Our team

Adrian Paweni Mpando Kandikole is a seasoned ICT and digital transformation leader dedicated to leveraging technology for national development and financial inclusion. With a career spanning two decades at NBS Bank, he has been at the forefront of Malawi’s digital payment evolution, playing integral roles in major national systems including the National Switch and Interbank Settlement platforms. An advocate for innovation and collaboration, Adrian combines deep technical expertise with a vision for a more connected and inclusive digital economy. He is also very passionate about leveraging technology to solve complex challenges.

Adrian’s career began in enterprise software consulting, where he delivered ERP and integration projects across Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, and South Africa. His expertise spans ICT strategy, governance, interoperability standards, project and program management, systems integration, data management, and regulatory compliance.

A strong advocate for financial inclusion, he is committed to designing low-cost, fit-for-purpose digital payment solutions. Adrian holds a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Malawi and other multiple professional certifications.

Bery is a communication specialist with 14 years of proven expertise in various sectors across West and Central Africa. Bery started her career with Orange at the launch of mobile money and developed her expertise in training and management of communities of practice within international organizations.

Before joining AfricaNenda, she worked as a Knowledge Management and Communication Specialist with UNCDF. She managed and strengthened the knowledge of digital finance actors in Benin and Senegal by sharing lessons learned on financial inclusion projects. She has a deep understanding of the digital finance ecosystem and has facilitated numerous awareness sessions and workshops in the sector.

Bery is an alumna of INSEEC Paris Business School, and Paul Valery University Montpellier, in France.

Felista Amagarat is an experienced research and development professional having worked across various sectors ranging from financial services, renewable energy, agribusiness and agriculture and healthcare.

She has an extensive background in gathering, managing, and documenting business and functional requirements, communicating effectively with upper management and developers. Some of the roles she has undertaken include; marketing, market research, research and development, forecasting and data analysis.

Prior to joining AfricaNenda, Felista was the East Africa Regional Research Lead at M-KOPA. She delivered high quality analytics through relevant industry stakeholders, in-house tools and consulting frameworks; led, designed and independently managed mid to large projects and was the central person in the dissemination of product and service knowledge in and around the project and the team, through being a relative expert in knowledge and practices.

Felista has a BSc in Applied Statistics with Computing from Moi University and an MBA in Strategic Management from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology.

Flory Rukokora is a highly experienced IT and digital banking professional with over 20 years of expertise in IT operations, electronic payments, and financial technology. He has a proven track record in leading digital transformation, optimizing payment systems, and driving financial inclusion across the banking and fintech sectors.

Currently contributing his expertise at AfricaNenda, Flory previously served as Service Delivery Manager at RSwitch Ltd, where he ensured the seamless operation of card services and RNDPS project, managed participant support, and coordinated IT teams to ensure system reliability and customer satisfaction. Before that, as the Acting Head of Digital Banking & E-Channels, he led the development and deployment of innovative digital banking solutions, aligning technology with financial inclusion goals and enhancing customer experience.

His tenure as Chief Operating Officer at RSwitch Ltd (formerly SIMTEL Ltd) saw him spearhead electronic payment operations, switch implementation, and card scheme development, strengthening Rwanda’s digital payments ecosystem. With extensive expertise in IT governance and infrastructure management, he has successfully led the design and optimization of critical IT systems, ensuring regulatory compliance, operational resilience, and the security of financial transactions.

An alumnus of the University of Rwanda, Flory continues to contribute to the advancement of digital financial services and technology-driven solutions across Africa.

Ishioma John-Iyafokhai is a finance management professional with 19 years working experience having worked with non-governmental and international organizations.

As the Finance and Grant Management Officer, Ishioma plays a critical role in managing the financial and grant-related activities of AfricaNenda.

As a finance personnel Ishioma has worked in various organizations, where she played a pivotal role in financial management and ensuring compliance with donor’s policies; including Country Coordinating Mechanism (CCM) for The Global Fund, as the Finance & Admin Manager, previously, she worked at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime(UNODC), Mercy Corps Nigeria(MCN), Achieving Health Nigeria Initiative(AHNi) and Helen Keller International(HKI).

Ishioma John-Iyafokhai is an alumni of Central University College, Accra, Ghana and she holds Masters in Financial Economics from the University of Abuja, Nigeria. She continues to support financial management processes.

Jacqueline Jumah is a transformation specialist in digital financial services with over 15 years’ experience across Africa and Asia supporting the deployment of inclusive digital financial systems for sustainable economic growth.

As Director of Advocacy & Capacity Development, with AfricaNenda, she focuses on providing technical advice to deployments of pro-poor instant payment systems and supporting AfricaNenda’s partnerships with key African institutions shaping the future of payments on the continent.

Prior to joining AfricaNenda, she was the Programme Head for Digital Financial Services at EFInA, where she provided technical advisory services to support governments, international development programmes, regulators, banks, fintech firms and microfinance institutions.

Previously, she also served as Principal Consultant in digital financial services and Managing Director at Intermarc Consulting, and as a digital financial services analyst at MicroSave Consulting (Currently MSC). She is an alumna of Maseno University, Kenya, and the University of Nairobi.

Jamelino Akogbeto is a Digital Financial Services and Payment System Specialist with a multifaceted professional background in the international development, telecom, finance and business consulting sectors.

Jamelino spearheads the West Africa region and mainly focuses on building a strong pipeline of payment projects and increasing the level of effort and investments towards inclusive payment systems.

Prior to joining AfricaNenda, Jamelino was DFS and payment specialist at ADFI (AFDB) acting as the focal point for North, West and Central Africa. He has also worked at UNCDF as Digital Financial Services Expert in Benin where he helped lead the expansion of the country’s digital ecosystem. Earlier, he has successively served at Orange Mali and Etisalat Benin as the head of mobile financial services. Over the course of his DFS career he has provided technical assistance for a number of DFS projects supported by international donors (IFC, World Bank, AFD, etc.) in West and Central Africa.

Jamelino is a Certified Digital Finance Practitioner by DFI and an alumnus of Laval University (Canada).

John Muthiora is a technology leader with more than 20 years’ experience in software development and delivery, project implementation, IT leadership, IoT operations and digital payments implementation and operations.

His working experience includes the financial services sector in insurance, banking, micro-finance, SACCO, digital payments integration and implementation. He has also led technical operations for a payment and IoT platform and won several awards as an IT leader in the hospitality sector. He has led implementation and operational projects with teams in 4 continents.

He has been the IT Operations Director at ModusBox where he has worked on the first global implementations of Mojaloop in Western Africa (for financial service providers in 12 countries), Tanzania and Myanmar. He previously worked with M-KOPA as the Head of Technical Operations, where he led the operation of real-time payment and IoT technology platforms in the cloud.

He is an alumnus of Moi University and the Africa Management Institute’s Leadership Development Programme.

Joy Kuria is a seasoned governance, risk, and compliance professional with extensive experience in Africa’s digital payments ecosystem. She has led transformative initiatives across national payment systems, commercial banks, and fintechs championing risk management, regulatory compliance, fraud prevention, and the secure design of financial infrastructure.

She has held senior roles at RSwitch (Rwanda’s national payment switch), Equity Bank, and served as a Fraud and Risk Analyst at DPO Group—now DPO by Network International. Her expertise includes managing complex regulatory engagements, implementing global standards such as PCI DSS and ISO 27001, and developing enterprise-wide risk frameworks.

Joy applies a systems thinking approach to governance and risk management, focusing on operational resilience and inclusive digital infrastructure. She is passionate about collaborating in the build of secure, accessible financial ecosystems that foster trust and inclusion particularly for underserved communities while advancing risk management & digital hygiene standards.

She holds a bachelor’s degree in international business administration from the United States International University, an MBA from Africa Nazarene University, and professional certifications in Anti-Money Laundering and ISO 27001:2022 Lead Implementation. Joy is recognized for her strategic insight, integrity, and collaborative working style.

Mabika Tapfumaneyi is a seasoned Gender and Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist with over 9 years of experience in the development and humanitarian sectors. He currently serves as the Gender and M&E Specialist at Africanenda, where he plays a pivotal role in mainstreaming gender equity into program design, performance measurement, and strategic learning frameworks across diverse sectors including governance, policy and IPS. Prior to joining Africanenda, Mabika held key M&E leadership roles with Practical Action International, WWF International, Mercy Corps International, and the Southern Alliance for Indigenous Resources (SAFIRE). In these roles, he provided strategic leadership in gender-sensitive M&E, spearheaded inclusive evaluation frameworks, and built the capacity of local partners and institutions to generate and use data for social transformation.Mabika holds a Master of Science (MSc) in Monitoring and Evaluation, Master of Commerce and Strategic Management, MSc Climate Change and Sustainable Development, BSc Hons Sociology, a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Monitoring and Evaluation, and an Executive Certificate in Gender Transformation, Project Management, among other professional qualifications. His expertise lies at the intersection of gender justice, social inclusion, and impact measurement, and he is committed to fostering learning cultures that drive accountability and equity in development programs. He is known for his collaborative approach, deep contextual understanding of Southern and Eastern Africa, and his ability to translate complex evaluation findings into actionable insights into policy and programming.

Mamadee Jabateh is a highly experienced payments industry professional with over 13 years in card and mobile payment systems. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Science Information Technology from Sikkim Manipal University. At eProcess International S.A., the technology arm of the Ecobank Group, he advanced to Head of Cards Engineering, leading major projects initiatives like improving the Ecobank Mobile App onboarding, introducing cardless ATM withdrawals, deploying POS systems in Congo DR, Deposit ATM, Zipit Send and Receive integration to ZimSwitch etc

In a landmark achievement, Mamadee led the deployment of the Postilion Active-Active architecture for 33 Ecobank countries, ensuring uninterrupted service and redundancy for card payment processing. His work delivered major cost savings for eProcess International. He received a Certificate of Excellence in recognition of his distinguished performance.

Most recently, Mamadee served as a consultant for the World Bank in Guinea, where he played a crucial role in implementing the National Switch. His work involved extensive collaboration with the financial ecosystem, central bank, project teams, and other key stakeholders to ensure a smooth rollout. He also provided training, technical assistance, and prepared comprehensive project documentation.

Nelly Farah Nguegan is a strategic communications specialist with 15 years of experience. She has worked with the African Development Bank, the African Union Commission, the Japan Overseas Cooperation Agency, and l’Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie. She authored the book “African Union Communication and regional integration” and holds a master’s degree in International Communication.

Nesrine Aouinti is a Knowledge Management Lead with seven years of professional experience.

In her current role at AfricaNenda, she collaborates closely with the Director of Communications and the Community Engagement and Social Media Lead to develop and implement effective knowledge management strategies. Nesrine also ensures AfricaNenda’s monitoring and evaluation system accurately measures the impact of the organization’s programs and projects.

Before joining AfricaNenda’s team, Nesrine worked in knowledge and project management across a variety of settings, including the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement, Tunisian NGOs, and the private sector. These experiences have equipped her with the ability to collaborate across cultures, disciplines, and geographies.

She worked for the French Red Cross Foundation and the Global Disaster Preparedness Center of the American Red Cross. There, Nesrine excelled in developing knowledge management strategies, conducting research, and evaluating programs. She is skilled at managing knowledge assets and effectively engaging with partners and stakeholders.

Nesrine’s multilingual abilities in English, French, and Arabic facilitate seamless communication with various stakeholders. Her educational background includes a bachelor’s degree in French Language, Literature, and Civilization from the Faculty of Humanities of Tunis. Moreover, Nesrine has acquired professional certifications in IT Service Management (ITIL®v4 Foundation) and Disruptive Strategy from Harvard Business School Online.

Patricia is a banking professional with 11 years’ experience of working directly with senior leadership, multi-cultural teams across different geographies and coordinating cross functional projects. As such she managed to develop expertise in stakeholder management across public and private sectors.

Before joining AfricaNenda, Patricia worked for one of the largest financial institutions in Botswana, Absa Bank Botswana, formerly Barclays Bank, where she held the role of Chief of Staff during one of Africa’s Largest separation Programme. She successfully managed and contributed to, strategic and tactical work streams across key company-wide domains, including but not limited to growth strategy, organisational design, marketing, and financial performance tracking. She also served as the Head of Customer Experience Strategy, where she was responsible for collaborating across various functions to co-create a customer centric culture.

Patricia is currently studying towards an MBA specialising in Big Data Management with the International University of Applied Sciences, Germany. She is an alumna of Monash University, Cape Town University and Said Business School, Oxford University.

Prince Ilboudo is an experienced financier and data scientist with a strong background in data analysis, investment management, and equity trading.
As a Data Scientist at AfricaNenda, Prince contributes to the organization’s mission by leveraging data-driven insights to support inclusive and interoperable digital payment systems across the continent.
Prior to joining AfricaNenda, Prince worked at Capital Group, where he held roles in investment analysis, equity trading, and data science. His work included analyzing global equities for investment opportunities, trading European stocks, and developing and analyzing algorithmic trading models to enhance portfolio performance.
He also brings entrepreneurial experience, having co-founded two fintech ventures where he applied his technical and analytical expertise to address real-world financial inclusion challenges.

Prince holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and International Relations from Connecticut College and a Master’s in Finance from London Business School.

Roseanne is a senior finance management professional with 24 years working experience having worked with leading international audit firms and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

As the Finance Manager with AfricaNenda, Roseanne steers the strategic financial management of the Foundation while ensuring robust compliance with fiscal regulations and donor requirements.

She also enhances donor relations and optimizes project funding and execution. Prior to joining AfricaNenda, Roseanne was a Financial Assessment Specialist at USAID Kenya and East Africa, where she successfully led the development of strong financial management, capacity building initiatives, assessments and attest functions for implement partner programs, projects and activities. She also offered oversight over multi-disciplinary teams conducting financial reviews, audits and assessments for various USAID funded programs.

Previously, she held various manager positions within the Audit and Advisory departments at PricewaterhouseCoopers, Deloitte & Touche, and KPMG in Kenya.

Roseanne is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and a member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya (ICPAK). She is an alumna of Nairobi University, United States International University and Harvard Kennedy School of Government (Executive Fellowship Program).

Serge is a financial sector specialist with over 13 years of experience across Africa working in digital finance in various positions in both the private and development sectors.

As Partnerships, Advocacy, and Capacity Building Specialist, with AfricaNenda, he leads the development of AfricaNenda’s advocacy strategy and the rollout of AfricaNenda’s partnership strategy across Africa.

Prior to joining AfricaNenda, he was a financial sector specialist for the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF). Serge has been instrumental in positioning UNCDF as a trusted partner in serving member states especially in West and Central Africa, driving forward multilateral engagements that respond to the needs of vulnerable and low-income households through an inclusive financial system. He played an important role in advancing advocacy and capacity-building efforts in cross-border payment interoperability which have gained recognition by CPMI and G20.

Previously, he also worked for Millicom International Cellular’s mobile financial services business unit in Senegal, where he held various roles from its inception, including product development, marketing, and commercial roles, eventually becoming responsible for creating new avenues of growth.

Serge is a graduate of the Ecole Nationale Supérieure Polytechnique (Cameroon) and received an MBA in Business Administration from INSEAD (France).

Stellah Obunde is an Administration Manager and Executive Assistant Practitioner with over 20+ years of experience in Investment and Communication Service firms.

Before joining AfricaNenda, Stellah worked in Investment and previously with one of the leading full spectrum Communication Services agencies where she rose to Administration Manager.

Stellah’s strengths lie in C-suite and travel management, procurement and general office administration. She holds a Certificate in Tours and Travel from Career Institute, professional LinkedIn learning certifications, and has completed courses in Project Management and Human Resource Management at the University of Cape Town. She is also a student at Alliance Française, currently pursuing French at B1 level.

Tewodros A. Besrat is a seasoned digital payment and systems professional with over 15+ years of experience across the private, public-private and development sectors.

As a Technical Expert, Digital Payments, with AfricaNenda, he focuses on providing technical advice to Pan African Institutions in their quest to achieve instant and inclusive payment systems for all Africans.

Prior to joining AfricaNenda, Tewodros held different roles with various international institutions including, the World Bank Group and GSMA. While at the World Bank, Tewodros led the digital payment/systems agenda for several flagship social protection projects in East Africa (Ethiopia, Somalia, and Tanzania). As a Senior Resident Advisor with GSMA, he advised 14 INGOs under the Collaborative Cash Delivery (CCD) Network on rolling out mobile-money enabled cash and voucher assistance programming.

Previously, he also served as Senior Manager for Corporate Communications, Market Data and Board Secretary at the Ethiopia Commodity Exchange (ECX). He is alumna of the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia.

Tony Bala Oketch is an experienced professional with proven success managing multiple teams towards maximum productivity striving to make an impact in the FinTech space across Africa. He is responsible for increasing the efficiency, quality, and productivity of AfricaNenda’s business operations towards an inclusive and interoperable approach to digital payments across Africa.

Prior to joining AfricaNenda as Operations Manager, Tony was Manager of Operations at CloudFactory and served as Programs Officer at Transform Nations. He has spearheaded successful multi-country operational strategies being a key player in resource management, logistics, community management, and process improvements. He led CloudFactory through office expansion and growth that have supported artificial intelligence initiatives and optimized business operations connecting people to online earning opportunities.

He is an alumnus of the University of Nairobi, where he obtained his Bachelor of Science degree.

Vanessa Umutoni is a leader in digital financial services, fintech and payment solutions, with extensive leadership experience in both private and non-profit organisations. As Technical Payment Specialist, she focuses on designing and advocating for efficient and affordable payment platforms.
Before joining AfricaNenda, Vanessa worked with the Mastercard Foundation Center for Innovative Teaching & Learning ICT, where she led a regional entrepreneurship programme with companies from seven African countries, and as a senior product manager at Pivot Access, where she led the company’s fintech product portfolio. She also served as the vice-president of Girls in ICT Rwanda for seven years.
She is an alumna of Carnegie Mellon University, and Mbarara University of Science and Technology.

Veronica Kalekye Mutua is a Human Resource professional, who has worked across manufacturing, education, technology, government and NGO sectors as a generalist.

She has a background in managing the entire employee experience spanning for over 15 years.

Veronica has worked for Amadeus Global Travel Distribution as the People and Culture Manager for East Africa, The Fred Hollows Foundation as a Human Resource Coordinator, Living Water International as a Human Resource Manager, and Kenya National Commission on Human Rights as a Human Resource and Administration officer amongst others.

Veronica has an Ongoing MBA in Human Resource Management, a BBA in Human Resource Management both from the Kenya Methodist University, and a Post Graduate Diploma in Human Resource Management. She considers empathy as a big asset in her professional journey.