H.E. Ambassador Nosipho Nausca - Jean Jezile is currently the Ambassador in Rome (Italy) and Permanent Representative to the UN Agencies in Rome of the Republic of South Africa, Chair of the African Regional Group (ARG), Member of the FAO Programme Committee and current Chairperson of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS)

Henry Roman is curretnly the Country Representative for South Africa at IWMI. Henry previously managed the development and implementation of the National Water Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) Roadmap as well as the National Waste RDI Roadmap. He initiated the National Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) for Circular Economy Strategy. Henry managed the transformation of the South African Risk and Vulnerability Atlas (SARVA) from a static book to an online portal. He also managed the implementation of the Imvelisi Enviropreneurship Programme.

Ismhane Elouafi is the Executive Managing Director of CGIAR. She was the Chief Scientist at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations and the Director General at the International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), which was based in the United Arab Emirates. Dr. Elouafi has held several senior scientific and leadership positions, including Senior Adviser to the Assistant Deputy Minister, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Research Branch in Ottawa (AAFC), Canada (2006–2007), National Manager of Plant Research Section (2007–2010), and Director of Research Management and Partnerships Division at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) (2010–2012). She has worked as a scientist with several international research organizations. She has been a member of various strategy expert panels and advisory groups, including the Global Commission on Adaptation (GCA) and HarvestPlus. She has been a member of several governance boards, including the boards of the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in the United States, the Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International (CABI) in the United Kingdom, and the Professional Development Institute in Canada. She was also a member of the Scientific Group for the 2021 UN Food Systems Summit and the CGIAR System Board.

Lauren M. Phillips is an international political economist and currently Deputy Director for the Rural Transformation and Gender Equality Division of the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization. Prior to joining FAO in 2021 she worked in a variety of policy, strategy and advisory roles at another specialized agency of the United Nations, the International Fund for Agricultural Development from 2015-2021, as an Assistant Professor in the Department of International Relations at the London School of Economics (2008-2014), as a Research Fellow at the Overseas Development Institute (2005-08), and in a variety of private finance roles in the City of London and New York. She holds a PhD in International Political Economy from the London School of Economics and Master and Bachelor degrees from Stanford University. Lauren was also an Adjunct Professor at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in Bologna, Italy, and has published widely on finance and development.

Malik Abaddi is a Senior Policy Associate at the UM6P-J-PAL Agricultural Lab for Africa (UJALA). In this role, he helps develop partnerships with private sector actors, governments and NGOs, manage research competitions, and conduct evidence-to-policy communication and dissemination. Prior to joining J-PAL in 2024, he held roles at the University Mohammed VI Polytechnic, the Policy Center for the New South (PCNS), and Search for Common Ground (SfCG). Malik holds a master's degree in African Geopolitics and Geoeconomics from HEC Paris and a Bachelor of Laws from Durham University.

Medrina Linda Mloza Banda is a dynamic and results-oriented agricultural expert, currently serving as the Principal Secretary for Technical Services at the Ministry of Agriculture in Malawi. In her current role, she is responsible for identifying and implementing agricultural policies and strategies for various directorates. She excels in managing partnerships, capacity building, and providing technical support across programs and projects. Her leadership extends to mentoring teams of professionals, managing project budgets and resources, and ensuring that agricultural supply chains remain sustainable and traceable. She has authored research papers on climatology, soil properties and conservation agriculture, providing valuable insights to the global agricultural community in optimizing agricultural productivity, as well as enhancing environmental and soil health.

Michael O’Sullivan is a Senior Economist and Head of the World Bank's Africa Gender Innovation Lab, an action-oriented research lab that aims to identify what works to promote gender equality in Africa and use these insights to shape policy. The Lab’s evidence has informed $12.8 billion in development investments across 53 countries and has shaped multiple policy reforms.  Over the past fifteen years, Michael has led research on the barriers to women’s economic empowerment—including on agriculture, property rights, and women’s access to markets—and tested innovative solutions to address them. Prior to joining the World Bank, he worked on USAID-funded development projects and served as a U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer in Burkina Faso. Michael holds a master’s degree from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs.

Nicoline de Haan is a senior researcher with more than 15 years of expertise in gender, rural livelihoods, agriculture, and natural resource management. She is presently the Director of the CGIAR Gender Equality and Inclusion. Previously, she served as the leader of the gender team at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). Before ILRI, she led the work on gender, poverty and institutions under the CGIAR program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE) examining the implications of inequity in access and control over natural resources, and finding options to ensure inclusive benefit sharing. In her previous position at the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) she led the global socio-economic team on animal health, where her main responsibility was reducing the impact of animal diseases on the livelihoods of smallholders, and especially women impacted by avian influenza. She holds a PhD in rural sociology from University of Missouri, Colombia, USA.

Surita Sandosham was born and raised in Singapore and brings over 20 years of senior leadership experience in global nonprofit organizations. She became the President and CEO of Heifer International in 2022, where she is driving a bold transformation focused on equity, farmer-led innovation, and sustainable food systems. Previously, she served as Executive Director of Heartland Alliance International, a Chicago-based humanitarian and human rights organization, where she championed human rights by delivering lifesaving services and advocating for survivors of conflict and those at risk of abuse.

Yonas Alem is a Research Professor at the School of Economics, University of Cape Town, and Director of Academic Programs at the Environment for Development (EfD) initiative. He is also a researcher at the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) at MIT. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, where he previously served as an Associate Professor of Economics. His research lies at the intersection of Development Microeconomics, Behavioral and Experimental Economics, and Environmental Economics, with a focus on gender, energy transitions, technology adoption, and climate change adaptation and mitigation. Alem has published extensively in leading academic journals. His empirical work primarily employs panel data econometrics and impact evaluation methods, especially large-scale randomized controlled trials—an area in which he has also taught Ph.D.-level courses for over 15 years.