Speakers

MOONSHOT 2025

We’re bringing together some of the most audacious thinkers and doers in African tech, working on everything from fintech to commerce, energy, Web3 and AI, telco, cloud and more.

Tobi Otokiti

VP. Product, Raenest

STARTUP FESTIVAL

With over a decade of experience, Tobi has shaped the future of financial and EduTech products across Africa, the US, Europe, and emerging markets. She’s worked at three unicorns – Flutterwave, Andela, and Interswitch, where she learned firsthand what it takes to build and scale products that truly make an impact. Now, as VP of Product at Raenest, she’s helping businesses and freelancers navigate the complexities of cross-border payments.

Beyond her role, she is the founder of ProductDive, Africa’s largest product management community. She has trained and mentored hundreds of product managers, many of whom now lead top tech companies. A SheWinsAfrica Awardee, World Bank Group (2024), Future Female Leader Awardee, IESE Business School (2024), and TechWomen Emerging Leader, U.S. Department of State (2022), Oluwatobi has built a legacy of impact, inspiring the next generation of product leaders.

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Tobi Otokiti

VP. Product, Raenest
Adama Gaye

Investment Manager, MEA, Orange Ventures

CREATIVE ECONOMY

As the Lead for Middle East and Africa at Orange Ventures, Adama Gaye plays a pivotal role in managing the corporate venture capital arm of Orange Group, which oversees €350 million in assets, including €50 million dedicated to the MEA region. By leveraging Orange Group’s expertise, networks, and capital on the continent, Orange Ventures accelerates the growth and expansion of businesses, propelling them towards global success. Adama has also worked within the United Nations organization in New York for the Mauritanian Ambassador and for Hubert Vedrine, the former Foreign Minister of France.

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Adama Gaye

Investment Manager, MEA, Orange Ventures
Eric Wainaina

General Manager, Africa, Conduit

FUTURE OF COMMERCE

Eric Wainaina is the General Manager, Africa for Conduit. He leads Conduit’s business development and expansion on the continent, helping businesses in Africa move money across borders more easily, quickly, and with lower fees. Before joining Conduit, Eric worked in a similar capacity at Caliza Technologies and previously had a stint working in a sovereign fund championing technology investments and projects in Eastern Africa.

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Eric Wainaina

General Manager, Africa, Conduit
Josephine Sarouk

Managing Director, Bayobab Nigeria (MTN Fiber Subsidiary)

BIG TECH/ENTERPRISE

Josephine Sarouk is the Managing Director of Bayobab Nigeria, an MTN Group company, where she leads strategy and operations to expand Nigeria’s digital and connectivity infrastructure. With over 20 years of leadership experience across technology companies in the UK and Nigeria, she has demonstrated excellence in driving business growth, market expansion, and digital transformation.

Since joining MTN in 2009, Josephine has held several strategic roles, including Senior Manager of Strategic Accounts and General Manager, Regional Operations (Lagos and South-West), where she spearheaded enterprise service growth and regional market development. As Managing Director of Bayobab Nigeria, she has led the company’s acquisition of a National Long-Distance Operator License, the fiberization of data centres nationwide, and the landing of the 2Africa Submarine Cable in Lagos — a milestone strengthening Nigeria’s digital economy.

A Harvard GMP and University of West London alumna, and a John Maxwell Certified Coach and Speaker, Josephine was named a 2024 Woman in Telecoms awardee at the World Communication Awards in the UK. Passionate about women’s leadership and education, she actively contributes to Women in Successful Careers (WISCAR) and supports initiatives advancing the girl child in Nigeria.

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Josephine Sarouk

Managing Director, Bayobab Nigeria (MTN Fiber Subsidiary)
Dan Herman

Innovation Policy Expert and Filmmaker

STARTUP FESTIVAL

Dan Herman is a Toronto-based innovation policy expert, lecturer, and independent filmmaker. His film projects include directing and producing Magnetic Cities, an 18-part documentary series on the most innovative and dynamic cities around the world for startups. Dan is a lecturer at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Toronto, where he teaches a class on the evolution of the global innovation economy and how startups from everywhere are competing and winning on the global stage.

Previously, Dan served as a senior policy advisor in the Government of Ontario’s Ministry of Economic Development and Innovation, and was the co-founder of the Centre for Digital Entrepreneurship and Economic Performance (DEEP Centre), a non-partisan think tank focused on the Canadian economy.

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Dan Herman

Innovation Policy Expert and Filmmaker
Victor Fatanmi

STARTUP FESTIVAL

Co-founder, FourthCanvas

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Victor Fatanmi

Director, Strategy, FourthCanvas
Hilda Moraa

CEO, Pezesha

FUTURE OF COMMERCE

Hilda Moraa is the Founder and CEO of Pezesha, a digital financial marketplace bridging access to affordable credit for underserved individuals and SMEs across Africa. An award-winning entrepreneur with over a decade of experience in fintech and innovation, she previously founded WezaTele, a pioneering mobility and supply chain solutions company that was successfully acquired in 2015. Before her entrepreneurial journey, Hilda was part of the founding team at iHub Research, one of Nairobi’s first innovation hubs, driving tech research and ecosystem growth. She is also the author of A Kenyan Startup Journey, sharing lessons from building and scaling ventures on the continent. Recognized among Quartz Africa’s Top 30 Innovators in 2018, Hilda has spoken on global stages, including delivering a keynote at the 2015 Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Nairobi alongside President Barack Obama.

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Hilda Moraa

CEO, Pezesha
Seyi Lasisi

Senior Staff Writer, The Culture Custodian

CREATIVE ECONOMY

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Seyi Lasisi

Senior Staff Writer, The Culture Custodian
Olu Oyinsan

Managing Director, Oui Capital

STARTUP FESTIVAL

Olu Oyinsan is a leading seed-stage investor and Managing Partner at Oui Capital, an early-stage venture capital firm backing high-growth technology startups in frontier markets. Olu began his career in commercial banking with Guaranty Trust Bank in Nigeria, later working as a consultant at Forrester, advising some of the world’s leading technology companies on products and processes, and as a relationship manager at Silicon Valley Bank, where he supported technology startups across all verticals in accessing debt, equity and mezzanine products.

Olu holds an MBA from Hult International Business School in Boston, with a concentration in finance and strategy. His experience is spread across credit risk, technology valuation, and venture capital. He is very passionate about financial technology, two-sided networks, and connectivity, having made and managed investments in several high-growth startups in Sub-Saharan Africa, including Paystack, MVX, and Tizeti.

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Olu Oyinsan

Managing Director, Oui Capital
Dumebi Iwuchukwu

Head of Design, Stears

STARTUP FESTIVAL

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Dumebi Iwuchukwu

Head of Design, Stears
Ayo Shonibare

Chief Marketing Officer, Roqqu

EMERGING TECH

Ayo Shonibare is the Chief Marketing Officer at Roqqu, a leading African crypto exchange and fintech platform enabling fast, affordable cross-border payments and access to digital assets.Ayo is is a results-driven Sales and Marketing leader with over 7 years of experience in strategic planning, sales and marketing, and team leadership, Ayo has built a reputation for driving growth through data-informed strategies and impactful execution. As Chief Marketing Oﬃcer, Ayo has successfully led teams, developed high-impact campaigns, and implemented KPI-driven strategies to optimize performance. His ability to analyze market trends, generate leads, and enhance customer engagement has

positioned him as a key driver of business success. Ayo holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Global Marketing from Next MBA, a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Brand Management and Customer Behaviour from the University of London, and a Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) in Marine Engineering from Rivers State University, Nigeria.

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Ayo Shonibare

Chief Marketing Officer, Roqqu
Chioma Ude

Founder, AFRIFF

STARTUP FESTIVAL

Chioma Ude, known as “The First Lady of African Media,” is the founder and executive director of AFRIFF (Africa International Film Festival), now Africa’s largest film festival with 30,000 participants annually. She has trained over 10,000 young people in film and television, offering free classes with global mentors to empower Africa’s next generation of creators. Cofounder of Envivo and Lavida Studios, Chioma launched the AFRIFF Film and Content Market in 2025, the first platform in West Africa connecting filmmakers, investors, buyers, and policymakers.
Through her ventures, she advances Africa’s cultural industries as engines of trade, innovation, and diplomacy.

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Chioma Ude

Founder, AFRIFF
Bashira Hassan

Senior Consultant, Africa Practice

GOVERNMENT, POLICY & REGULATION

Bashira is a Senior Consultant at Africa Practice, where she advises clients on policy, legislation, and political economy within the digital, creative, and innovation ecosystems. She helps ICT sector clients navigate complex regulatory environments, build impactful partnerships, and align with stakeholder priorities.

She has played a key role in shaping Nigeria’s technology and digital economy, contributing to the drafting of significant policies and regulations.

Prior to joining Africa Practice, Bashira was part of the Director-General’s Policy Team at NITDA, where she designed and implemented policies in line with global best practices. She also led initiatives within the Office for Nigeria Digital Innovation, leveraging regulatory tools and fostering collaboration to drive digital innovation across the country.

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Bashira Hassan

Senior Consultant, Africa Practice
Emmanuel Sohe (E.S.)

CEO, Cardtonic

EMERGING TECH

Emmanuel Sohe (E.S) is the CEO of The Tonic Technologies, the parent company of Cardtonic, a leading digital platform helping users in Nigeria and Ghana with alternative ways to make international purchases and payments Before joining Tonic Technologies, he had extensive experience consulting for local and international brands on big data and analytics, business strategy, and growth methodologies and frameworks.E.S. is passionate about building great products that solve real-world problems. Notably, the confounding problems in the African payments space are addressed using a combination of alternative methods, particularly cryptocurrency, virtual cards, and other digital assets.

He is a first-class graduate of Demography & Statistics from the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ife, and an MBA Essentials Alumnus of the London School of Economics and Political Science.

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Emmanuel Sohe (E.S.)

CEO, Cardtonic
Goodness Okpani

Chief Solutions Architect, Ethnos Cyber Limited

BIG TECH/ENTERPRISE

Goodness Okpani is the Chief Solutions Architect at Ethnos Cyber Limited, where he leads the technical delivery team in strategizing, designing, and implementing top-tier security solutions for multinational organizations across the finance, fintech, and IT sectors. With over a decade of experience, Goodness holds several prestigious cybersecurity certifications, including CISSP and AWS Security Specialty, among others.
In his current role at Ethnos, he oversees the strategic and technical delivery of security initiatives, providing guidance to business leads to ensure client satisfaction and successful project outcomes. His extensive expertise continues to drive innovative security solutions and contribute to the development of the cybersecurity ecosystem across West Africa.

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Goodness Okpani

Chief Solutions Architect, Ethnos Cyber Limited
Tomi Oduyemi

Growth Lead, Cardtonic

EMERGING TECH

Tomi Oduyemi is Part growth leader, part mentor, Tomi Oduyemi builds not just brands but the people and strategies behind them. A full-stack marketer, she has led growth across fintech, B2B SaaS, MediaTech, and HealthTech, driving multi-country campaigns in Africa that deliver real revenue and lasting loyalty.

Her philosophy is simple: combine data, creativity, and smart growth tactics to build strategies that don’t just attract users but keep them coming back. For her, real growth isn’t about vanity metrics, it’s about creating systems that work, scale, and last. Tomi is just as passionate about people as she is about brands, having mentored 15+ early-career marketers into confident growth professionals.

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Tomi Oduyemi

Growth Lead, Cardtonic
Adebowale Asaya

Sr. Product Lead, Amazon

FUEL: THE INVESTOR CONFERENCE

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Adebowale Asaya

Sr. Product Lead, Amazon
Omonigho Aito-Imonah

Founder, AfroFashion AI

CREATIVE ECONOMY

Omonigho Aito-Imonah, Nigeria’s first documented professional fashion illustrator, has over 20 years of experience shaping the country’s fashion industry. Founder of Naijafashionista Illustrations and The Fashion Collective Naija, she has collaborated with top designers and leading magazines. Recently, she partnered with Microsoft Nigeria and the British High Commission to train 200 creatives in AI-powered design. She also launched Afrofashion AI, an Afrocentric fashion design app trained on African datasets, blending heritage with cutting-edge technology.

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Omonigho Aito-Imonah

Founder, AfroFashion AI
Bernard Ghartey

Principal, Norrsken22

FUEL: THE INVESTOR CONFERENCE

Bernard Ghartey is a Principal at Norrsken22, where he leads West Africa investments for the African tech growth fund. With over a decade of experience in venture capital, investment banking, and telecommunications strategy, Bernard has been a key player in the African venture capital ecosystem since 2019. Prior to Norrsken22, he was Head of Investments at Acuity Venture Partners, an early-stage fund, and served as Senior Associate at I-DEV International in Kenya. His tenure at Vodafone as Senior Strategy Specialist saw him driving the company’s WIN-2020 strategy. Earlier in his career, he worked in investment banking at IC Securities, raising capital for blue-chip clients across multiple sectors. Bernard graduated Cum Laude with a bachelor’s degree in Management Information Systems from Ashesi University.

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Bernard Ghartey

Principal, Norrsken22
Issa Sissoko

Creative Director, Wonder Studios

CREATIVE ECONOMY

Issa Sissoko is a Creative Director and AI filmmaker based in Montreal.
At Wonder Studios, he leads end-to-end, AI-assisted production, combining story, design, and generative tools to deliver campaigns and narrative prototypes at speed. A former performance marketer with 10+ years of experience, Issa now runs Amissa Studios, a creative lab developing Africa-forward IP, including the historical fantasy series Mansa: Whispers of the Wind and Waves. He advises startups and brands on practical use of AI across writing, storyboarding, animation, and VFX, and teaches workshops to creators and companies.

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Issa Sissoko

Creative Director, Wonder Studios