Lydia Charles Moyo, a 28-year-old Tanzanian, a passionate social change maker and communication strategist having worked in International non-government organizations, local organizations and private sector in a range of roles such as communications, ASRHR consultancy, leadership and management. She is currently working to achieve financial resilience and influence adolescents’ and young women’s sexual and reproductive health outcomes. Lydia is the Founder and Executive Director of Her Initiative, a non-government organization that works with and for young women and girls to break the circle of poverty and achieve financial resilience among girls and young women in Tanzania through programs tailored to suite todays’ social and entrepreneurial needs. Ms. Moyo is also an innovator, having championed the development of the first swahili online learning platform for women in Tanzania named ‘Panda Digital’ which provides a learning opportunity for young female entrepreneurs at their own pace and time with ambitions to expand in the region in the future.
Lydia has over 8 years of experience working in international development and media, including engagements with Femina HIP as the leader of the Girl Power team, TV and radio programs producer and broadcast journalist at EFM, DTV and Clouds Media Group. Lydia has broadcasted youth and women TV and radio programs such as Ndoto Kubwa, Ruka Juu, Fema TV and radio shows With proven experience in communications .Lydia has led and coordinated communications particularly media and social media for menstrual hygiene management coalition during International menstrual hygiene Day. Lydia is also well experienced in public speaking, she has moderated and facilitated events and panels focusing on gender equality, entrepreneurship and business, Digital and innovation AWLN launching event-UN Women Tanzania, Ajenda ya Msichana - Msichana Initiative(2018), Malkia wa Nguvu –Clouds media(2017), International Day of the Girl – WILDAF, Femina Hip youth conference(2017-2018) , Kisa program by Africaid Arusha (2017) and menstrual hygiene Day –Menstrual hygiene management coalition (2018,2019, 2021).
She is particularly effective in designing and influencing Social Behaviour Changing Communication and programs and media strategies, with additional expertise in project management, training and resource mobilization.
Lydia is part of the Goalkeepers community convened by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Gender Equality Community by ONE, the Global Peace Women Leadership Academy (GPWLA), Africa Women leadership Network (AWLN), the East Africa Young Women leaders Mentorship Initiative (EAYWLMI) and Dada Rise Fellowship convened by Akili Dada and Country representative for Pan-African Tech Foundation (PATF). She has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Public Relations and advertising from the University of Dar es Salaam
Anna Meela Kulaya has spent almost twenty years serving her community through her work in the legal sector, gaining experience in networking and coalition building, advocacy, governance, law, gender, and development. Ms. Kulaya graduated with a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Dar es Salaam in 2000 before continuing her education and receiving a diploma in Human Rights and Humanitarian Law from the Raoul Wallenberg Institute in Lund – Sweden, an international diploma in Leadership Development from St. Francis Xavier – Coady Institute Canada, and a Master in Migration and Refugee Laws from the University of Dar es Salaam. Ms. Kulaya’s began working for Women in Law and Development in Africa (WiLDAF) in 2001 as a legal officer then she subsequently held a variety of positions with WiLDAF which include Program Officer Legal Education and Training, Program Officer Advocacy, and Program Officer for Monitoring and Evaluation. Now, she is the National Coordinator of WiLDAF Tanzania, a supervisory role, where she manages a team of 14 people . Ms. Kulaya was the chairperson of Legal Aid Committee of the Tanganyika Law Society from 2014 to 2016. She presently serves a board member of a network for legal aid providers (TANLAP). She is also a Board Chairperson of TANGO, an association of more than 100 Civil Society Organizations. Ms. Kulaya coordinated the 16 Days of Activism against GBV in Tanzania, now a national movement. She is also a member of the Committee of GBV Multi-Sectoral coordinated by the Ministry of Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly, and Children.
is an expert in economics, finance and taxation, particularly international tax and transfer pricing. As a consultant, he has worked in Tanzania and Switzerland, advising corporate clients on transfer pricing, value chain strategy and taxation. He has in-depth understanding and appreciation of value chains and how tax functions align with broader organizational strategies. His experience combines compliance as well as consulting, planning and dispute resolution.
Samwel has advised some of the world’s biggest multinationals and has worked with tax authorities, to resolve tax disputes and agreeing on private rulings/APAs. He produces leadership thought materials regularly and has published articles, conducted trainings and have spoken in various professional and business associations such as ACCA, CPA (T), CEO’s Roundtable, the British and European Union Business Groups.
Currently, Samwel is a senior manager at Deloitte Consulting Tanzania. A certified chartered accountant, he holds a Master’s Degree from SOAS, University of London and a Bachelor degree in Accounting and Finance from Mzumbe University. He is also a Certified Public Accountant (T) and Member of Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA-UK). He is a registered tax consultant and a frequent thought leadership contributor in the areas of economics and taxation and has had his articles published in Tanzania’s leading newspapers.
For a long time, he has been involved with youth activism in Tanzania, serving leadership roles in a few organisations such as Youth of the United Nations of Tanzania where he served as its national Treasurer. He is also the founder and first president of the Tanzanian Association of Accounting, Auditing and Finance Students.
He has a passion for financial literacy, particularly in building financial understanding and resilience for young people. To that end, he conducts personal finance trainings and workshops to equip young people with the necessary skills they need to manage their finances well.
Andrew Mahiga is a Tanzanian development professional who is currently the Director of Policy, Research, Advocacy & Lobbying at the Tanzania Private Sector Foundation (TPSF). Both his professional and personal background has been focused on policy engagement and formulation around the areas of improving the business environment, improvements in access to and the quality of education and business and entrepreneurship skills development in Tanzania. Andrew is an active social commentator and one of the thought leaders in Tanzania in the areas of youth empowerment, civic engagement, business development and the innovation ecosystem as a whole. He holds a MSc. in Public Policy & Management from SOAS, University of London and a B.S. in International Studies from The City College of New York (CUNY).
Carol Ndosi started off as a media personality with over 7 years’ media experience.In 2007, she became a freelance events planner and manager, where she then joined Executive Solutions Ltd, one of the TOP Tanzanian PR Agencies for three years’ as the Head of Events,PR and Government Relations. In 2011, Carol launched her own event management company. The company, Alta Vista Events, is the sole proprietor of the largest barbecue festival in East and Central Africa, The Nyama Choma Festival. The platform has encouraged and promoted entrepreneurship and inclusion of SMEs and local brands giving them visibility to the masses in thousands and providing opportunities for employment throughout the value chain. Carol was chosen for the Young African Leaders Initiative -Mandela Washington Fellowship Program Cohort 2016, under Business and Entrepreneurship Track at the University of Texas in Austin where she completed the course. In 2017, she joined Tanzania Data Lab a project under MCC and PEPFAR as the project manager. Turned into a data enthusiast during her tenure at the Tanzania Data Lab as Project Manager, she has since been on several panels advocating for data literacy, digital literacy and digital citizenship, open access, open data and Internet freedom. Carol is the Co-Founder of a digital solution called KilimoUza, an application and website connecting farmers through SMS. She has also co-founded The Launch Pad Tanzania, which is a professional and personal development hub, capitalizing on development of the human capital and focusing on youth and women empowerment through skills development and economic empowerment programs. Carol is a Global Goals Champion with the United Nations Tanzania and a public influencer and activist of freedom of speech, democracy. She uses her platforms to speak about collective responsibility, civic education and active citizenship. Carol was voted and chosen as a ‘Woman of Influence’ for Malkia Wa Nguvu Awards 2018. She was also listed among 25 young emerging female leaders by Amazons Watch Magazine in 2017. She is a facilitator, moderator and speaker on Gender, Youth, Development And ICT for Development. She serves as a board director on the Kilimanjaro Project and the Africa Youth Leadership Advisory Board with African Leadership Institute.
Vanessa currently serves as the CEO at the Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete Foundation, with a Masters degree in Epidemiology and Biostatistics and 8 years hands-on experience working in development, program management and youth leadership. Vanessa has experience working for national and international civil society organizations, in Tanzania and in Switzerland. Vanessa promotes collaboration, and is driven by community led change that from promotes sustainable and inclusive development.
He is an experienced and successful business leader with over 12 years’ experience cutting across
Consulting, real estate and manufacturing industries in both the public and private sector. He has a strong finance background and a proven track record developing and leading winning teams including his times working for the leading sugar and cigarette manufacturers in Tanzania.
Emmanuel is currently the Finance Director at Coca-Cola Kwanza Limited playing a critical role in building and delivering the strategic plan while leading the finance team of 38 performing individuals. He is a member of ACCA and registered tax consultant with TRA
Catherine is a seasoned Finance and Risk professional with over 11 years of progressive and diversified experience in both private and public sector across Eastern and Southern Africa. She is a demonstrated successful leader who has the ability to manage across the whole balanced scorecard within a business.
Catherine’s experience cuts across financial management and compliance, risk management, stakeholder management, corporate governance, strategy development and oversight, operations management, business process improvement, leading teams, project management, team building and organizational development.
She is a certified fraud examiner and has a strong academic background of finance having graduated in 2011 from Mzumbe University with a Bachelor of Accounting in Business Accounting and Finance and later on in 2022, pursuing a master’s in business administration at Eastern and Southern African Management Institute.
Catherine is currently overseeing finance and operations at Financial Sector Deepening Trust (FSDT). Prior to FSDT, she worked as a Senior Manager, Risk Advisory at Deloitte Consulting Limited. At FSDT, she is currently responsible for all administrative, operational, and contractual aspects of the trust with oversight of finance, compliance, grants management, procurement, project delivery, program operations, talent management, and human resources. She is also responsible for ensuring that FSDT’s governance functions run smoothly, with appropriate communication between the board and management.