Dr R. Bernice Hlagala is the Chief Director: Youth Development in the Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities. She has more than 20 years experience in the public service sector with expertise in policy making and stakeholder management areas within the social, youth, and community development sectors at national, regional and international levels. Dr Hlagala is currently South Africa’s National Commissioner for UNESCO. She is also the 2014 overall winner of the Pan-Commonwealth Youth Workers’ Award as well as the recipient of the best Youth Workers’ Award for Africa Region of the Commonwealth. She is presently a part-time Marker and Supervisor at the University of South Africa (Unisa).

Dr. Felix Kwame Yeboah is an interdisciplinary researcher and bridge-builder with over a decade of experience providing critical analysis and consultation on issues at the nexus of agricultural and food systems’ transformation, environment and natural resources, and youth livelihood in both the US and Africa. His scholarship has been successfully applied in various context including informing The MasterCard Foundation’s strategies addressing youth employment challenges in Africa, State of Michigan’s efforts to combat non-point source pollution in the Great Lakes, and strategic change initiatives advancing campus sustainability. He is currently an Assistant Professor of International Development at Michigan State University, where he also provides leadership and administrative oversight for the MasterCard Foundation Scholars Program, and the African Youth Transformation Platform. Dr. Yeboah is also affiliated with the Young African Leadership Initiative (YALI) Regional Leadership Center for West Africa and the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, serving as the lead author for the Council’s 2018 Global Food Security Report. In 2012, he was recognized as a Milton H. Steinmueller Scholar of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy, and a George and Nancy Axinn fellow of International Development. 

Ms. Jabiri is the Managing Director and founder of GBRI Business Solutions. She is a farmer committed to making agricultural production a sustainable and profitable business through empowering smallholder farmers by adapting to global best practices of horticultural value chains.

Ms. Jabiri comes from an accounting background with over 10 years’ experience in business. This experience and background gave her the grounding to found GBRI six years ago. GBRI is a horticultural company that specialises in growing, processing and marketing fruits and vegetables (French beans, Avocados, bananas, snow peas, sugar snap and baby corn) both in the local and exports markets. Currently GBRI exports to the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, Ireland and India. The company employs 32 permanent employees with over 200 temporary workers every week when in full production and 90% of them being women. In a bid to help the community around her Ms. Jabir has worked with more than 5000. A group of out growers (small scale holder farmers) in Njombe and Iringa, Kilimanjaro and Mbeya regions. The company provides agronomic support to the farmers and teaches them to grow produce to international standards. This is aimed at improving business economics and profitability across the supply chain.

Ms. Jabiri also founded Agriedo limited, which is an agriculture service company, focusing on offering consultation services, developing agriculture technologies across the value chain and running Agriedo incubation hub which capacitate youth in agribusiness.

Ms. Jabir is the holder of multiple awards and nominations, she’s the recipient of 2018 Women’s Award of Excellence in the Agribusiness Sector 2018, Among winners on Invest to Impact award 2019, finalist for EMPRETEC women in business 2020 by UNCTAD, Feed the future GroWe award 2021 for Sub Saharan Africa, Super woman 2021 and GBRI won an award as the best agribusiness company of the year 2021 by TWCC and she is among top 50 women in management Africa 2021 awardee.

Hadija is an IVLP (International Visitors Leadership Program) alumnae, a program under the Department of State, US government.

Ms Jabiri serves as a board member of ASPIRES Tanzania, Rlabs, Farm for the Future (FFF), Agronomic for Community Empowerment (ACE), Member of executive committee Ifakara Innovation Hub (IIH).

Hadija is also a member of Strategic steering committee of African women Leaders Network Tanzania chapter (AWLN) and she is leading the country’s youth pillar.

Ms. Jabiri is the Managing Director and founder of GBRI Business Solutions. She is a farmer

committed to making agricultural production a sustainable and profitable business through

empowering smallholder farmers by adapting to global best practices of horticultural value chains.

Ms. Jabiri comes from an accounting background with over 10 years’ experience in business. This experience and background gave her the grounding to found GBRI six years ago. GBRI is a

horticultural company that specialises in growing, processing and marketing fruits and vegetables (French beans, Avocados, bananas, snow peas, sugar snap and baby corn) both in the local and exports markets. Currently GBRI exports to the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, Ireland and India. The company employs 32 permanent employees with over 200 temporary workers every week when in full production and 90% of them being women. In a bid to help the community around her Ms. Jabir has worked with more than 5000. A group of out growers (small scale holder farmers) in Njombe and Iringa, Kilimanjaro and Mbeya regions. The company provides agronomic support to the farmers and teaches them to grow produce to international standards. This is aimed at improving business economics and profitability across the supply chain.

Ms. Jabiri also founded Agriedo limited, which is an agriculture service company, focusing on

offering consultation services, developing agriculture technologies across the value chain and

running Agriedo incubation hub which capacitate youth in agribusiness.

Ms. Jabir is the holder of multiple awards and nominations, she’s the recipient of 2018 Women’s

Award of Excellence in the Agribusiness Sector 2018, Among winners on Invest to Impact award 2019, finalist for EMPRETEC women in business 2020 by UNCTAD, Feed the future GroWe award 2021 for Sub Saharan Africa, Super woman 2021 and GBRI won an award as the best agribusiness company of the year 2021 by TWCC and she is among top 50 women in management Africa 2021 awardee.

Hadija is an IVLP (International Visitors Leadership Program) alumnae, a program under the

Department of State, US government.

Ms Jabiri serves as a board member of ASPIRES Tanzania, Rlabs, Farm for the Future (FFF),

Agronomic for Community Empowerment (ACE), Member of executive committee Ifakara

Innovation Hub (IIH).

Hadija is also a member of Strategic steering committee of African women Leaders Network

Tanzania chapter (AWLN) and she is leading the country’s youth pillar.

  Juliana Machuve is a Lecturer at the University of Dar es Salaam, College of Engineering and Technology, Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering. She holds a PhD degree in Engineering Management and she is also the Coordinator of Innovation at the University of Dar es Salaam Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center (UDIEC). Juliana coordinates Business and Technology incubation programmes, moreover she serves as an organiser, reviewer and judge in various National competitions on Science, Technology and Innovation. Juliana works in multidisplinary teams and she has a passion on empowering youths to come up with innovative and entrepreneurial solutions to address society challenges. Her areas of research interests include Innovation, Entrepreneurship, Technology Transfer, Gender in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).

  Loungo Andre Pitse aka KingBee is a fearless and electric entertainer who is, vibrant, fun, smart, confident, ambitious and very outgoing. An academic who loves what he does and commits himself wholeheartedly.  A media king and a Broadcasting Mogul in the making. He also a TV and radio personality, possibly one of the best to ever be produced from the land of diamonds, Botswana. Born from humble beginnings he fell in love with broadcasting years ago.

Living and achieving his dreams is his biggest motivation in life. He believes that the saying ‘a Motswana cannot make it or do it’, is nonsense. Batswana are very capable. Batswana are talented and it’s only a matter of time until they flourish and the rest of the world takes notice as he keeps saying. He believes that people should be optimistic, and their dreams and goals will be achieved, it might not be today, but eventually God answers everyone prayers

He has had the honor of hosting The Diamond Conference By de beers and Debswana, The light awards by de beers and Debswana, Yarona fm music awards with Bonang Matheba, BNSC awards, FnB Botswana awards, Standard chartered awards, Ministry Of youth awards, The Launch of Now Tv and tons more. With a social media influence and reach of over 200 Thousand that attracts corporate and international recognition he is on a path of global domination.

Loungo Andre Pitse is also a business owner. He has worked with big brands the power couple Connie and Shona Ferguson, Jill Scott, Desmond Dube, Idris Elba in Mma Ramotswe, Basetsana Khumalo and Bonang Matheba. He is also the face of Elite Gentlemen which is a local shoe brand. He has also started a foundation which will be assisting school going children. It’s still in its infancy stage

Marcia is the Director Corporate Services of Dune Food Products which produces Setso canned Beef Tribe/ Mogodu in partnership with Botswana Meat Commission to do the contract canning on their behalf. Marcia is a gifted and business-minded woman who has other companies including Marsh Interiors and a haulage company. She is a member of WIBA, a powerful association for women in business. Having been mentored by the third former President of Botswana Dr Festus Mogae, she was able to realise that mentors are pivotal in nurturing talents of start-up entrepreneurs especially women. Hence her success in identifying opportunities in manufacturing has been fruitful by establishing the support structure she enjoys from her business partner. She is also passionate about women and youth participation, including disadvantaged people whom she recognizes their potential in moving this country forward. She respects the saying “disability is not inability’’.

 Dr Martha Phiri is an economist and development practitioner with over 25 years’ experience in development planning and financing. She is currently working as Director, Human Capital, Youth and Skills Development at the African Development Bank. She also oversees public health and social protection programs of the Bank.

Mrs. Phiri is credited for having co-led the delivery of the Bank’s Covid-19 Crisis Response Operations estimated at USD4.1 billion designed to support African countries save lives and jobs and protect the vulnerable during the pandemic. She also led the design of the Strategy for Quality Health Infrastructure in Africa (2022-2030), a historic first for the Bank and the Skills for Employability and Productivity in Africa (2022-2026) to support implementation of the Jobs for Youth in Africa Strategy.

Previously, she worked for the African Development Bank as Country Manager in Rwanda and as Country Economist for Malawi, Mauritius and Namibia. As Country Manager She led Bank teams in conducting country dialogue, designing, and supervising the implementation of both sovereign and no sovereign funded operations and providing technical and knowledge advisory services to support reforms. As a Country Economist, she was instrumental in designing Bank strategies that sought to address structural bottlenecks while leveraging opportunities to drive job-creating growth in different country income groups in line with national development priorities. She has published as lead author several African Economic Outlook country notes and conducted several Country Policy and Institutional Assessments and Country Risk Assessments. Prior to joining the Bank, Mrs. Phiri worked as an Economist in the Malawi Ministries of Finance and Economic Planning and Development. A Commonwealth Scholar, Mrs. Phiri holds a PhD in Economics from University of Liverpool and a Master of Science in Agricultural Economics from University of Malawi.

Doctor Matlhogonolo Mongwa

Founder, Managing Director and Practicing Doctor for Kalafhi Medical Centre, A multidisciplinary (GPs, pharmacy, dentists, physiotherapy, psychologists, specialists etc) group of clinics currently standing at four branches in Gaborone and a Day Hospital opening soon. Besides being an entrepreneur, Matlhogonolo is a wife and mother of one. She plans to build a network of health care facilities all around Botswana and the SADC region. Matlhogonolo is inspired and motivated to save lives through offering her entrepreneurial skills in the health sector, something that has always been her dream when she was studying Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of surgery (M.B.B.S) in 2014 at the University of Botswana. She aspires to contribute in growing the health sector in Botswana and the region, inspire others in the health profession as well as mentor to those to other entrepreneurs.

Mogaleemang is a Founder & Organisation Lead at Spectrum Analytics - where he leads a multi-disciplinary team that helps businesses leverage data to adapt and thrive in the digital economy through data driven innovation. His company specialises in optimising infrastructure for cloud native apps, analytics, and automation workloads. He frequently writes and speaks on Grassroots Impact, Entrepreneurship, STEM Innovation, Lifelong Learning & Systems Thinking. He sits in Advisory Boards for the BIUST Centre for Business Management Entrepreneurship and General Education, the Society for Organisational Learning Botswana - SoL Botswana, and the Global Association of SoL Communities - Global SoL.

Yandile has a background in Accounting & Finance specializing in strategic performance management. She has experience in financial services, Broadcasting, Talent development and Innovation support. She currently sits on the Botswana National Youth Council, Africa Tech & Creative Group, and the British Council Youth Advisory Boards at a local, continental, and global perspective respectively.

Her work focuses on 3 thematic areas: (1) Reducing the skills mismatch between education & industry - unemployment (2) Supporting sme's to start, manage & grow - job creation (3) improving inter-regional trade in Africa - trade Facilitation.

Through her media company GIQ Media, 3 reports have been produced covering; (1) Upskilling industries workforces in preparation for Africa’s Digital Transformation ‘20 (2) Disruptive Innovation in Today’s versatile Business Jungle ‘19 and (3) Realizing a high performing Innovative economy through transformative people strategies from a youth entrepreneurship perspective ’19. Over and above this she produces and broadcasts a weekly radio business program reaching 1 million+ Batswana weekly covering thought leadership in business, economics, trade, and investments.

Yandile is gifted in communications and results oriented. She is a thought partner and always ready to provide solutions. Her experience with youth at the last mile through various projects / organizations in Media, Research Talent development and Innovation support make her valuable in interdisciplinary and cross – functional teams. She has led and participated in multi-cultural remote teams based in Morocco, Sudan, Senegal, UK, Zambia, Namibia, & Nigeria.