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ConstructAfrica Hosts its First Ambassador Town Hall, Marking a Milestone in Advancing Africa’s Construction Leadership
On Friday, 28 November 2025, ConstructAfrica (https://ConstructAfrica.com/) successfully convened its inaugural Ambassador Town Hall Meeting, bringing together a distinguished group of leaders from across Africa's construction, infrastructure, finance, legal, education, technology, and policy sectors. This historic gathering marks the formal introduction of the ConstructAfrica Ambassadors Programme, an initiative designed by the ConstructAfrica Industry Advisory Board (CIAB) to champion excellence, collaboration, and thought leadership across the continent's built-environment ecosystem.
The Town Hall set the foundation for a new pan-African community of experts committed to strengthening Africa's construction sector, one of the continent's most important engines of economic and social development.
A Milestone for Africa's Construction Future
The inaugural Town Hall highlighted both the significance of Africa's construction and infrastructure landscape and the urgent need for coordinated leadership. The sector (one of the fastest-growing globally) contributes up to 11% of GDP in key African markets, attracts trillions of dollars in pipeline investments, and serves as a catalyst for job creation, industrialisation, regional integration, and improved quality of life across the continent.
Against this backdrop, the Ambassadors Programme aims to mobilise 100 influential leaders by 2026 to help shape a more sustainable, investable, and globally competitive construction industry for Africa.
In introducing the ConstructAfrica Ambassadors Programme, Dr Nelson Ogunshakin OBE, Chair of ConstructAfrica Industry Advisory Board (CIAB), said, “We are delighted to have secured the commitment of highly qualified and enthusiastic corporate executives across the African continent to form the first cohort of the Ambassadors. The Ambassadors Programme brings together a carefully selected group of exceptional professionals and visionaries committed to advancing Africa's infrastructure transformation. The initiative will serve as a global think tank and collaborative network, elevating Africa's voice in development discourse and strengthening the flow of insights, innovations, and best practices across the sector. On behalf of the CIAB, I would like to welcome onboard our new ambassadors and look forward to collaborating with each member towards the successful delivery of future programme – strengthening the African construction sector.”
Demonstrating ConstructAfrica's Commitment to Excellence
The launch of the Town Hall and Ambassadors Programme signals ConstructAfrica's deepening commitment to supporting Africa's construction ecosystem with reliable market intelligence, strategic dialogue, and platforms for knowledge exchange.
Sharing his reflections on the significance of the programme, Dr. Segun Faniran, Founder and Publisher of ConstructAfrica, said: “The ConstructAfrica Ambassadors Programme brings together distinguished thought leaders from diverse fields across key sectors relevant to the African construction landscape. Through this initiative, we are building a powerful network of visionaries committed to advancing industry standards, fostering collaboration, and shaping the future of infrastructure development in Africa. The programme reflects ConstructAfrica's commitment to market intelligence, thought leadership, and sustainable growth, laying the foundation for a more connected and resilient continent.”
As a pan-African hub for data, insights, and thought leadership, ConstructAfrica remains dedicated to empowering investors, developers, policymakers, and practitioners to make informed decisions that lead to sustainable, impactful infrastructure delivery.
The Town Hall concluded with expressions of gratitude to the inaugural cohort of Ambassadors - leaders whose expertise and passion reflect ConstructAfrica's vision of building a stronger, more connected, and more resilient Africa.
LIST OF THE AMBASSADORS
S/N | Name | Role | Area of Expertise | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Jumoke Ogundare | Chief Executive Officer, Lagos Lagoon Highways Limited | Developer & Investor | Nigeria |
2 | Hakeem Ogunniran | Chair, Eximia Realty | Housing Development | Nigeria |
3 | Grace Bema | Managing Director, BCHOD Consulting Engineers | Design Engineering | Zimbabwe |
4 | Rob Morson | Partner, Pinsent Masons | Legal / Solicitors | South Africa |
5 | Tunde Fagbemi | Chair, Dukia Gold | Aviation & Mining | Nigeria |
6 | Eddie Andrews | Deputy Mayor of Cape Town | Government | South Africa |
7 | Colette Yende | Chief Procurement Officer, Transnet Engineering | Procurement | South Africa |
8 | Bruce Mutaurwa | Chief Executive Officer, Rapidus Engineering | Civil Engineering | South Africa |
9 | Nkgatho Tlale | Deputy Vice Chancellor, Tshwane University of Technology | Engineering / Academic Leadership | South Africa |
10 | Mqhele Dlodlo | Vice Chancellor, NUST, Zimbabwe | Engineering / Academic Leadership | Zimbabwe |
11 | Vibhuti Jain | MD, Regional Head of Africa, DFC | Infrastructure Finance | South Africa |
12 | Denamo Addisie | Professor, Addis Ababa University | Construction Project Management | Ethiopia |
13 | Sophonias Deneke | Director, Amigos Institute | Construction Technology | Ethiopia |
14 | Wubishet Jekale Menegsha | Director, Jekale CM Consultancy | Construction | Ethiopia |
15 | Shiferaw Alemu | Program Director, Ethiopian Aviation | Infrastructure Development | Ethiopia |
16 | Refilwe S. Buthelezi | President, Federation of African Engineering Organisations (FAEO) | Engineering Leadership | South Africa |
17 | Kazawedi Papias | Managing Director, TASK Africa | Engineering Leadership | Tanzania |
18 | James Afolalu | Program Manager (Data), Cognizant | Infrastructure Asset Management; IT | Nigeria |
19 | Alfie Chimedza | Director, Programme Advisory, Gleeds | Infrastructure Advisory | Zimbabwe |
20 | Yusuf Abdi | Construction Engineer, Cullen, Grummitt & Roe | Construction Engineering | Somalia |
21 | Bwalya Lumbwe | Construction Dispute Expert, Incipio, Zambia | Construction Law; FIDIC | Zambia |
22 | Derrick Nkera | Director, Turner & Townsend, Rwanda | Cost Management; Construction Consulting; East Africa | Rwanda |
23 | Lanre Lawale | Group Leader, Technical Specialist Services – India, Middle East and Africa, Arup | Façade Engineering | Nigeria |
24 | Wale Okubadejo | Managing Partner, OAC Architects | Architecture | Nigeria |
25 | Igbuan Okaisobor | Chief Executive Officer, Construction Kaiser | Construction Business | Nigeria |
26 | Claire Barclay | Partner, Pinsent Masons | Construction Law; Infrastructure Project Planning; Finance Structuring; Risk Management | South Africa |
27 | Theophilus Shittu | UNESCO Chair in Earthen Architecture, Building Cultures, and Sustainable Development | Sustainable Architecture; Urbanism; Architectural Technology; Construction Technology; Construction Management | Nigeria |
28 | Ronald Mbiu | Consultant Quantity Surveyor & Construction Project Manager, Endelevu Designs, Kenya | Sustainable Design & Construction Services | Kenya |
29 | Charles Malek | Global Director, Structural & Bridge Engineering, Dar Al Handasah (DAR) | Bridge Engineering; Building Structures; 3D Printing | (based in Lebanon) |
30 | Hussein Mohammed | Professor of Civil Engineering, Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria | Engineering Materials; Operational & Performance Evaluation of Engineering Structures | Nigeria |
31 | Aramide Adeyoye | Chief Executive Officer, ABM Infrastructure Advisory | Infrastructure Planning; Engineering Procurement & Construction | Nigeria |
32 | Katelula Kaswaga | Bridge Engineer, Yoosh | Bridge Engineering | Tanzania |
33 | Vishal Haripersad | Managing Director, Knight Piésold Southern Africa | Engineering (Mining & Infrastructure) | South Africa |
34 | Rizwan Qadri | Managing Director, Riz Consulting Services Limited | Infrastructure & Consulting | Tanzania |
35 | Brighton Mapfumo | Project Manager, Seychelles Infrastructure Agency | Project Management & Quantity Surveying | Seychelles |
36 | Charles Gavamukulya | Managing Director (Contracts and Commercial Lead), CG Engineering Consults | Construction Law & Dispute Resolution | Uganda |
37 | Concepter Ouma | Quantity Surveyor | Quantity Surveying | Kenya |
38 | John Beecroft | Chief Executive Officer, Tetramanor | Finance; Contracting | Nigeria |
39 | Effie Mpakati-Gama | Vice-Chancellow, University of Hebron, Malawi; Consultant, Sustainable Construction, Malawi | Sustainability; Green Construction | Malawi |
40 | Marzia Traverso | Professor of Sustainability in Civil Engineering; Co-founder, Circular SRL | Sustainability; Green Construction | (based in Germany) |
41 | Kahilu Kajimo-Shakantu | Department Head, Quantity Survey & Construction Management, University of the Free State | Construction | South Africa |
42 | Abimbola Windapo | Deputy Dean, University of Cape Town | Construction | South Africa / Nigeria |
43 | Olusegun Ijalana | Senior Architect / Project Manager, Seychelles Infrastructure Agency | Architecture | Nigeria / Seychelles |
44 | Marde van Wyk | Private Markets Principal Consultant, 27four | Finance | South Africa |
45 | Elton Zingwevu | Chief Executive Officer, Excellentia Training Solutions | Insurance | South Africa |
46 | Femi Edun | Director, Frontier Capital Ltd | Project Structuring | Nigeria |
47 | Halima Kyari | Director, Access Bank PLC | Risk Management | Nigeria |
For inquiries, contact:
hello@constructafrica.com
About ConstructAfrica:
ConstructAfrica is the premier pan-African platform delivering actionable market intelligence, real-time project insights, and thought-leadership across the continent's construction and infrastructure sectors. Through its editorial content, data products, webinars, events, and advisory engagements, ConstructAfrica supports stakeholders in navigating Africa's dynamic built-environment landscape.
For more information, visit https://ConstructAfrica.com/
African Development Bank Group-funded fisheries programme impacts two million people, drives economic transformation in 16 Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries
A regional initiative that has overhauled aquatic resource management and boosted cross-border fish trade is now improving the lives of nearly three million people across Southern Africa —raising fish production, consumption, and incomes.
The Program for Improving Fisheries Governance and Blue Economy Trade Corridors (PROFISHBLUE) (https://apo-opa.co/3Y8pOgL) has generated cross-border trade volumes exceeding 500,000 tonnes over the past four years, creating employment, strengthening food security, and building climate resilience across 16 SADC member states.
The initiative has built capacity for over 250,000 beneficiaries across seven African Development Fund (ADF) countries (Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe) through various trainings, knowledge transfer programs, fish quality assurance equipment and tools, and refrigerated transport vehicles.
Training covered multiple areas, including fish value chain and post-harvest utilisation, business development and SME incubation, genetic improvement programs for endemic tilapia species, common standards and policy harmonization in collaboration with bureaus of standards and customs officers, nutrition and fish product development, and blue economy investment planning and financing mechanisms.
Further support was provided for fish stock assessments on transboundary lakes, vessel monitoring systems to deter illegal fishing, and training vessel inspection and fish catch statistics.
On World Fisheries Day on 21 November, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the African Development Bank Group, and strategic partners gathered in Gaborone to celebrate these achievements and showcase how the project has transformed fish value chains and local consumer markets since its inception in 2022.
The $9.2 million grant initiative, funded through the African Development Bank's ADF 15, has successfully facilitated regional integration and economic development by improving fisheries governance and establishing sustainable blue economy trade corridors.
This year's World Fisheries Day aligned closely with PROFISHBLUE's multi-level governance and community-centered approach and measurable impact on fisheries communities throughout Southern Africa.
The gathering brought together government officials, development partners, private-sector representatives, and civil society stakeholders to chart a path forward for sustainable fisheries development in the region.
Transformative Impact Across the Region
"We are indebted to the African Development Bank Group for providing funding to implement this project within the Blue Economy space," said Director Domingos Gove on behalf of Angele Makombo Ntumba, SADC Deputy Secretary for Regional Integration. "This support has demonstrated our capacity to improve aquatic food systems for the benefit of over 380 million people in the region."
The project has successfully demonstrated that fishery resources can be managed sustainably, equitably, and resiliently in the face of climate change and external shocks.
"The PROFISHBLUE project has shown best practices in regional integration of blue economy trade corridors and cross-border fish trade," stated Neeraj Vij, African Development Bank's Regional Sector Manager for Feed Africa Operations for Southern Africa. "About 3 billion people rely on global supply chains for aquatic-sourced food, contributing $300 billion annually to the global economy. This project demonstrates how strategic investment in fisheries governance can create competitive value chains that provide jobs and livelihoods while eradicating extreme poverty, especially in rural areas."
Vij reaffirmed the African Development Bank Group's commitment to expanding support for blue economy initiatives across SADC Member States.
Key implementing partners include the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF), WorldFish, and the African Organization for Standardization (ARSO).
Director of Fisheries and Apiculture in Botswana's Ministry of Lands and Agriculture, Kagisanyo Bedi, commended the initiative for creating a crucial platform for learning and exchange of ideas among regional stakeholders in the region.
The celebration featured testimonials from women in fisheries who shared how the project has enhanced their livelihoods, underscoring the project's inclusive development approach.
"We embarked on an investment journey that few smallholder entrepreneurs would consider piloting technology in seaweed farming. We appreciate the opportunity..." said Hifadhi Hai, a project participant from Tanzania.
"This was echoed by a fish processor, Tamala Mtambo of the Twiyule Fish Cooperative, Malawi: "ProFishBlue supported us to turn fish processing into progress."
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Development Bank Group (AfDB).Media Contact:
Emeka Anuforo
Communication and External Relations Department
media@afdb.org
About the African Development Bank Group:
The African Development Bank Group is Africa's premier development finance institution. It comprises three distinct entities: the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Development Fund (ADF) and the Nigeria Trust Fund (NTF). On the ground in 41 African countries with an external office in Japan, the Bank contributes to the economic development and the social progress of its 54 regional member states. For more information: www.AfDB.org