Yale Club of Ghana Strategic Planning Forum & Symposium - Eventbrite

Yale Club of Ghana Strategic Planning Forum & Symposium - Eventbrite

Yale Afro-American Cultural Center & Association of Yale Alumni

The Afro-American Cultural Center at Yale and The Association of Yale Alumni

Strategic Planning Forum: Ghana

July 12-13, 2012

Accra, Ghana

Africa’s resources are abundant, its capacity for human and professional development is immense, and its movement toward more democratic political institutions is as strong as it has ever been.  In this context, Africa’s diaspora is well positioned to engage in African development projects in significant ways. But the continent also faces numerous challenges –  including the stark aftermaths of recent civil wars, the greatest number of refugees and human displacements in the world, and declining public health systems leading to growing numbers of preventable deaths.  Between the complexities of Africa’s socio-economic landscapes and the realities of its promise and growth, what role could Yale graduates play? How might they collaborate with or help create sustainable programs?  What should be the key priorities for a Yale Club in Ghana? What are the areas of significant need and possible engagement? This two-day meeting will bring together a range of current and past Yale graduates as well as friends of Yale to set an agenda for future engagement with Ghana, West Africa and beyond.

Day1 – Yale Alumni/Students and invited guest – no charge

Midindi Hotel, 15 First Circular Road, East Cantonments, Accra

Strategic Planning Workshop (Summarized Schedule)
9-10:15	Welcome & Introductions Nicholas Roman Lewis’93, Sr. Director Shared Interest Groups Rodney Cohen, Assistant Dean Yale College, Director of the Afro-American Cultural Center At Yale Overview of AYA global programming. Development of the Yale Club of Ghana
10:15-10:30	Break
10:30-11:30	Creating Sustainable Programs Ivy Onyeador’11, Secretary, Yale Black Alumni Association, Co-Founder of Higher Education Initiative
12:00-1:30	Lunch
1:30-2:30	Presentation of Student Programs Dean Rodney Cohen Efe Chantal Ghaney’13
2:30-3:30	Presentation of Ghanaian Partnership Opportunities: TBA
3:30-4:30	Reception, Hosted by H.E. Dr. Erieka Bennett, Head of Mission, Diaspora African Forum

Day 2 – Open to the public - USD$30

Mövenpick Hotel, Independence Ave., Ridge-PMB CT 343, Cantonment, Accra

Yale in Ghana Symposium
1-1:10	Welcome & Introductions
1:10-2:10	West African Alumni Panel sponsored by the Yale Black Alumni Association: “Creating Connections & Building Partnerships in the African Diaspora” This panel features alumni, students and industry leaders from several countries who will share their perspectives on the way Yale alumni can work with African institutions to build on the strengths of the continent and support current student and alumni interests in and desire to engage with Africa and Africans.
2:20-3:10	The Sylvia Ardyn Boone Lecture: U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Niger, Bisa Williams will present the inaguaral lecture in honor of the legacy of one of Yale's most esteemed professors.
3:10-4:30	Networking Reception

Scheduled Panelist & Speaker Bios

additional Speakers TBA

	Nene Drolor Bosso Adamtey I - Traditional Ruler, Business Leader (Chairman of First Banc, TV3 and Media General), Educator, Humanitarian, Historian and Minister. His Majesty, Drolor Bosso Adamtey I, also known as Dr. Kingsley Fletcher, is Suapolor of the Se (Shai) Traditional Area in Ghana. His influence impacts millions around the globe. He has connected and advanced many in the Diaspora while also promoting the dignity of Africa abroad. In the late 1990s, Nene Drolor Bosso Adamtey I served as Special Advisor to the Assistant Secretary General and Director of the United Nations Development Program-Africa. He is recognized as a thought leader and much respected advisor on global economic trends and forecasting. His Majesty consults in the following areas: international relations, resource mobilization, conflict resolution, social justice, successful leadership in today’s marketplace, and community and social development. He is astute in branding and company imaging, having negotiated such processes on behalf of multiple large corporations. His leadership, wisdom, counsel and spiritual insight are often sought after by global leaders. He is credited with the phrase “Africa needs partnerships, not handouts.” His Majesty is Chairman of the Africa Leadership Congress, a strong action committee, which consists of a think tank. Nene Drolor Bosso Adamtey I is also Founder of Life for Africa, a humanitarian organization. Its mission is to aid with educational assistance for youth, healthcare improvements, provision of shelter, food and clothing for areas devastated by war, natural disasters and economic hardship, construction of wells for access to healthy drinking water and technology infrastructure. Life for Africa distributes educational materials and resources as well as sources out and donates pharmaceuticals, medical equipment and supplies.
	Emelia Arthur, Yale World Fellow, Deputy Regional Minister, Western Regional Coordinating Council: TBA
	H.E. Dr. Erieka Bennett has traveled, worked and lived in Africa for over 35 years.   As the Convening Founder and Head of Mission of the (AU) African Diaspora Forum, The first and only diplomatic embassy in the world dealing specifically with the Diaspora issues. The role of the Mission is to link Diaspora Africans and their talents to support the development of Africa.  Dr. Bennett has been a valuable asset to the African Union’s development of Diaspora issues.  Dr. Bennett was at the forefront of the development of AGOA and was an advisor to the architects of NEPAD. Also a selected member of the first AU ECOSSOC. Dr. Bennett’s strong love for the Africa Woman was given concrete expression in March 2004 when she was one of the supporters of African Woman 2004 which produced the Abuja Accords, the historic document on the Aspirations of the African Woman which was developed at the first ever African Woman’s conference held in Abuja, Nigeria, March 2004.  This document is being submitted to Beijing plus ten for forum development and adoption as a major voice for the African woman at the United Nations Forum for women. She was elected as Africa Women 2004” in the category of mentoring. Dr. Bennett’s devotion to her work as a bridge between the Diaspora and Africa, and her work in promoting Diaspora Affairs, has also earned her quite a number of awards, such as the African Global Leadership Award in London in November 2007, the Trumpet Awards in the United States of America in September 2009, as well as the Pan African Women of Excellence Awards in South Africa in October, 2009.  Recently she received the Visionary Leadership Award 2010 in Washington, D.C.
	Efe Chantal Ghanney ’13 is a Senior at Yale University and an alumnus of Ghana International School. A double major in Chemistry and French as well as a premed student, Ms.Ghanney’s career goal is to make an impact on the Ghanaian Health System. At Yale, she has served as the Director of Operations for the Yale Association for African Peace and Development (YAAPD), an organization that put together the maiden African Conference at Yale University. Additionally, she co-led a service trip to an orphanage in Lomé, Togo, for a group of Yale University Students. Being a staunch believer of the ability of those in the Diaspora to aid in the development of the continent, she began a Medical Supplies Drive gathering excess medical supplies from Yale-New Haven Hospital and donating them to the Kordiabe St. Patrick Clinic. Ms. Ghanney is proudly Ghanaian but considers herself a citizen of the world having lived in the UK, US, France and Ghana.  Her love for the continent and drive to encourage further progress constantly shapes her life trajectory.
	Ken Ofori-Atta ’88 M.B.A. is Chairman of Databank and its Co-founder. He was the Executive Chairman from 1990 until his retirement on February 14, 2012. Databank has been awarded numerous professional, social and leadership awards during his incumbency including being awarded the 2007 Most Respected Company in Ghana. Ken is a director of two publicly listed companies – Enterprise Group Ltd and Trust Bank Ltd of The Gambia of which he is Chairman. He is a Director at the International Bank of Liberia and is also a Board Member of the Acumen Fund, a global Private Equity Social Investment Fund and Chairman of AgriFund Manager Ltd a US30m private equity for SME agribusiness in Africa.Ken has keen interest in education. He is on the Boards of New York University in Ghana, Central University College, University College of Agriculture and Environmental Studies. He is also Chairman of the College of Agriculture and Consumer Science of the University of Ghana; and a member of the President’s Council on International Activities of Yale University. He is Co-founder of the Africa Leadership Initiative of the Aspen Global Leadership Network and a Henry Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute.Prior to co-founding Databank, Ken worked at Morgan Stanley and Salomon Brothers on Wall Street in New York. Ken went to Achimota School in Accra, Ghana; he has a BA in Economics from Columbia University in New York and an MBA from the Yale School of Management. Ken was honoured as a Donaldson Fellow at Yale University and a John Jay fellow at Columbia University. He was twice honoured by PWC Ghana as one of the Most Respected CEOs in Ghana. Ken is a committed Christian. He is married to Dr. Angela Ofori-Atta (a Clinical Psychologist at the University of Ghana Medical School). They have three children and live in Accra.
	Jeannine B. Scott ’85 M.A. is the President of the U.S. – Angola Chamber of Commerce and Founder & Principal of America to Africa Consulting (A2A), LLC. She also serves as a member of the executive team of GB Energie, LLC.  Ms. Scott brings nearly 30 years of experience in the field of international development, spanning the private, non-profit, multi-lateral agency and US government sectors, both domestically and globally. She has traveled to and/or worked in nearly 40 countries in Africa, and has worked with numerous private and public organizations in Europe, Africa, Asia and Latin America. Principle amongst Ms. Scott’s activities is brokering linkages between American and African businesses, with a view to enhancing commercial opportunities between companies in the US and in African nations.  She also provides linkages for capacity building and management training programs for African SMEs seeking to reach the next stage in business. Previously, Ms. Scott served as Senior Vice President of Africare (2003- 2010) where she oversaw operations of over $200 million, in 24 African countries, as well as its offices in Europe and Canada. She formulated and directed Africare’s strategic orientation and helped to triple its annual programmatic growth between 2004-2009 to over $80 million/year at the time of her departure.
	Bisa Williams ’76 U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Niger is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service of the U.S. Department of State.  In Washington, she has served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs and Coordinator for Cuban Affairs.  Other stateside assignments include Director for International Organizations at the National Security Council, Special Assistant to the Secretary of State, Advisor to the U.S. Mission to the United Nations in New York, Special Assistant to the Coordinator of Assistance to the Newly Independent States of the former Soviet Union, Country Director for Sierra Leone and Cape Verde and Deputy Country Director for Liberia.  She has served overseas in Mauritius, France, Panama, and Guinea.                           Ambassador Williams is a graduate of the National War College of the National Defense University in Washington, D.C., the University of California, Los Angeles, and Yale College.  She speaks French, Spanish, and Portuguese.  She has one adult son, Michael.
	The late Sylvia Ardyn Boone ’79 Ph.D. was among the African American expatriates who worked in Ghana 50 years ago where she was befriended by W.E.B. Du Bois, Malcolm X, Maya Angelou and even Kwame Nkrumah.   Her exposure to such Africa-centered thinkers informed her own research and interpretation of history.  After earning her PhD with distinction at Yale with her dissertation, “Sowo Art in Sierra Leone: The Mind and Power of Woman on the Plane of the Aesthetic Discipline,” Boone was invited to join the faculty and eventually became the first woman of color to be tenured in 1988. As the originator and leading scholar of ideas and ideals of beauty in African art and on how those ideals translated to people everywhere, she consulted and lectured extensively, including presentations at NYC’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African Art, and as a Phi Beta Kappa Visiting Scholar and presenter at international conferences.

 Since the 1960s, the Afro-American Cultural Center at Yale (the House) has built understanding of and dialogue about the complex cultural, intellectual, and social backgrounds of members from the African American community and Diaspora, by bringing together undergraduate, graduate and professional students; along with faculty, administrators, staff, alumni and members of the New Haven community. As a place for specialized educational opportunities and leadership development, the House seeks to create a campus atmosphere that fosters deep knowledge and respect for African, Afro-Caribbean and African American history, politics, and culture.