Prof Vukosi Marivate is an Associate Professor of Computer Science and holds the ABSA UP Chair of Data Science at the University of Pretoria. He specialises in developing Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) methods to extract insights from data, with a particular focus on the intersection of ML/AI and Natural Language Processing (NLP). His research is dedicated to improving the methods, tools and availability of data for local or low-resource languages. As the leader of the Data Science for Social Impact research group (https://dsfsi.github.io/) in the Computer Science department, Vukosi is interested in using data science to solve social challenges. He has worked on projects related to science, energy, public safety, and utilities, among others. Prof Marivate is a co-founder and CTO of the Lelapa AI (https://lelapa.ai/), an African startup focused on AI for Africans by Africans. Vukosi is a chief investigator on the Masakhane NLP project (https://www.masakhane.io/), which aims to develop NLP technologies for African languages. Vukosi is also a co-founder of the Deep Learning Indaba, the leading grassroots Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence conference on the African continent that aims to empower and support African researchers and practitioners in the field.

Susan Mashibe is Founder, Owner and Executive Director of VIA Aviation, formerly known as Tanzanite Jet Centre (TanJet). An avid aviator and entrepreneur, she built her business to serve private aviation needs in three countries across the African continent. Mashibe became the first female FAA-certified commercial pilot and aircraft maintenance engineer in Tanzania. She the Africa Regional Lead for the National Business Aviation Association. Mashibe holds a degree from Western Michigan University.

Billy Mawasha has been CEO of Kolobe Nala Investment Company (KNI) since April 2019. KNI is an investment holdings company with interests in mining, manufacturing, and energy.

Prior to KNI, Billy was Country Head – South Africa for Rio Tinto and Managing Director of Richard Bay Minerals. He previously held leadership, operational and technical roles at Anglo American (Kumba Iron Ore), AngloGold Ashanti and De Beers. His career has given him deep exposure to mining operations and projects across the Africa continent.

Billy is a Certified Director (IoDSA) and a Non-Executive Director of JSE listed Impala Platinum Holdings, Exxaro Resources and Metair Investments.

In 2017, Billy was selected as a Young Global Leader (YGL) of the World Economic Forum, and in March 2023, he was invited to join the World Economic Forum Global Future Council on Responsible Resource Use.

Billy graduated with an Engineering degree from the University of Cape Town and has completed executive development programmes at Harvard Kennedy School, Kellogg School of Management, London Business School and GIBS in South Africa.

1999, Bachelor's in Music, University of KwaZulu-Natal; 2006, BA in French, Classics, Media & Writing and 2007, BA (Hons) in Political Communication, University of Cape Town. 2015, Master in Public Administration, Harvard Kennedy School. With the Democratic Alliance (DA), South Africa: Researcher, then National Media Liaison Officer; 2008, stood for public office; 2009, elected to Parliament, DA National Spokesperson and Shadow Deputy Minister for Communications; 2010, Shadow Minister for Rural Development and Land Reform; October 2011, elected DA Parliamentary Leader and Leader of the Official Opposition in the National Assembly by the DA Parliamentary caucus. Mason Fellow and JFK Fellow, Harvard Kennedy School; Fall Resident Fellow, Institute of Politics, Harvard University; Author in Residence, Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study. Advisor, Apolitical Group Limited. Co-founder, Apolitical Foundation. Fisher Family Fellow in the Future of Diplomacy Project - Harvard University. Co-founder and CEO, Futurelect; Member of Board of Trustees, Nelson Mandela Children's Fund. Member of Board of Trustees, Institute for Security Studies. Board Member, Women Political Leaders. Advisory Board Member, Africa No Filter. Fellow, Keseb Democracy Fellows.

James is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Ghana Business School, and a fellow at the Penn Institute for Urban Research, University of Pennsylvania, USA. He also served as the Resilient Advisor to the former Mayor of Accra from 2017 to 2020, where he led the city in the development of the Accra Resilient Strategy. One of the initiatives in the Strategy – engaging informal waste collectors in the waste management chain, won the C40 Cities Bloomberg Philanthropies Award in 2019. His research focuses on the development of local economies to improve the quality of life of residents in local and rural communities, and urban informality in its multiple dimensions ― economy, settlements, livelihood, waste, and trade. He has been involved in the development of government policies in Ghana – National Local Economic Development Policy, and National Decentralisation Policy and Strategy. Dr Mensah is a graduate of the National Institute for Development Administration, Thailand, and the University of Ghana.

Nasreen is a social tech-preneur passionate about technology and inclusion of low income households especially women and girls. She founded Afrikapu to give disadvantaged women and youth a voice through business growth and help them be ambassadors of advocacy issues affecting their communities.

Her zeal to alleviate poverty and give marginalized women a getaway to life-changing opportunities, led Nasreen to start Afrikapu to introduce real, tangible impact into the Global Handicraft industry and uplift the lives of underrepresented women and girls throughout Africa’s conservancies and informal sectors, a sector that makes up to 80% of Africa’s economy.

With presence in Kenya and United Kingdom, Afrikapu offers artisans a holistic integrated approach by providing them with handcrafting skills training, access to credit to start independent income generating activities, provide global market linkages for their eco-friendly handmade products, and an e-wallets gratuity system to further grow their savings and effectively invest in their life goals such as purchase of property, children's education, business expansion / diversification.

Afrikapu leverages blockchain technology to provide transparency in the process and a more personal artisan to consumer connection.

Nasreen’s work has been recognized globally, earning her multiple awards alongside leaders from reputable organizations and platforms whose members have gone on to become Nobel Prize recipients, heads of state, CEOs of Fortune 500 companies and Grammy Award winners.

Nasreen holds a Master of Science Degree from University of York, UK, an Executive Leadership certificate from Dartmouth College, USA , a Bachelors (Hons) Degree in Business Management from University of Sunderland, UK, an Advanced Diploma in Business and Law from Edith Cowan University, Australia.

Karabo is an investor-operator entrepreneur. In 2020 she founded Amara Strategic Investments, a venture philanthropy company. Amara Strategic Investments' long-term aspiration is to have interests fintech with a focus on financial inclusion, manufacturing, agriculture-related and -adjacent industries, culture and tourism. Karabo's current operational focus and mission is to get collectors of African art to see it as an asset class to ensure that modern and contemporary artworks from Africa and other under-represented regions are not relegated to artefacts over time, and that art collectors see long term value in the artworks that they collect. She is the Founder of Capital Art which is an art fintech and is a service for art collectors to better manage their art collections.

Karabo started her career in 2005 working in investment banking at J.P. Morgan, first working in equity derivatives in the Johannesburg franchise before moving to London, United Kingdom, in 2006 and working in Insurance Securitised Products until 2009 where she gained invaluable international experience.

She then moved back to South Africa and joined the pan-African financial group Old Mutual, in their Johannesburg offices in 2010 as a Strategy & Marketing Executive in the Retail Affluent segment, then moved into the Corporate segment as General Manager: Member Solutions in 2011 where she focused on customer experience for the members of the retirement funds the company administered. In January 2016, she became Managing Director in the Personal Finance segment, becoming the first woman to lead that business, a role she held until January 2020 where transitioning the business from being product-led to being customer-led was a key achievement as were the strides made in diversity and inclusion. Karabo has experience on several company boards and a former independent non-executive director at (amongst others) Tyme Bank Holdings Ltd, the first digital bank in South Africa to have its core banking platform in the cloud, as well as a former independent director of the Public Investment Corporation SOC Ltd, Africa's largest asset manager.

Karabo has a Bachelor of Business Science degree (cum laude) in Actuarial Science and Finance, and also a Postgraduate Diploma in Actuarial Science, both from the University of Cape Town. She is also an alumni of Harvard Business School, having completed the Advanced Management Programme in May 2019. Outside of work, she is a fellow with the Actuarial Society of South Africa (ASSA), having been the second black woman to qualify as an actuary in South Africa, and was recognised as one of the 200 Young South African leaders who are shaping the country's future in 2014. She enjoys travelling, learning about new cultures, art, film and photography and music.

Nomasonto Evelyn Motaung is a distinguished South African politician currently serving as Deputy Minister in the Presidency. Elected MP in 2019 at the age of 33, she quickly rose to prominence as one of the youngest MPs in South Africa. Motaung actively contributed to discussions and decision-making processes on the Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry. Her dedication to public service and notable achievements have garnered respect, establishing her as a prominent figure in South African governance.

A pan-African feminist, Françoise Moudouthe is passionate about advocating for women's rights and building powerful feminist movements in Africa and beyond. She was appointed Chief Executive Officer of the African Women's Development Fund in November 2020. She is also the founder of Eyala, a bilingual (French-English) platform that harnesses the power of conversation to explore what it means to be an African feminist. She also sits on the boards of the Malala Fund and Womankind Worldwide. Before joining AWDF, Moudouthe worked as an independent consultant, leveraging her strategic and advocacy skills to promote gender and social justice in Africa and worldwide. Prior to that, she dedicated eight years to incubating Girls Not Brides, the global civil society partnership to end child marriage, and spearheading its growth in Africa.

David Munro has retired after a career of 27 years with the Standard Bank Group that included roles as CEO of the groups separately listed long term insurance company, Liberty Holdings Limited, CEO of the groups Corporate and Investment Banking business, and most recently as Group Execuitve of Standard Bank Group responsible for integration of the insurance and banking operations post the buy out of the Liberty minorities. Standard Bank Group is a South Africa-based financial services company with a global presence, operating from 18 African countries and 13 countries on other continents, including the key financial centres of Europe, the Americas and Asia. David is a Chartered Accountant (CA) in South Africa with expertise in investment banking and emerging markets, with specific emphasis on Africa, the BRIC countries and natural resources.
David has remained as Chairman of STANLIB, the asset management arm of Standard Bank Group and is a non executive director of Liberty 2 Degrees, a listed REIT in SA that owns iconic properties including Sandton City and Nelson Mandela Square.

AB (Hons) in Economics, Harvard University. Executive Director, Dalberg Group, a collection of impact-driven businesses that seek to champion inclusive and sustainable growth around the world. As a consultant, has advised senior public, private and social sector leaders on issues of inclusive and sustainable growth frontier markets, particularly in Africa. 2009 Archbishop Tutu Leadership Fellow and Member of the Board, African Leadership Institute. Member, United Nations Global Entrepreneurs Council.

Political Sociology and Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University. Became an activist early in youth but after having been arrested as a result of anti-apartheid activities and going underground for one year, lived in exile in England until 1989. After Nelson Mandela’s release in 1990, returned to South Africa to work on the legalization of the African National Congress. During the 1994 democratic elections, was the official spokesperson of the Independent Electoral Commission and directed the training of all electoral staff in the country. Recognized internationally as a forceful advocate for gender equity and against gender violence.