H.E. Nadia Fettah

Minister of Economy and Finance of the Kingdom of Morocco

H.E. Nadia Fettah, appointed by His Majesty King Mohammed VI on October 7, 2021, is the first woman appointed to this position in the Kingdom of Morocco. Born in 1971, H.E. Nadia Fettah was the Minister of Tourism, Handicrafts, Air Transport, and Social Economy between 2019 and 2021. A high school graduate from the “Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales” in Paris in 1994, H.E. Nadia Fettah started her career as a consultant in one of the largest financial studies offices before founding an investment fund in Morocco, which she managed for five years. After managing a Moroccan insurance company, H.E. Nadia Fettah accompanied a global holding corporate in developing its capital in Africa and the Middle East. In 2017, H.E. Nadia Fettah was Chief Executive Manager of a group of companies in Africa before being appointed as Minister. In parallel to her ministerial mission, H.E. Nadia Fettah is active in the associative field, as she was one of the founders of the Women’s Club, members of the boards of directors, as well as the global network “Women Corporate Directors.” H.E. Nadia Fettah was crowned the 2018 title of “The Best Contracting Director” at the African level during a continental meeting organized in Abidjan.

Abderrahim Chaffai

Chairman, ACAPS

His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God assist Him, appointed, on October 19, 2023, Mr. Abderrahim CHAFFAI, as Chairman of the Supervisory Authority of Insurance and Social Welfare (ACAPS). Since 2019, Mr. CHAFFAI has held the position of Managing Director of the Solidarity Fund against Catastrophic Events (FSEC). He graduated from HEC Paris with an MBA degree and from the “Institut de Statistique de l'Université de Paris” with an engineering degree. After a career with SANAD, he joined ZURICH Assurances as Deputy General Director. Mr. CHAFFAI has held a number of senior positions at SCR (Société Centrale de Réassurance), WAFA Assurance, VIDAL Assurances and BCE Actuarial Consulting.

Simon Martin CMG

British Ambassador to The Kingdom of Morocco

Mr Simon Martin CMG was appointed as His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Kingdom of Morocco in February 2020. He presented his credentials to Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita on 28 September 2020.

Prior to his appointment in Morocco, Mr Martin was British Ambassador to Bahrain from 2015 to 2019; Deputy Private Secretary to TRH The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall from 2012 to 2014; Director of Protocol at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Vice-Marshal of the Diplomatic Corps from 2009 to 2012.

Mr Martin joined the FCO in 1984 and served in London, Rangoon, Budapest and Prague in a number of policy and commercial roles.

Kelvin Massingham

Director, Risk and Resilience, FSD Africa.

A qualified Actuary by training, Kelvin brings to this role over 20 years’ experience in inclusive insurance and in leading and growing financial services organisations in complex environments. He is a financial services professional and entrepreneur with a passion for accelerating financial and health inclusion. Prior to joining FSD Africa, Kelvin started several companies in East Africa and Asia with a focus on addressing the needs of emerging consumers through digital financial solutions.

As Director of Risk, Kelvin is responsible for driving market innovation in Africa in risk management and transfer.

Kelvin is a South African but has spent the last 7 years living in Tanzania and Kenya. He is married with 3 children and loves training for and competing in triathlons.

Godfrey Kiptum

Commissioner of Insurance & CEO, IRA Kenya.

Mr. Kiptum is the Commissioner of Insurance & Chief Executive Officer. Prior to his appointment, he was the Authority’s Chief Manager for Human Capital and Administration- a position he held for 10 years and implemented various Human Resource Systems and Processes.

He sits on the Boards of the Retirement Benefits Authority and Policyholders Compensation Fund. He is also a Trustee of the Insurance Training and Education Trust and a member of the Executive Committee of the International Association of Insurance Supervisors.

Sophie Mills

Gender Lead, FSD Network

Sophie leads the FSD Network’s Collaborative Gender Programme, which works with FSDs to mainstream gender into their operations and support their capacity to deliver systemic gender impacts. She has over fifteen years’ experience in inclusive finance and gender in sub Saharan Africa and the Middle East. Prior to joining FSD Africa, Sophie worked on housing microfinance, gender and inclusive finance with a number of non-profit organisations. She holds a PhD from the London School of Economics and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wales.

Elias Omondi

Principal, Innovation for Resilience, FSD Africa

Elias has over 10 years of experience in developing policies and regulations in the financial sector. He leads the development and implementation of programmes that work to improve the enabling environment for risk markets in Africa to drive systemic change in the market for insurance and other risk management instruments at FSD Africa.

Previously, Elias worked as an Actuary at the Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) of Kenya where he was instrumental in the development and implementation of risk-based regulations and automation of supervisory processes and tools in the insurance sector. He also supported market innovation, designing, and testing innovative mechanisms of risk management through the formulation of the Regulatory Sandbox (BimaBox) and InsurTech Accelerator Platform (BimaLab)

Elias worked on various international technical assistance projects for the World Bank, IMF and GIZ assisting over 15 regulatory bodies in the insurance, pensions and capital markets sector in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean to strengthen their regulatory and supervisory frameworks.

Elias holds a Master of Science (MSc) in Actuarial Management from Cass Business School, United Kingdom and a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Actuarial Science, with IT from Maseno University. He is an Associate Actuary of The Actuarial Society of Kenya (TASK) and Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFOA), United Kingdom.

Siham Ramli

Director, Communications and International Relations, ACAPS

Nicolas Christinet

Regional Manager P&C North Africa, Swiss RE

Jouda Khemiri

Chairman, CGA Tunisia

Mouna Chentoufi

Head, International Relations, ACAPS

Mouna Chentoufi is head of the international relations department at the Autorité de Contrôle des Assurances et de la Prévoyance Sociale. She is in charge of managing the Authority's international strategy and conducting international cooperation activities with ACAPS' various partners. Previously, Mouna held various senior communications positions in the education and non-profit sectors. She has a background in journalism and public and political communication.

Hikmet Abdella

CEO, FSD Ethiopia

Kenza Lahlou

Managing Partner, Outlierz Ventures

Kenza Lahlou is the Founder and Managing Partner at Outlierz Ventures, an Africa-focused early-stage VC firm dedicated to Seed stage tech-enabled companies. The fund backs founders using technology to digitize key traditional industries across the continent's main tech hubs with a focus on Francophone Africa, Egypt, Nigeria and Kenya.

Kenza is a pioneer ecosystem builder and VC investor in Africa with a background in Technology and Investment. She lived and worked in Africa, Europe, Asia and the United States with experience spanning software engineering, management consulting and private equity. Kenza started her career as a Computer Science engineer in France, then acquired experience in Private Equity in Africa after a Masters in Business in Singapore. Before starting Outlier Ventures, she moved to Silicon Valley to work for a boutique advisory firm providing market entry services to tech startups/scale up companies from emerging markets looking to scale in the US market. Inspired by this experience, she returned to Morocco to co-founded StartupYourLife, one of the pioneer ecosystem builders in the country, as a leading community of tech founders to connect to investors and mentors in the region. After four years working on the ground with tech founders, Kenza witnessed the financing gap in early-stage VC in Africa and started Outlierz Ventures in 2018 as one of the pioneer Africa-focused Seed funds to back the next generation of outliers founders building category-defining businesses and transforming Africa.

Kenza holds a BS and MSc in Computer Science from INSA in France and a Master of Strategy and International Business from ESSEC Business School in Singapore. She completed a Leadership Executive Program at the Harvard Kennedy School in 2016. Kenza is a Kauffman Fellow Class 25.

Ming Kwan

Head of Portfolio, First circle capital

Ming is First Circle Capital's (FCC) Head of Portfolio and brings a deep operational know-how built over 15 years' experience in the technology industry in North America, UK, Europe, South East Asia (SEA), and now North Africa. Ming was an early employee at Lazada. Over the 7 years she spent there, she held numerous executive roles in operations, platform and partnerships. She saw the business GMV grow from $100M USD to $8BN USD and its exit to Alibaba in 2017 with a valuation of $3.2BN. Before joining FCC, she was the CEO of a fintech & loyalty startup in Morocco. At the start of her career, Ming worked at Nokia, Rakuten and nGenera, a technology think tank. Ming has an MBA from INSEAD.

Yassine Rahmi

Co-Founder and CEO, Sygma AI

Yassine Rahmi, 40, began his career in 2006 as a data analyst at Acxiom Corporation. He later became a data architect at J.B. Hunt Transport, where he expanded into business and digital marketing roles. In 2010, he joined Saudi Telecom’s digital marketing team in Riyadh, and in 2014, returned to Morocco to lead OCP’s digital communication and e-reputation strategy.

Since 2019, Yassine has worked on initiatives supporting startups and promoting entrepreneurship in Morocco and Africa. He holds an MBA from the University of Arkansas (2010), and a Digital Marketing certificate from Columbia University (2013)

Zee De Gersigny

Head, investments, FSDAi

Abdelali Boukachabine

Head, African Blockchain Hub, UM6P, Morocco

Boukachabine abdelali is a seasoned professional with over 20 years of extensive experience in various sectors, including banking, capital markets, and commodities trading.

For the past three years, I’ve been managing the African Blockchain Hub within UM6P, fostering an environment that supports entrepreneurial initiatives and investment in the rapidly evolving blockchain technology landscape. My commitment to innovation and growth in the digital economy continues to drive my efforts in this dynamic field.

Mwihaki Muraguri

Curator | Storysmith | AfroOptimist

Mwihaki Muraguri is a creator and curator of content that builds, shapes and informs, pushing forward the positive.

As a storysmith - she is dedicated to crafting words, stories and digital content to positively influence ideas about progress, identity, historical and contemporary culture from Kenya and the continent at large.

She is a seasoned professional and leader whose personal brand of output-defined professionalism is grounded in integrity, high standards, social equity, trust, personal responsibility and a continued touch of idealism. Mwihaki leads Paukwa, a storyhouse dedicated to telling stories from a positive and authentic African perspective. Paukwa's sandbox is using stories to challenge existing negative narratives and unlocking hidden aspects of the extraordinary found in the seemingly ordinary while showcasing Africa's myriad positive facets.

Dr. Islam Azzam

Vice Chairman, FRA Egypt

Dr. Islam Azzam is the Vice Chairman of the Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) since January 2021. He is also an Associate Professor of Finance (Tenured) in the Management Department of the AUC School of Business. He joined AUC as full time faculty since 2005 teaching both graduate and undergraduate courses in corporate and international finance, derivatives, investment, and econometrics. He has also been a visiting professor in the USA, South Africa, and Saudi Arabia since he obtained his PhD in econometrics and monetary policy from the University of California Irvine in 2003. Dr. Azzam served as a board member for several listed and non-listed companies. He also worked as financial advisor at the Ministry of Investment, Mortgage Finance Authority, and Capital Market Authority. He has several publications in refereed international journals on foreign direct investment, stock exchange demutualization, ownership structure and performance.

Othman El Alamy

Secretary General, ACAPS Morocco

Mr. Elalamy has a legal background and extensive experience in the field of insurance and social welfare supervision.

He served most of his career at the Directorate of Insurance and Social Welfare (DAPS) of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, which he joined in 1983 as a staff member in the Legal Studies and International Relations Department. He subsequently held several positions of responsibility within DAPS, namely Head of the Miscellaneous Risks Department (1996-1999), Head of the Insurance Intermediaries Supervision Department (1999-2011), Deputy Director of Insurance Companies and Intermediaries Supervision (2011- 2015) and later Deputy Director in charge of Market Organisation.

With the transformation of DAPS into an independent supervisory authority (Supervisory Authority of Insurance and Social Welfare - ACAPS), which became effective in February 2016, Mr. Elalamy held the position of Director of "Policyholder Protection". In May 2017, Mr. Elalamy was appointed Secretary General of the Authority.

Julian Arevalo

Senior Expert on Financial Innovation EIOPA

Julian works in the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA). As Senior Expert on Financial Innovation, he is responsible for assessing the impact in the European insurance sector of new business models and technologies such as artificial intelligence / machine learning, DLT/Blockchain and crypto assets. He is also actively involved in EIOPA’s work on digital ethics and financial inclusion. Julian has a legal and economic background and can fluently communicate in Spanish, English and French.

Mrs. Sibongile Siwela

Director, IPEC

Mrs Siwela has over 30 years of experience in the insurance industry, 20 years of which, were in the life insurance industry.

Prior to joining the Insurance and Pensions Commission in 2019 as the Director of Insurance and Microinsurance, she worked for one life assurance company for 27 years, where she served in various managerial positions in the insurance value chain and gained invaluable experience in the insurance business.

She was instrumental in setting up the microinsurance arm of the business.

Mrs Siwela holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration and a Bachelor of Science Honours Degree in Risk Management and Insurance – both from the National University of Science and Technology (NUST). She also holds a Diploma in Insurance with the Insurance Institute of Zimbabwe (IIZ).

Amos Gachuiri

Head, investments, FSDAI

Amos is an investment professional with two decades of experience gained in development finance, impact investing and early-stage finance. He is Head, Investments at FSD Africa Investments. He represents FSD Africa as an investor representative in boards, manages a portfolio of investments and enjoys structuring innovative financial vehicles for scale and impact. He is currently focused on designing and developing financial intermediaries that drive Africa’s inclusive prosperity, including development of climate infrastructure, capital markets, and the early stage ecosystems. Amos has previously served in different roles at PwC, KPMG, GroFin, Grassroots Business Fund and Gatsby Africa. Amos holds an MBA from ESMT Berlin, a Bachelor of Commerce degree from University of Nairobi and a Diploma in Private Sector Growth from SIPU, Sweden. Amos is a qualified CPA and member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya (ICPAK).

Selma Ribeca

Founder, First circle capital

Selma Ribica is a Fintech entrepreneur and VC investor. Founder of First Circle, a venture capital fund and a global community, backing FinTech companies in key African tech hubs. A veteran of the fintech industry, Selma founded an award-winning money transfer service Lebara Money and was an early executive at M-Pesa, the pioneer mobile money service. Operational fintech experience in Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana and the UK. VC investment track record across Africa: Tunisia, Morocco, Kenya, Egypt, Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda and Ivory Coast.

Bachir Baddou

Executive Vice-President, Moroccan Insurance Federation - FMA

Bachir Baddou holds a Master's degree in economics from the Pierre Mendes France University in Grenoble and an MBA from the University of Sherbrooke (Canada).

He spent more than twelve years at the insurance company LA MAROCAINE-VIE where he held the position of General Manager. He is currently General Manager of CAT Insurance and Reinsurance and Deputy Vice-President of the Moroccan Insurance Federation.

Past President of the African Insurance Organization, he is also a member of the Executive Committee and Treasurer of the Global Federation of Insurance Association (an association bringing together more than 40 federations representing 87% of global insurance turnover).

Omotayo Boluwatife

CEO GAMP Technologies Nigeria

Boluwatife Omotayo is a Nigerian entrepreneur with a Postgraduate Diploma in Technology, Entrepreneurship, Management, and Design. He founded Gamp, a VC-backed startup providing device insurance and financing for Africa's digital workers, serving over 20,000 customers across multiple continents. Recognized as an Anzisha Prize fellow, Boluwatife was instrumental in making Carry1st Africa's top mobile game publisher and began his entrepreneurial journey with TAB Digitals Technology. He is dedicated to leveraging technology for socioeconomic change in emerging markets and serves as a Board member at a Federal Unity College in Nigeria.

Dr. Yeraeifirae Sileshi

CEO Saglan Wajee Hospital – Ethiopia

Dr. Yeraeifirae Sileshi is a passionate physician and healthcare entrepreneur from Ethiopia, committed to transforming the country’s healthcare landscape by making private health insurance accessible and affordable for all. After earning his medical degree in China, where he witnessed the benefits of universal healthcare, Dr. Yeraeifirae Sileshi returned to Ethiopia determined to create similar opportunities in his homeland. Motivated by personal experiences and patient stories, such as that of Mr. Haile, a man who waited seven years for a simple surgery due to lack of affordable care, Dr. Yeraeifirae Sileshi co-launched Efoy, a groundbreaking micro health insurance package offering coverage for as little as $20 a year. Now, as he leads efforts to establish a new insurance company, backed by a consortium of hospitals, Dr. Yeraeifirae Sileshi is on a mission to improve healthcare accessibility for millions of Ethiopians and close the healthcare gap in one of Africa’s largest markets.

Elizabeth Njambi

Manager, Engagement, FSD Africa

With a decade of global experience in the technology and fintech sectors, I am a seasoned growth, innovation and marketing leader with experience working across Africa and The Middle East.

My core competencies cut across marketing, partnerships and stakeholder management, product development and management, technology and e-commerce platform growth, and team leadership. I use data-driven insights to optimize campaigns and products and measure growth. I negotiate deals and establish fruitful partnerships across both private and government sectors. I have excelled in product development and management of technology and fintech products, leading design, ideation, piloting, and launch. I grow and monetize platforms, driving user acquisition, retention, and revenue growth. As a leader, I foster an environment that encourages trust, creativity, and accountability.

My mission is to fuel growth and innovation through marketing, partnerships, and world class product development.I am always looking for new opportunities and challenges to leverage my diverse skill set and deliver exceptional results across industries. If you are looking for a dynamic leader who can drive growth and innovation, let's connect.

Hamza Rkha Chaham

Co-Founder, SOWIT

Hamza is the co-founder of SOWIT, a start-up providing decision support systems to African farmers. He is a 2018 Marshall German Fund and Policy Center for the New South Emerging Leader. Hamza also co-founded TAKAMOUL, a start-up offering financing and smart aggregation to farmers in Morocco.

SOWIT is incorporated in France, Morocco and Senegal and leverages all the power of remote-sensing, AI and agronomy to provide key insights to farmers enabling them to optimize crucial operations such as fertilization or harvest.

Hamza is co-author of the landmark report published by the African Union entitled “Drones on the horizon: Transforming Africa’s Agriculture”. The report forms the basis upon which the AU Executive Council issued the Decision EX. CL/Dec. 986-1007 (XXXII), recommending all Member States harness the opportunities offered by drones for precision agriculture.

Faycal CHRAIBI

CEO, Neeosis

Fayçal Chraibi is a serial entrepreneur, with more than 20 years of experience in the field of IT, innovation and business development.

Fayçal has operated in the consulting area, across Europe, Americas, Asia and Africa, advising GLOBAL 500 and CAC40 corporates. He bootstraped and lead the regional subsidiaries, in Francophone Africa, for large multinational groups such as and Inetum.

Recently, Fayçal has strived to align with more purpose-driven ventures. He launched Issuery Capital, which invests in the areas of sustainability, education, wellbeing and agriculture.

Fayçal is also the CEO of Neeosis, which is an Edtech company developing an inclusive learning platform.

Zanati Serghini

Director, Tamwilcom Morocco