World Affairs Council – Africa Connected Series

August 26, 2010 No Comments

World Affairs Council – Africa Connected Series
Innovation, Education, and Leadership inAfrica: Building Blocks for Development

What will it take to create truly, lasting sustainable progress in Africa? With so many
development strategies in play today — microfinance, investment in education, investment in women,
investment in global health, direct foreign aid — what really works? What role can a new generation of
young African Leaders play in creating an environment of growth and change?
The World Affairs Council presents leadership and alumni from Ashesi University in Ghana for a panel
discussion on fostering innovation and ethical leadership in Africa with the goal of
sustained development on the continent.

Date: Thursday, September 23, 2010
Networking reception time: 6:00 p.m.
Lecture time: Registration 6:30 p.m., Program 7:00 p.m.
Networking reception location: University of Washington, Parrington Hall Commons
Lecture location: University of Washington, Kane Hall Room 220
Lecture cost: $10 members/students, $15 non-members
Networking reception cost: $20 members/students; $30 non-members. Reception price
includes networking, hors d’oeuvres, drinks, preferred seating at the lecture.

Panelists include:

Patrick Awuah is the Founder and President of Ashesi University in Ghana. Before founding Ashesi University, Patrick worked as a Program Manager for Microsoft. He holds bachelor degrees in Engineering and Economics from Swarthmore College, and an MBA from UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. Ashesi University’s innovative approach to education has earned Patrick the 2009 McNulty Prize for Young Leaders, the 2009 Microsoft Alumni Foundation Integral Fellow Award, and recognition as one of the 100 Most Creative People in Business 2010 by Fast Company Magazine.

Peter Woicke has held senior posts in the international business and development sectors. From 1999-2005, Peter was a Managing Director of the World Bank and Executive Vice President of the International Finance Corporation (IFC). Under his leadership, the IFC fostered corporate social responsibility among its private sector clients. As a result, all major international banks adopted the IFC’s social and environmental standards for their future project finance activities which became known as the Equator Principles. For the past 2 years, Peter has worked as Board Chair for Save the Children International. Under his chairmanship, Save the Children reorganized itself from a loosely federated membership organization into a more efficient centralized organization. Peter visited Save the Children programs in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Indonesia, and Haiti. Peter is currently the Board Chair for Ashesi University Foundation.

Aba Ackun is the Regional Credit Risk Manager for Accion International, Ghana. She is a 2006 Graduate of Ashesi University, Ghana, with a degree in Business Administration. Accion is one of the largest and most respected microfinance organizations in the World. Formerly, Aba held positions in the Treasury Department at Barclays Bank, Ghana and in the Finance Department at Newmont Gold.

Araba Amuasi is Operations Manager for the Village of Hope Orphanage and School, Ghana. She is a 2007 Graduate of Ashesi University, Ghana, with a degree in Computer Science. Village of Hope Orphanage houses over 120 orphans and operates a school and clinic that serve the local community. Araba has been modernizing their curriculum and is proud that over the past two years 100% of her students passed the middle school entrance exam with distinction. This is a big accomplishment in a community where, in past years, 100% of students failed the same exam.

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