Kakwano

Board of Advisors

He has 50 years’ experience in senior business Management in Uganda, East and West Africa.

Starting as a Finance Officer for Kilembe Mines Uganda, a subsidiary of Falconbridge of Canada, he was exposed to the hard commodities export market of copper and cobalt. Later he joined the soft commodities market as Marketing Manager Total Oil East Africa, before working for The Coffee Marketing Board of Uganda as General Manager, and later Managing Director Uganda Coffee Development Authority.

The two roles exposed him to the West Africa and other coffee regions of the world. He served for two terms as Board Member of the International Coffee Organization (ICO) London.

He is now Chairman and founder, IGL Uganda, doing grain export and financial services.

Dave Keller

Board of Advisors

Dave is currently a senior “Financial Advisor” with Park Avenue Securities LLC and Guardian Life of New York. He has over fifty years of experience that uniquely encompasses multi-financial disciplines of Insurance, Securities, and Real Estate.

He incorporates these disciplines into holistic financial advising whether it be unique estate planning solutions, corporate benefit plans or investment management. He is also serving in several faith-based ministries.

Professional History:
Became a licensed Life Insurance Agent at age 19 (college)
Worked as a Field Agent with Provident Mutual from 1962 to 1986 then with Guardian Life as a Field
Representative and Park Avenue Securities – Financial Advisor since 1986
Left industry temporarily to serve as a Direct Commission AG Officer from 1967 to 1969 then returned

Education:
B.S. in Marketing/Economics University of Colorado 1965
MBA in Business Administration University of Colorado 1967
MSFS in Financial Science 1978
CLU degree 1970
ChFC degree 1982
Also holds:
– Securities licenses of Series 7, 63, 65
– Life Insurance and Health
– Real Estate Broker’s License

Areas of Expertise:
Holistic financial advice at both the individual and corporate level, Cross fertilizing ideas from Insurance, Securities, and Real Estate disciplines that lend to unique strategies/solutions, Institutional style money management.

Micah Kohls

Board of Advisors

Upon Micah’s undergraduate graduation in May 2007, his passion for entrepreneurship led him to found US Capital Funding, a distressed real estate acquisition firm. Seeing opportunity amidst market despair, he began purchasing residential real estate in mass. Over the next 8 years, the company turned over 500 residential units and in addition developed a rental pool now valued at over eight figures. Following his entrepreneurial spirit and love for basketball — in 2009 he started a sports agency to represent professional. After a high school basketball career during which Micah received the prestigious “Gatorade Player of the Year” for the state of Nebraska, he received a full scholarship to University of Nebraska–Omaha. After two years in Omaha, Micah transferred to Colorado Christian University (CCU), in Denver, where he met his wife, Kari.

Professional History:
Founder at US Capital Funding

Education:
Colorado Christian University, BA

Yohannes Tilahun

Board of Advisors

Yohannes is the former CEO at General Electric-Ethiopia. As the CEO he represents GE in the country and collaborates with the local GE businesses to drive incremental growth, and to develop key relationships with customers, business partners, as well as the governments and local authorities.

Before joining GE, Yohannes Tilahun was the Senior Director for Strategy & Chief Technology Officer at the Ethiopian Investment Commission (EIC). The Mission of the Ethiopia’s Investment Commission (EIC) is to promote and facilitate investments in Ethiopia. As Head of Strategy & Chief Technology Officer, Yohannes acts as a special advisor to the Director General (CEO) of the EIC as well as other senior Government ministers on priority focus areas for greater economic development through private sector involvement.

A native of Ethiopia, Yohannes has returned after more than 15 years of experience on Wall Street in the United States, with expertise in business management, corporate strategy, finance, and data analytics. During his career he has worked for Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, Wells Fargo and the Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Agency.

Yohannes has been featured in publications such as Diversity Inc. Magazine, St. Louis Post-Dispatch Newspaper, and Addis Life Magazine. In addition, he was featured in a four part TV series on Leadership and Success broadcast worldwide and was voted as one of the top 100 diverse executives under age 50 in the United States by Diversity MBA Magazine.

Yohannes is very active in his community and is passionate about giving back. He is currently the Board Chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ethiopia. He is also Board Member of Alsam(Largest FMCG company in Ethiopia) and Techno style(Largest furniture Manufacturing Company in Ethiopia). He formerly served on the board of directors for Big Brothers Big Sisters in St. Louis and currently serves on the board of directors for the School of Business at the University of District Columbia in Washington, DC.

Yohannes holds a Masters of Business Administration degree and a Bachelor of Science degree, both in Finance, from the University of the District of Columbia as well as additional certifications from Securities Industry Institute (SII), Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania and Georgetown University.

Professional History:
Former CEO at General Electric-Ethiopia
Senior Director for Strategy & Chief Technology Officer at the Ethiopian Investment Commission

Education:
MBA, University of the District of Columbia
BS in Finance, University of the District of Columbia

Richard Lackey

Chairman & Founder

Mr. Richard Lackey is a serial entrepreneur with a unique background that includes several years in emergency medical response and medical missions as well as almost three decades as an active trader and fund manager. He has appeared as an expert in the field in magazines, and on radio and television.

Mr. Lackey has held eight different securities licenses spanning equity, options and futures markets. Mr. Lackey has served as the Managing Director for five private funds. His expertise in emergency response management as well as the inefficiencies of markets led him along with a world-class team of experts to create the World Food Bank. The World Food Bank is responsible for establishing the world’s most valuable commodities as the world’s newest and potentially safest asset class. Mr. Lackey is also passionate about utilizing the World Food Bank as a solution for the inefficiencies that exist between small farmers and regional and global markets.

Mr. Lackey has authored three books on technical analysis and investment management and is a co-developer of the market prediction software, PTI. In addition to leading the World Food Bank, he regularly consults for startup companies needing innovative solutions, marketing direction, or board leadership.

Professional History:
Managing Director, Greatwater Fund, LP
Managing Director, Greatwater Investment Management, Inc.
Principal, The Falls Resort at Manuel Antonio, SA
Founder, Global Food Exchange™, Ltd
Founder, Global Food Share, Inc.
CEO, Predictive Technologies International, Inc.

Present Board Positions:
Colorado Nanotechnology Initiative
Emerging Global Leaders Summit
Titi Conservation Alliance

Past Board Positions:
American Heart Association
American Cancer Society
O. Youth Soccer League
Leadership Program of the Rockies

Authored:
Wall Street’s Ten Greatest Myths, 2004, McGraw-Hill
Technical Analysis for Traders, 1998, Independent Traders Press
Trading the 50% Rule, 1999, Independent Traders Press

Education:
2010 Cornell University
Hotel Finance and Management
1989 University of Georgia
Bachelors Marketing and Management
1987 Harvard University
Certification in Fund Analysis
1986 Athens Tech Institute
Advanced Emergency Medical Technician
1985 Georgia Real Estate Schools
Real Estate

Scott Brown

President

Raised in Montreal, Scott applied his McGill civil engineering training to projects in the Canadian Arctic serving dozens of First Nation communities. Following jobs in other parts of the globe, he completed an MBA and moved into banking with Royal Bank of Canada for over 18 years. He was fortunate to have worked in most areas of the company both in the retail and investment bank. As an executive in London, he was Director of Finance in a $13BN regulated UK bank with offices throughout Europe and the Middle East, engaged in retail, financial institution and corporate lending, global treasury, bond distribution, and private banking.
As a young man traveling through parts of Latin America, he was struck by the injustice of poverty and over the years worked on house building projects in Guatemala, and found and ran a street youth shelter in Toronto. He made the leap from commercial to not-for-profit in 2006 when he joined World Vision to become President & CEO of VisionFund International (VFI), with operations in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Eastern Europe. Over the next 11 years, he built a respected global network of microfinance operations with strong governance, risk management, operations, and fundraising, balancing financial and social performance goals. The network now employs 7,500 people serving 1.4 million clients (73% women) in 31 countries, and has over ½ a billion dollars in loans. Continuous improvements in technology saw increasing use of mobile and tablet applications to collect client data and transfer funds in order to serve more remote areas. He also chaired an industry group of microfinance CEOs, which focused on improving remote financial inclusion and client protection.
With over 60% of his clients operating small farms, VFI focused increasingly on agriculture lending and crop insurance products, as well partnerships with others involved in the agricultural value chain, to improve farmer productivity and access to markets.
It was a natural progression for Scott to move from pure microfinance to GFE whose mission is to improve crop productivity and availability, and to expand African food processing capabilities. GFE also manages the African grain storage and trading within its subsidiary WFB, a joint venture with several East African governments, designed to improve grain availability and market price stability.
As a UK and Canadian passport holder, Scott lives in London with his wife who works at an international school as a guidance counsellor and teacher. Their three boys live and work in various parts of Canada.

George Meka Abessolo

Director of Africa Business Development

George Meka Abessolo has more than fifteen (15) years of professional and management experiences in advisory, financial management, investment, monitoring and evaluation, audit, operations and strategic analysis of both public and private entities in the telecommunication, agriculture, transportation, energy, health, financial services sectors. He conducted due diligence to prepare and obtain financing approval for infrastructure, energy, telecommunication, agriculture, health, transportation and environmental projects at the African Development Bank (AfDB) as a financial management Specialist. Before that, he was the Senior Advisor of the French Court of Audit to the Secretariat of the United Nations in New York. He also held Senior positions with IBM business consulting services, Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Ernst & Young in the USA. In Cameroon, served as an Investment Advisor to the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications and held investment and audit positions with the Ministry of Economy’s World bank funded development project (PNDP), the Ministry of Agriculture’s World bank funded agricultural investment project (PIDMA). He intervenes regularly on TV, radios and news magazines to discuss investments and financing opportunities in Africa. He is fully bilingual in French and English.
He is a 2012/2013 laureate of the African Leadership Institute founded by Archbishop Desmond Tutu and the recipient of the 1997 Prabhakar Tamboli Prize on International Agricultural Development at the University of Maryland, College Park, USA and the Chair of the Entrepreneurship and Leadership Foundation in Cameroon.

Sarah Andrews

Director of Communications

Sarah Andrews is a marketing communications executive with over 15 years of experience in the fields of journalism, marketing, public relations, business development, and organizational leadership in both domestic and international settings. Her prior roles include work as an award-winning newspaper reporter and editor in Boston, a founding board chair and executive director of an organization implementing sustainable, earthquake-resistant
infrastructure improvements in South Asia and Africa, and a marketing director and spokesperson for social impact organizations working on issues of food security and hunger relief.

David Bopp

Senior Advisor

“With a diverse background in the military and emergency medicine, David is quite familiar with disaster and crisis interventions and has applied his skills in operations and coordination in over 43 countries.  Dave has dedicated his career to seeking out and abating the suffering of orphans and widows. David has supplemented his skills by obtaining a BA in International Relations, graduate Level certificates in Community Preparedness and Disaster Management, Humanitarian Assistance, and Global Health Affairs, and an MA in International Administration”

Dr. Tana Juko

Senior Research Associate

As of 2017, Tana is the Senior Research Associate for World Food Bank. Her knowledge and experience reflect her commitment to education, as she recently earned her Doctorate of Philosophy degree in English at the University of North Texas.

Prior to her role with WFB, Dr. Juko was a professor of English literature, teaching university students the fundamentals of writing and research in various subjects—composition, world literature, African American literature, and ethnic literature. Additionally, Tana dedicated a full summer to teaching young students how to read in San Diego, CA and Las Vegas, NV immediately after completing her Ph.D.

When she is not working, Dr. Juko is committed to organizations like MYPOLARLIFE, a mental health organization, and the East Africa Chamber of Commerce. In 2017, she served as a moderator during the Women Connecting Women panel at the EACC’s 10th Annual Trade and Investment Conference. Her current goals include using her passion for research to help others and making positive contributions to the growth and development of East African countries.

Dr. Ronnie P Kaddu

Senior Advisor Community Health and Nutrition

Dr. Ronnie P Kaddu is both a public health doctor and a physician anesthetist with a passion for promoting human capital development in his network of influence, including his workplace and rural communities. Before devoting more time to clinical service, he worked to set up community health projects that facilitated economic growth through establishing sustainable partnerships and supporting capacity development at the grassroots level.

His pivotal role in engaging local, as well as international development partners such as the UNDP in post-conflict northern Uganda, saw women and children directly benefit from agribusiness, agroforestry, and customized health service provision. Most recently he has worked with vulnerable communities in Kenya to understand the sociocultural factors that influence their participation in health programmes.

Edgar Kakuru

World Food Bank Country Manager in Uganda

A Graduate of Coventry University Business School I have over 20 years experience in various business fields stretching from printing and publishing with the Market Place Newspaper to sales and distribution for MTN mobile phone network. Working with the family businesses I specialized in sales and marketing.
I also worked for Redbridge Council in Essex UK doing administration and accounting and likewise spent 4 years with CDC Atlanta projects at the Uganda Virus Research Institute in Entebbe as the Project Administrator.

Doug Kidd

Director of Financial Operations

Doug has spent most of his career analyzing and making investments. He began as a security analyst, covering a wide range of industries and companies for two different well-known Denver asset managers. His responsibility and assets grew until he managed $1.5B of growth equities and supervised two other analysts managing another $1B. this represented 25% of total firm assets. The next step was to research and purchase his own business, which entailed due diligence on hundreds of opportunities. He grew the business from one location to two and ran the operation for several years. His operational experience included finance, accounting, payroll, human resources, maintenance, marketing, customer service and even custodial duties. Most recently, he was Sr. Investment and Risk Officer for a state pension plan, where he led several enhancements to the portfolio by coordinating with Staff, consultants, the Board and external managers.

Henry Kizito-Musoke

Senior Advisor Soy Agriculture and Manufacturing

Henry Kizito-Musoke is an accomplished development worker turned social entrepreneur with over 24 years of experience designing and managing human development programs with local and international NGOs working in Uganda. Between 2002-2012, Mr. Musoke was at the apex of one of the leading CSOs in Uganda working with small and medium holder farmers to boost farm productivity, accessing markets and improving their lives.
He has championed several successful partnerships in this direction and was instrumental in the design of Uganda National Action Plan on Nutrition. Mr. Musoke has been able to link microfinance, productivity/wealth creation and has also mentored several Start-Up businesses in Uganda dealing with Agribusiness, micro credit for the un-bankable sections of Ugandans.
His passion for soy bean as a nutrition crop for Humans and animals has been inspired by his 14 year close relationship with Iowa State University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences(ISU/CALS) in the U.S and this relationship was instrumental in the founding of Soya Solutions Eastern Africa Limited in Uganda. ISU/ CALS also played a key role in mentoring and supporting the business planning process of SSEAL-through its Endowed Chair of Agricultural Entrepreneurship. Currently Mr. Musoke is a Director with the Grain Council of Uganda, an organization at the forefront of developing the grain sector in Uganda. This role has enhanced the value Chain social development business model that SSEAL believes in and has outlined in investment plan. He has demonstrated remarkable skills in strategic thinking, team building and establishment of financial management systems over the years. In his last engagement he created over 200 direct jobs, impacted over 50,000 small holder farmers and micro entrepreneurs and managed over $5 million annually.
He has established Global networks in Africa, Europe, COMESA, Middle East and Americas these are potential learning partners and markets for SSEAL products. Mr Musoke firmly believes that adequately feeding over 550 million people in the COMESA region and beyond will require a private sector that recognizes and invests substantially in the small holder production segment.

Buzz Matthews

Chief Of Staff

Buzz has recently been asked to fill the role of President for the Global Food Exchange ™, focusing on leadership and overall oversight of the company’s human capital. Along with this role, Buzz is the Principal of Shiloh Capital LLC, a private endeavor combining investment and real estate projects with executive leadership development. Recently, he served as the Senior Vice President of People Services for Open Range Communications Inc. He was tasked with the oversight of leadership, culture, organizational development and human resources, and those efforts grew the employee base from 5 to over 700 employees in less than 18 months. Buzz worked to recruit, train and build quality management teams and empowered them with the tools needed to create a dynamic and successful organization.

Buzz has 30 years of experience hiring, consulting, training and teaching people-skills to current and emerging leaders across many fields. He has extensive experience in the leadership and financial development side of the non-profit sector, working to put effective and productive teams in place world wide, as well as speaking and teaching in national and international settings. Buzz’s history also includes working in the fields of non-profit development, publishing, technology sales and marketing, investment management, foundation management, program-execution and ministry development. Buzz served as the international development director for Young Life International, giving leadership to the organization’s growth in its global initiatives.

Currently, Buzz continues to run a program he created that facilitates forums for high-impact business leaders. These forums focus on the integration of business, ethics, parenting, leadership, marriage, faith and comparable world-views. He currently serves in a volunteer capacity to help resource the local area of Young Life, as well as serves on the board of the Downing Street Foundation. Buzz has twin adult children, Will and Emily.

Stella Nyapendi Chombo

SENIOR LEGAL ADVISOR

Educational Background

Stella holds a Master’s Degree in Oil and Gas Law, a Diploma in Legal Practice, A degree in Law and has obtained training in diverse fields such as Tax Law and Administration, Procurement, Contract Management, Corporate Governance, Legislative drafting  among others.

Membership

• African Tax Administrators Forum Representative for Uganda.
• Member of the Uganda Revenue Authority Staff Appeals Committee
• Member of the Uganda Free Zones Authority Board of Directors
• Member of the Uganda Law Society
• Member of the East African Law Society
• Member of the Institute of Corporate Governance of Uganda
• Served as Member of the Uganda Revenue Authority Service Enhancement Project
• Served as Member of the Uganda Revenue Authority Staff Development Board.
• Served as a member of the East African Revenue Authorities VAT Technical working group to facilitate harmonisation of the East African Community Laws
• Served as a member of the East African Revenue Authorities Income Tax technical working group.

Joseph C Ojwang

Senior Advisor Food Safety

A Ugandan public health practitioner for the last fourteen years. He is a Founder member of Sandgate Venture inUganda that is advancing social enterprise of small holder farmers, youth and women groups to advance food production, aqua culture and food safety. He is a member of the International Food Safety Network.

His expertise cuts across emergency response to disease outbreaks , including food related outbreaks, Quality Improvement Programs and public health training, drawn from years of experience under the Global Health Security Agenda in Uganda, training and research.

Under WFB-Uganda, he will oversee the food safety program through training of small holder farmers, Quality testing and Control.

Christopher Smith

Senior Director Global Business Development

Christopher Smith has 33 years of experience as an entrepreneur and international financial professional, concentrating primarily on securitization and structured finance, both conventional and Shariah-compliant transactions (Sukuk), mergers and acquisitions and international business development. Mr. Smith most recently was Director of Global Business Development for the Investment Banking firm of Taylor DeJongh in Washington DC, London and Dubai. (TDJ) As a Director at TDJ Mr. Smith’s primary focus was in International Business Development and Project Management. He was instrumental in the creation and development of TDJ’s Islamic Finance Practice with a focus on the Transportation (Rail & Maritime), Infrastructure and Ene4rgy industries.
Prior to TJ Mr. Smith sat on the Advisory Board of Merchant Edge, a merchant investment company in Beirut and Jeddah. Mr. Smith was the Director of International Business Development and U.S. Business Manager of Siraj Capital, Ltd, where he was responsible for international origination, project management and client liaison. He chaired the Advisory Board of Penta Securities of Bloemfontein South Africa, advising on the firm’s expansion into Emerging Markets, primarily in the natural resources sector. As a consultant and subsequently the North American Channel Partner of BSEC-SA, he was the U.S. business development liaison for the first ever S&P rated Shariah-compliant US$ 165 million gas backed US securitization. He co-founded Renewable Energy Funding, LLC, which provides financial advisory and business development services to the renewable energy industry in connection with arranging senior debt, subordinated debt or equity financing for renewable energy projects, as well as for oil & gas transactions.
Mr. Smith is founder and Managing Director of Hallman-Smith Consulting, Inc., from which he has assisted firms for the past 22 years in business development, mergers, acquisitions, and arranging and structuring debt facilities. He has extensive experience in organizing the project management process and creating an exceptional client experience.
From 1984 to 1996 he held majority ownership positions in several IT and telecom businesses and spent 9 years as Director of Purchasing, New Product Development and Start-up Specialist for Aluminum Company of America (Alcoa) in the Aerospace, Automotive and Commercial Lighting sectors.
He has been a speaker and panelist at several international conferences, focusing on topics including Islamic Finance and Sukuk as well as a published author on Sukuk in the energy sector.
He earned his A.A. from Emory University and his B.B.A. Economics and International Business from Georgia State University J. Mack Robinson School of Business Administration.

Julie Topka

Executive Assistant

Executive Assistant and Office Manager with over 15 years of experience partnering with executives and entrepreneurs in their pursuing their mission. Julie has a varied background in establishing action plans for an effective mix of project management, technical capacity, administration and business development for corporations and non-profit organizations.  After spending more than a decade managing projects, processes and teams/departments, Julie if familiar with implementing solutions and arranging effective resources.