Gamechangers: Growing An Economic Revolution

Africa is a global leader in mobile money, constantly innovating financial services in order to reach millions of customers who otherwise have no access to banking. Join the World Affairs Council and Mercy Corps Country Director Christabell Makokha for a conversation on how breakthrough digital technology has been disrupting cycles of famine and poverty for over a million small and family-run farms throughout Sub-Saharan Africa.

This program is in partnership with the Mercy Corps. Learn more about the Mercy Corps Agrifin Accelerate Program here.

About the Speaker:

Christabell Makokha is the Country Director for Mercy Corps’ AgriFin Accelerate (AFA) program in Zambia and currently doubling as the AgriFin Global Strategy Lead. She has experience in strategy advisory and consulting having worked with clients in the private sector as well as in development; previous clients have included government and educational institutions, multi-lateral donors, pharmaceutical companies, and investors in the Agriculture, Global Health, and Financial Inclusion sectors. She has vast experience in performing market research and analytics to inform strategy, product development, and impact evaluation.

Prior to joining AFA, Christabell was a Project Manager at Dalberg Global Development Advisor, based in the Nairobi office. As a project manager, Christabell led teams to deliver high quality outputs for Dalberg’s clients. In the lifecycle of a project, Christabellserved as the liaison between Dalberg and the client, ensuring that each project is successful from idea to execution. She also managed teams across multiple work streams for any given project.

Christabell also worked as a Consultant at Trinity Partners, a global life sciences consulting firm based in Boston, Massachusetts. During her tenure at Trinity she worked with clients in the pharmaceutical, biotech, and medical devices industries, in different functions, including corporate strategy, licensing and acquisition, brand and launch planning, and market analytics.

Christabell holds AB and BE degrees in Biomedical Engineering from Dartmouth College, US.

About the Moderator:
Sara Veltkamp is an account manager with Minerva Strategies, a consultancy that uses smart communication to inspire action and create positive change. Minerva specializes in strategic communication support for clients working in international development and global health. Prior to Minerva, Sara lived and worked in Damascus, Syria, teaching English to Iraqi refugees and supporting a local microfinance organization providing business loans to unemployed youth.

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