Advisory Board

Chairman: Sindiso Ngwenya

Honorable Sindiso Ngwenya

Retired Secretary- General and CEO of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA).

H.E. Mr. Sindiso Ngwenya is the fifth Secretary- General of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) since it was transformed from the PTA in 1994. He brings with him over 30 years of service in industry, regional and multilateral levels covering the public sector, private sector and quasi-government institutions.

Before his appointment, Mr. Ngwenya was the Assistant Secretary General of COMESA in charge of Programmes a position he held for ten years. In this position, he was responsible for overseeing the development and implementation of COMESA programmes. In addition, he oversaw and supervised the operations of COMESA established institutions such as the Leather and Leather Product Institute (LLPI), the Clearing House and the Regional Investment Agency.

In industry, Mr Ngwenya was involved in the design and implementation of programmes and projects in the road, airline and railway sectors. At the regional level, he was instrumental in the formulation of the PTA (now COMESA) regional integration programmes culminating in the launch of the COMESA Free Trade Area on 31st October 2000. He also worked on the establishment of COMESA specialized institutions, such as, the Eastern and Southern Africa Trade and Development Bank (PTA Bank), the COMESA Clearing House and the PTA Re- He has edited two books on transport and communications and public service and is a regular contributor to several publications on economic cooperation and integration. He has also won many awards in recognition of his contribution to social and economic development and regional integration. In 2010 he was the winner of the Southern Africa Trust Drivers of Change award in the Government category and was cited by Judges for “His dedication to poverty eradication and equitable development in Africa through enabling broader markets by business. Through his leadership, a future is being crafted out for Africa that looks promising ”

In addition to serving as Secretary General and Chief Executive Officer of COMESA , Mr Ngwenya sits on the following boards within Africa and internationally:

Secretary to the Annual General Assembly of the African Trade Insurance Agency ( ATI).
Deputy Chairman of Board of the African Trade and Insurance Agency.
Chairman of the ATI Sub Committee on Human Resources.
Vice President of the African Governance Architecture ( AGA) of the African Union which is Chaired by the President of the Pan African Parliament.
Honorary Chairman of the International Small Hydro Network comprising 85 countries from Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America.

Board Member: Ramu Govindasamy
Professor and Chair, Dept. of Agriculture at the School of Environmental & Biological Sciences, Rutgers University, New Jersey.
Education:

Ph.D. (Agricultural Economics), May 1993, Iowa State University, Ames.
M.S. (Economics), December 1992, Iowa State University, Ames.
M.B.A. (Marketing), May 1987, New Port University, California.

Click here for Ramu Govindasamy’s full resume

Board Member: James E. Simon
Distinguished Professor of Plant Biology at the Rutgers Sensory Sciences and Innovation Centre, Rutgers University, New Jersey.
Education:

Ph.D. (Environmental Stress Physiology), University of Massachusetts (1979 – 1984)
M.S. (Plant Nutrition/Management), Oregon State University (1975 – 1977)
B.S. (Agriculture), Empire State College (1972 – 1974)

Click here for James E. Simon’s full resume

Board Member: