Our Team

Amanda Opara recently obtained an MSc in Law and Finance from the University of Oxford as a Mastercard Foundation and Africa Oxford Initiative Scholar.

Before Oxford, Amanda was a senior associate at G. Elias, a leading Nigerian business law firm, where she led its banking and finance practice and, among others, advised on development financings and impact investments across Africa. She (and her work) has been recognised by several reputable directories such as the International Financial Law Review (IFLR) 1000 and Legal 500.

Amanda is currently an Operations and Impact Administration Fellow in the Office of the Chief Operating Officer at AVPA. Her role involves supporting AVPA’s operational strategy, governance administration, and impact workflows. This will include playing a key part in strengthening AVPA’s internal processes, legal and partnership compliance, and system documentation, as well as contributing research and insights to inform AVPA’s operational scale-up.

Bukola Oloyede is a Legal & Financial Administration Fellow at AVPA and a graduate of the University of Oxford, where she completed a Master’s degree in Law. Her work sits at the intersection of law, finance, and development, with a focus on how sound legal and regulatory frameworks can enable impact investing and financial innovation across Africa.

At Oxford, Bukola served as a Research Associate with the Oxford Sustainable Finance Students Society, where she contributed to projects and discussions on the role of finance in advancing sustainability. She began her professional career as an Associate at Olaniwun Ajayi LP, West Africa’s largest full-service law firm, where she advised on high-value cross-border transactions.

Through the AVPA Fellowship, Bukola is committed to leveraging her legal and financial knowledge to strengthen governance structures, support the effective deployment of impact capital, and contribute to the growth of Africa’s development ecosystem. She earned her first degree in Law from Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria, and is qualified to practice as a lawyer in Nigeria.

Chinedu has an extensive background in planning and managing cross-functional business operations and projects ranging from oil and gas services, media & public relations, property brokerage, management consultation, team building, professional development, strategic implementation, and company collaboration.

She has most recently been functioning in a similar role in a different sector, as Secretary for the Organization for Technology Advancement of Cold Chain in West Africa (OTACCWA) a multi-sectoral group of professionals, companies and organizations in Nigeria and ECOWAS countries that collaborate to advance cold chain supply of perishable commodities and products, medicines and vaccines.

In this role she has had the responsibility of administering the membership database and executing the member management strategy towards the organisation’s growth and sustainability. Chinedu has a Bachelors’ degree in Political Science from the University of Lagos.

Dr. Frank Aswani has extensive private and social sector experience. His previousroles including 14 years in Healthcare with Eli Lilly where he worked in Kenya, England, Switzerland and South Africa.

His last role at Lilly was the Sales Director for South Africa and Regional Director for Sub Sahara Africa where he managed over 25 countries in Anglo Phone and Luso-phone Sub Sahara Africa. His other stints included being the Vice President and Director of Strategic Relations at African Leadership Academy (ALA) in Johannesburg, the African Regional Director with ARK (Absolute Return for Kids) and also spent time running his own consultancy in Innovation.

Frank is a visiting faculty at the University of Oxford Saïd Business School social finance and impact investing programs. He is also a member of the Investment committee of the MasterCard Foundation Africa Growth Fund, advisory board member of the Oryx Fund of Funds and the founder and host of Afropact Podcast series, a podcast showcasing stories of African Impact by highlighting African solutions to African problems. Frank is a passionate pan-African and perennial Afro-optimist who believes that we Africans should be at the forefront of solving our own problems.

Frank holds a Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of Nairobi and an MBA from GIBS (Gordon Institute of Business Studies), University of Pretoria, South Africa.

Dr. Shadrack Opon is a highly trained health systems strengthening and health programmes manager, with extensive experience in managing global healthcare programmes for international organizations and development partners.  He is a youth and mental health advocate and is passionate about strengthening health systems, particularly health financing.

Dr. Opon joins AVPA as a Programme Manager – Healthcare. Previously, he was the Director of Programmes at Pamela Steele Associates, where he led the design and delivery of multiple programmes. He also served as a Senior Technical Advisor for Health Systems Strengthening at Amref Health Africa, while leading the department of Health Systems at Amref International University. Prior to this, Dr. Opon worked with Africa Health Business (AHB) as a Senior Project Manager where he provided health market insights and technical guidance on innovative health financing mechanisms to international health investors. He has also been a Lecturer at Kenya Methodist University, Mount Kenya University, and Maseno University where he taught and published articles on viable health reforms.

Dr. Opon has PhD and master’s degrees in health systems management both from Kenya Methodist University, and a bachelor’s degree in health services management from Kenyatta University.

Erick Macharia is a Communications Associate at AVPA. He has a background in Journalism, Mass Communication, and Media Studies. At AVPA, he supports strategic communications across the Pan-African network. Based in Nairobi, Erick leads content creation, digital engagement, and event communications to amplify AVPA’s mission of catalyzing social investment in Africa.

He manages newsletters, social media growth, media outreach, and virtual convenings, ensuring clear and impactful storytelling across AVPA’s regional hubs. Passionate about leveraging communication for social impact, Erick is committed to amplifying African-led solutions that drive sustainable development across the continent.

Inez Wakungwi is a Membership & Partnerships Associate at AVPA, where she contributes to building a new generation of African impact investors. AVPA focuses on mobilizing and deploying capital to scale impactful initiatives across the continent.

Inez’s commitment to social impact and her role in the AVPA demonstrate her dedication to creating positive change in Africa.

Previously, Inez worked at Pangea Accelerator and the Royal United Services Institute. Her expertise lies in impact investing, social entrepreneurship, and fostering sustainable development across Africa.

Nasri Adam is a highly seasoned professional with a rich background in the development sector. Prior to her current role at AVPA, Nasri held a pivotal position at the African Philanthropy Forum where she served as the Regional Programs Lead.

Her career also features a decade-long commitment to The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award Foundation, where she played a key role in leading Global Compliance and Quality Assurance, while actively supporting Global Programmes.

Nasri, a native of Kenya, is currently based in Nairobi, Kenya, and holds an LLB in Law from the University of Nairobi.

Mr. Mutisya, is a Program Manager, Private Sector Development Specialist, Policy Advisor, Delivery, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning expert with over 10 years’ experience across public, non-profit and private sectors.

He previously supported the Council of Governors in conception of Maarifa Centre , the knowledge sharing platform for all the 47 Counties in Kenya. In 2018, The centre was awarded in the Best Innovation in Service Delivery Category during the African Public Service Day and has been featured by the World Bank as the first award-winning platform which collates, shares and promotes home grown innovations.

Mr. Mutisya is an accredited Trainer of Trainees with the ICR Facility for women’s economic empowerment training (BER4WEE) to apply a gender lens in policy Dialogues (PPDs) in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries. He is enhancing the AVPA Pan African Knowledge Sharing and Learning Centre offerings, peer to peer learning to enhance the critical aspects in the funding and investment landscape of SMSEs in the African continent in various sectors and contributing to delivery, monitoring, evaluation and learning for impact story telling.

Susan Ngatia holds a Bachelor’s degree in Project Management from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology and a Data Analytics certification from ALX. She currently works as an Impact Evaluation Associate at the African Venture Philanthropy Alliance, where she develops evaluation frameworks and assesses program impacts.

Susan has previous experience as an Administrator at Bosco General Contractors, a Research Assistant for the Cinch Gender Study, and a Project Manager at Ivolve Construction Company Limited. She is passionate about global project management, monitoring and evaluation, and stakeholder engagement.

Tafadzwa is a finance and accounting professional who is deeply passionate about Pan-African development.

In a career spanning over 13 years, he has had the privilege to work in social impact organisations in Zimbabwe, the United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan and most recently in South Africa (Letten Foundation, ATEMP and African Leadership Academy). Common to the roles he fulfilled was end-to-end management of the finance function, operationalising organisational strategy, cost control and efficiencies, treasury management as well as audit planning and execution.

Tafadzwa has a number of impressive qualifications under his belt which include: an MBA from Gordon Institute of Business Studies (GIBS), University of Pretoria, South Africa; a Bachelor of Commerce Degree in Finance from the National University of Science and Technology in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe; and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Applied Accounting from the Oxford Brooks University, London, UK.

Victor Mwanza is a project management enthusiast with expertise in project management, business consulting, strategic administrative and operational management, and events management.

Committed to supporting high-impact programs, projects, and initiatives that drive meaningful and lasting change in social and economic development.

Previously worked as a project manager at Africa Health Business (AHB), coordinating the planning and implementation of technical consulting projects aimed at providing innovative solutions to support the growth and prosperity of C-suite clients in Africa’s healthcare space.

He holds a Bachelor of Science in Entrepreneurship Studies from Moi University, combined with an additional training in project management offered by the Institute of Applied Project Management (IAPM).

Zinhle brings a keen eye for detail and a strong understanding of financial processes to the AVPA team. Their role focuses on streamlining financial operations, ensuring accurate financial reporting, and optimizing workflows to support the organization’s strategic goals. They collaborate closely with various departments to meet financial needs and drive organizational growth. With a solid foundation in finance, they are committed to enhancing efficiency, supporting strategic financial planning, and upholding the highest standards of financial integrity and operational excellence.

Zinhle holds a Certificate in Accounting Science from the University of South Africa and is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting Science with a focus on financial accounting. Prior to joining AVPA, they served as a Financial Administrator at the Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (DENOSA), gaining valuable experience in a membership-based organization and developing key professional skills.