ANDREW MOLD

Andrew is Chief, Cluster for Regional Integration, for the office for Eastern Africa of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa in Kigali. He has a Masters in Economics and Politics of Development from Cambridge University, and a Ph.D. in Economics from the Complutense University of Madrid He has previously worked for the UN Secretariat in Chile and in Addis Ababa and also for UNICEF in Costa Rica, as well as at the OECD in Paris. Currently, he is also a Board Member of the Economic Policy Research Network.

THARCISSE NZASINGIZIMANA

Tharcisse is a Senior Trade Statistician at the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR). He has joined this institute in 2008. He participates in different Project Evaluations and coordinates different surveys and censuses including Enterprise Surveys, Establishment Census, Informal Cross Border Trade Surveys, Foreign Private Capital Surveys, among others. Since 2012 he is a visiting lecturer at University of Rwanda (UR). Currently he is a PhD student in Data Science at UR.

NGARAMBE EMMANUEL BAHATI

Bahati is a five-year experienced Economist and a Researcher at the National Bank of Rwanda in the Balance of Payments Division, Statistics department. I received my Masters degree from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology and Bsc in Applied Statistics at the National University of Rwanda. My current work focuses on research and analysis of external sector statistics with the goal of producing convincing data-based evidence for public policy decisions.

JULES KAZUNGU

Eng Jules is the Managing Director of Regional Research Centre for Integrated Development (RCID). He earned a Master degree in Agricultural at University of Rwanda (UR), since 2012. Jules brings 17 years of experience and professional in Mainstreaming environment and climate change, natural resources, gender, nutrition, food security, agricultural extension. Jules worked in public and private projects with environmental sustainability issues internationally and in development cooperation at both technical and strategic levels, as an adviser, analyst, managers and consultant. His expertise has been developed through his senior roles on projects both for government institutions and private sector working as an adviser, manager, analyst, and consultant. His extensive experience with different public and private institutions has enabled him to further build his sector expertise on a national level, with a clear understanding of the needs and requirements of the agriculture and environment sector in Rwanda. Jules is a member of climate change and environment, gender, nutrition Sub Sector Working Group and active in the National Reference Group meeting (NRG8) specific. Jules was among the Rwandan Experts who conducted the Diagnostic of Rwanda’s Food System and Transformative Integrated Policy (FS-TIP) initiative in 2021 in partnership with IFPRI, AGRA, Rockefeller Foundation, MINAGRI for the preparation of the United of Nations Food Summit.

SYLVAIN ROBERT NTUITE

Sylvain joined PIASS in August 2016 up to 2020 as a researcher and lecturer in the Department of Business studies (Faculty of Education). He obtained his PhD at Koblenz-Landau in Economics, Universitat Koblenz-Landau, Germany. He obtained also his Master of Business Administration in Accounting from UNILAK in 2015. Actually, He is an independent Consultant in finance and Economics. His main research interests include the issues faced by Savings and Credit Cooperative Organization’ members on their welfare, financial and agricultural cooperatives issues, evolution of formal as well as informal institutions in agriculture, and rural area transformation through households ‘savings and investments

ROSETTE NKUNDIMFURA

Rosette is a Rwandan Gender activist, passionate about women and Girls’ empowerment. Currently working as Capacity Development Officer at Profemme Twese Hamwe, a former Gender Specialist at ADRA Rwanda and supporting programmes aimed at reducing the gender imbalance. Rosette is the Founder and Legal Representative of Girls’ Leaders Forum (GLF) which unites all Girls’ Leaders in 20 Universities and Higher Learning Institution and 5 Secondary schools in Rwanda and the Vice –President of Network for Sustainable Economic Development Organizations (NSEDO). She believes that Girls of Virtues becomes women of substance.Prior to that, she has also been serving as Gender Mainstreaming Officer in charge of Governance Cluster in the Ministry of Gender and Family Promotion. She also served as Gender commissioner and advocate for girls’ empowerment at National University of Rwanda Student Union. In addition to that, she is the Co-Founder of Omega Empowered women Cooperative. Rosette holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political and Administrative Sciences and Master’s Degree of Social Sciences in Gender and Development from University of Rwanda. In 2019, She got an award for the best Performer student in Gender and Development Masters program at University of Rwanda/Center for Gender Studies.Rosette has firmly contributed to the researches, design and implementation of programs for Advocacy for women’s rights ; Women Economic empowerment and gender equality promotion ; Peace building ; Partnerships building ; She has also contributed to the implementation of different national, regional and International instruments for gender equality promotion.

OLGA SOLLEDER

Olga is an Economic Affairs Officer in the Division for Africa, Least Developed Countries and Special Programmes of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development where she undertakes research on the intersection of trade, poverty, and inequality. In her previous role at the International Trade Centre (ITC) she led the production of the SME Competitiveness Outlook, ITC’s yearly flagship publication dedicated to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Prior to this, she designed and managed trade related technical assistance projects in over 30 countries. Olga holds a PhD in International Economics from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva in Switzerland, a master’s degree in International Strategy and Economics from the University of St Andrews in the UK, and a bachelor’s degree in economics from Samarkand State University in Uzbekistan. Olga’s articles on trade policy, global value chains and voluntary sustainability standards are published in peer-reviewed journals. Olga speaks English, French, Russian, and some Spanish.

FIDELE KAMPAYANA

Fidele Kampayana holds both MA and BA from Agriculture and 10+ years of experience in agri-business sector development in Rwanda. He has provided practical knowledge and skills on agricultural entrepreneurship and agribusiness cooperatives by stimulating fair business linkages for target cooperatives with potential partners ; designed agribusiness models and strategies to reach the market & access to finance and supported entrepreneurs through training, coaching and mentorship in beans, maize, Irish potato and horticulture value chains. For the last 3+ years he manages M&E system regionally and develops tools and processes for the management of performance indicators’ data. Fidele is currently the Senior Project Officer for SPARK Gwiza Project, under SDC funded MSMEs Support Programme in Response to COVID-19 in Rwanda.

BERBER KRAMER

Berber is a senior research fellow with the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and currently outposted to Nairobi, Kenya. Her research focuses on financial inclusion, seed systems, gender and resilience to climate change. She leads research programs that aim to strengthen agricultural risk management in Ethiopia, India and Kenya through innovations in agricultural insurance and the distribution of seeds. In other projects, she uses high-frequency panel data and (laboratory) field experiments to analyze health and financial decision-making in rural households, and trust between actors in agricultural value chains. She is the Editor-in-Chief for the Social Science section of Development Engineering. Dr. Kramer joined IFPRI in 2013 and has a Ph.D. in Economics.

LEONARD RUGWABIZA

Leonard is the Economic Advisor, Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning. He also served as the Chief Economist, Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning since 2015, prior to that Leonard Rugwabiza was the director general for national planning and research at Rwanda’s Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, he spent two years as an economist with the African Development Bank. Earlier, he served in the strategic planning unit of the Ministry of Finance. He has been instrumental in shaping, strategizing and implementing Rwanda’s economic policies..

MARY OTIENO

Mary is an Educator, Mentor and Trainer for basic and higher education in education policy and systems strengthening. Dr Otieno is a seasoned educationist in the Kenya education landscape supporting quality learning pedagogy and education equity, efficiency, inclusivity and quality, including teaching and learning instructional methods and materials development for basic & higher education - face to face and virtual. Mary is a practitioner and trainer in ESD mainstreaming, has worked with development partners in evaluation research and teacher capacity building, ICT integration in learning, play and learning, mainstreaming and practicing ESD & SD in education pedagogy. Dr Otieno, is an Echidna Global Scholars Alumni, a global education programme with girl’s education focus by the Center for Universal Education at the Brookings Institution, Washington DC, USA, the Cherie Blair Foundation Mentoring Women in Business Programme alumni., a Mentor for young innovators at the Chandaria Incubation and Innovation Center, Kenyatta University. Mary holds membership of such professional bodies as Institute of Policy Analysis and Research (IPAR), Women Educational Researchers of Kenya (WERK), The African Women’s’ Development and Communications Network (FEMNET), Teacher Education International Networks (TEINs) on ESD & SD as participation in community outreach programmes.

ANNA TWUM

Anna is a Country Economist at the International Growth Center (IGC) working on trade and industrial policy for Rwanda and the East African Community. She holds an MPA, Economics and Public Policy degree from Princeton University and a BA in Economics from Pomona College. Prior to the IGC, she worked with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as a research analyst where her work focused on macroeconomic economic analysis and capacity development. She has also worked on projects with the World Bank Group, the Brookings Institution and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa.

DAVID J SPIELMAN

David is a senior research fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute. He joined IFPRI in 2004 and is currently based in Kigali, Rwanda, where he leads the Rwanda Strategy Support Program. David’s research agenda covers a range of topics including agriculture and rural development policy ; agricultural science, technology, and innovation ; plant genetic resources and seed systems ; agricultural extension and advisory services ; and community-driven rural development. From 2010 to 2020, David was based in Washington, DC, where he led IFPRI’s research theme on science, technology, and innovation policy. From 2004 to 2010, he was based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where he contributed to IFPRI’s work on strengthening agricultural innovation systems. Earlier in his career, he worked on agriculture and rural development issues for the World Bank (Washington, DC), the Aga Khan Development Network (Pakistan), and several other organizations. David received a PhD in Economics from American University in 2003, an MSc in Development Studies from the London School of Economics in 1993, and a BA in International Relations from Tufts University in 1992.

ALICE MUKAMUGEMA

Alice is now the Crop Products Supply Chain and Market Analyst in the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI), directorate of Value Chain Management and Trade. Before joining MINAGRI, she was a research assistant in IPAR Rwanda and previously, in NISR. Besides, since 2019, Alice has been working with different UR lecturers in data analysis. She holds a Masters’ degree in Agricultural and Applied Economics from Egerton University.

ALOYSIUS UCHE ORDU

Aloysius Uche Ordu is a Director and Senior Fellow of the Africa Growth Initiative at the Brookings Institution. Prior to taking up this appointment, he was Vice President at the African Development Bank and in that capacity, Ordu was accountable for the AfDB’s regional departments, and the policy, fiduciary, partnership, and resource mobilization departments, including leadership of the replenishment of the African Development Fund. Before his appointment as Vice President, Ordu was Regional Director for Eastern Africa, covering Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and Seychelles where he unleashed a program of rigorous analytical work and knowledge services and he introduced innovative approaches to portfolio management and strategy formulation. Ordu previously worked at the World Bank Group for over two decades and served in various leadership and managerial capacities, including Director of Operations Policy and Country Services, Director of Operations for the Latin America and the Caribbean region, Manager East Asia Region (Manila Office), Manager Middle East and North Africa Region and Manager of the Bank Group’s Young Professionals Program. During his long career in international development, Ordu led teams that revamped the World Bank’s lending policy instruments and streamlined its quality assurance processes. He led the design, appraisal, and supervision of investment lending projects in diverse sectors in Africa, East and South Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean and the Middle East and North Africa. Ordu holds a Ph.D. in economics from Sussex University, U.K.

KSENIJA MAVER

Ms. Ksenija Maver is Project Leader at the GIZ (German Corporation for International Cooperation GmbH), Macroeconomic and Investment Policies (MIP) project, located in Kigali since January 2021. After joining the GIZ in 2016, she was responsible for a good financial governance project in Burkina Faso. Previously, Ksenija worked at the Austrian Development Agency, Center of Excellence in Finance (Slovenia), the World Bank, the Ministry of Finance of Slovenia, and the Bank of Slovenia. Ksenija has served in various areas, including capacity development in public financial management and macro-economic policy, and international development and finance. Ksenija has a Bachelor of Arts and Master’s degrees in International Economics from the University of Ljubljana (Slovenia) as well as Certificate in International Studies from The Johns Hopkins University, The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (USA). International Networks (TEINs) on ESD & SD as participation in community outreach programmes.

JULIAN INGABIRE

Julian is a development professional and a certified Project Manager (PMP) with over 15 years of work in both public and private sector settings in the areas of capacity building, resource mobilization, research, project management as well as institutional systems and controls. She is the current Director of Research, Consultancy and Innovation at the University of Tourism, Technology and Business Studies (UTB). Julian is passionate and an avid advocate for access to inclusive Quality Education . She is also an entrepreneur in the Education sector, has been recognized for her work in Girls Education by the Cartier Womens Initiative Awards and was recently awarded by the US Africa Development Foundation for her work advocating for increased access to Early Childhood Development Programs in Rwanda.

KASAI NDAHIRIWE

Prof Kasai Ndahiriwe is a Director Monetary Policy Department at National Bank of Rwanda (BNR). He has a PhD in Economics, September 2011, University of Pretoria, South Africa and a Master’s degree in Economics, April 2007, University of Pretoria, South Africa. He was the Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Research and Postgraduate Studies at Kigali Independent University (ULK) since September 2012 to January 2015. Currently, he is also a Board Member of the Economic Policy Research Network.

ANGELIQUE KANGONDO

Angelique Kangondo is an Agricultural Economist working as a scientist and lecturer at Rwanda Institute for Conservation Agriculture (RICA). She holds a PhD degree in Agricultural Economics and a master’s degree in Agricultural and Applied Economics from Sokoine University of Agriculture, Tanzania. Her focal areas of research and scientific publication, development, and outreach and consultancy include livelihood analysis, rural and agricultural development, youth and employment choice, agricultural value chains, food systems and implications of large-scale land-based investments on smallholder agriculture and rural development. She is passionate about youth and gender in transformation of agricultural and rural development

SALVATRICE MUSABYEYEZU

Salvatrice is a devoted environmentalist and sustainable development professional with big interest on gender equality.
She has over 14 years of experience in program and project management that aim to address key global challenges such as climate change, gender justice, social protection, good governance, and green economy for inclusive sustainable development. Her previous work focused on coordination of environment and development projects across the Great Virunga landscape (Rwanda, Uganda and DRC), microfinance and other projects that contributed to biodiversity conservation, sustainable livelihood and economic development. Salvatrice is currently working with the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) Rwanda, as the Program Officer. She holds a MSC in Environment and International development from Wageningen University and Research/The Netherlands and a bachelor’s in Economics from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa, Nairobi/Kenya. She is determined to enhance gender equality and sustainability in the development process to ensure that the current development doesn’t compromise the benefits of future generations, while women and youth are empowered and engaged in the development process .

ROSENBACH, GRACIE

Gracie Rosenbach is the Rwanda country program manager in IFPRI’s Development Strategy and Governance Division. Based in Kigali, she manages the Rwanda Strategy Support Program (Rwanda SSP), an initiative aligned with the Government of Rwanda’s vision for accelerating agricultural transformation and rural development throughout the country through policy analysis, capacity development, and partnership. Her research background and interests include rural food systems, nonfarm economies, agriculture-nutrition linkages, and the economic impacts of migrant communities. Prior to joining IFPRI, Gracie was a Princeton in Africa Fellow working in sustainability with Olam International in Kampala, Uganda, and held positions with USAID and various implementing partners. She received a Master of Public Policy and a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Virginia.

BENIMANA, GILBERTHE

Gilberthe Uwera Benimana is a Research Analyst at International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in Development Strategy and Governance Division-Rwanda. She is passionate about equal rights and participation of both sexes in socio-economic transformation. She served as a Research Fellow at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) under the Fellowships for Young African Scholars Researching Youth Engagement in Rural Economics Activities. Her research interest focuses on food security, women’s empowerment, agriculture transformation, and sustainable development. Gilberthe holds a bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness from the University of Rwanda. She did a Collaborative master’s in agriculture and Applied Economics (CMAAE) from University of Nairobi and got specialization in Agricultural Policy analysis and International Trade from University of Pretoria.

VINCENT SINDUHUNGA

Mr Vincent SINDUHUNGA, 59 years old is a Rwandan with more than 25 years of experience in agriculture, rural development, project management and advocacy with a focus on agriculture and climate change domains. His academic education is in rural development and project management (MBA degree). He has also a long experience in research especially as consultant in agriculture, agro ecology, climate change, evaluation of projects, policy analysis and policy papers development and Trainer of Trainers in various themes such as strategic planning, public policy advocacy, Results Based Management, social accountability tools, project design and agroecology. He is currently at CCOAIB as national coordinator of the EU-funded project on CSOs engagement in climate resilience in Rwanda.

GODFREY GAKWANDI

Godfrey is a Programmes Manager - Agriculture Value Chains at OXFAM Rwanda. He is experienced in cultivating relationships with partners and networks both at national and regional level stakeholders to implement successful cross-sector, gender-inclusive programs, Financial Inclusion, M&E, Child protection, food security, Water, sanitation and hygiene, disaster management, fundraising and initiate consortiums in peace building and reconciliation including conflict management, education, human rights in dynamic and challenging environments with acute security limitations.