As a reflection of the new strategic plan, IPPFAR has appointed four new members in the seniour management team. These appointments took effect on 15th March, 2010. The following are the autobiagraphies of the new team members.
Esther Loveness Okwanga - Director, Operations
Esther’s started her career as a UK trained health professional in the 70’s, she is a registered nurse and midwife; in time she got a Bachelor of Arts degree in Nursing from the University of South Africa majoring in Nursing Education and Administration. In the UK, she worked for the West Essex Area Health Authority in various capacities before returning to Zimbabwe in 1984. Back in Zimbabwe, she served in the Defence Forces Medical Services (she is a retired military officer!) after which she worked in the private sector as a Senior Nursing Officer for the Group Staff Health Services of a multinational concern.
Her career took a turn in 1990 when for a brief period, she worked as a Senior Programme Officer (Health) in the Refugee Services Unit in the Department of Social Welfare; that marked the evolvement of her career from institutionalized to community based health work. She left this position in mid-1992 to take the position of Secretary General of the Zimbabwe Red Cross Society. During her tenure as Secretary General of the Zimbabwe Red Cross Society, she acquired an MBA from the University of Zimbabwe through part time study. She held this position until she was recruited by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies as Country Representative to Eritrea at the beginning of 1998. She was in this position for fifteen months of the two year mission and had to cut it short for this was the period that Eritrea and Ethiopia went to war meaning that her children could not join her. Her next posting was in Kenya where she held the position of Country Programme Coordinator (Chief of Party) for two years. Yet again, her career took a turn and this time round, towards organisational development; she states that she saw it coming for having been working in a membership organisation for twelve years and having lived the experienced of being on the affiliate and affiliating divide, such a development was inevitable. In mid-2001, she was appointed Organisational Development Coordinator a position whose portfolio covered the whole of Sub Sahara Africa and which she held for three and half years. Sequel to this, she was appointed Head of the East Africa Sub Region, a portfolio covering Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi; a position yet again, based in Nairobi. She held this position until mid 2007 when she was appointed Deputy Head of the Southern Africa Zone Office.
Esther also holds a Diploma in Development Studies from the University of South Africa (1991) in which she majored in Development Economics and is currently at the final stage of a study programme for a PhD IN Development Studies again, with the University of South Africa.
Olufunmilayo Balogun-Alexander - Director, External Relations & Advocacy
Olufunmilayo Balogun-Alexander was the Technical Adviser, Gender, Rights and Sexuality with the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), Africa Regional Office. She has a Masters of Arts degree in Gender & Development from the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, Falmer, United Kingdom (1994) through a British government scholarship and BA English from the University of Lagos, Akoka, Nigeria (1988). She was previously with the United Nations Development Fund for Women, United Nations Development Programme and the Government of Nigeria. Her experience have included She has managed programmes and projects worth over $15m in the last 9 years on issues of gender and governance, women’s human rights, HIV/AIDS and sexual and reproductive health. Her management portfolio include the management of a $6million basket fund, sustaining a partnership of 9 contributing donors, 60 non government organisations and the UN system in working towards same goals on gender, human rights and governance in Kenya. She established a women entrepreneurs’ network in Nigeria to advocate and lobby government and private sector on gender & rights based macroeconomic frameworks, and one of the founding members of the Gender Budget Network in Nigeria to undertake and conduct advocacy on gender responsive budgeting at the national and states’ levels. Her achievements include the development of Gender Policies for ECOWAS and the governments of Malawi, Nigeria and Kenya, mainstreaming of gender within the new aid architecture within the framework of the MDGs and the Government of Kenya’s Investment Programme on Economic Recovery Strategy for Wealth Creation and Employment (2003 – 2007). She is a founding member of the African and Nigerian Feminist Forums respectively, and a member of the West Africa Women’s Policy Forum.
Elly Mugumya - Team Leader, East & Southern Sub-region
Elly Mugumya, joins International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) Africa Regional Office from Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU) where he has served as Executive Director for ten years. He started his professional career in reproductive health in July 1984 when joined RHU, then Family Planning Association of Uganda (FPAU), and grew through the ranks from the post of Field Officer, Provincial Regional Manager, to National Programme Manager within RHU before his appointment to post Executive Director in 2000, a post he held till March 15, 2010 when joined IPPF Africa Regional Office, as Team Leader Eastern and Southern Sub-Region.
The long career path with Reproductive Health Uganda, an affiliate of IPPF has accorded Elly immense practical programme planning, management, leadership and governance skills. He has extensive experience of working with communities, governments, donors funded programmes, including the development and sustenance of strategic private sector partnerships.
Elly holds a Masters Degree in Family Planning Programme Management with distinction from Exeter University, United Kingdom, a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Social Work and Social Administration with honours from Makerere University, and a string of professional certificates including Executive Leadership from the University of Wit Waters Rand South Africa.
At country level Elly has participated in the development of several National Policies, including the National Population Policy, the National Reproductive Health Policy, the non-facility- based, private not- for -profit partnership policy with the Uganda government. He also served as IPPF Resident Administrator for Family Planning Association of Liberia (FPAL) in 2004, and Namibia Planned Parenthood Association (NAPPA) in 2006 where he led the re-structuring and organizational development of the two Member Associations and their transformation to competitive Sexual and Reproductive Health & rights providers. Elly led RHU to being the first Member Association to be accredited by IPPF among Africa Member Associations, implying the Association programme was meeting high quality standards, was well managed and able to report on its work to stakeholders. He leaves RHU at time when major donors like USAID, DFID, Sida, Danida and multi-lateral agencies like UNFPA are supporting the Association SRHR programme that prides itself of being the second largest network next to that of government.
Lucien Kouassi Kouakou - West & Southern Africa Sub-region
Lucien Kouassi Kouakou is an economist and Specialist in Management of Organizations. He also has a higher Diploma in Total Quality Management with a bias in Health Management. He joined IPPF ARO in November 2008 from the MA of Cote d’Ivoire where he was the Executive Director from 2004 to 2008 after having spent over 10 years in SRHR programmes and projects Management and in operational research within the same MA. Based on his wide experience, Lucien has significantly contributed to the reduction of the MA’s debt and improved the management of the Association and also provided on behalf of IPPFARO, technical assistance to many MAs in various technical areas such as strategic planning, MA administration and management, Quality of Care, Gender Rights and Sexuality including training of trainers, Commodity security planning and SRH programming.
Lucien has played many roles as a consultant or resource person in his country (Cote d’Ivoire) to review, evaluate and develop national policies and programmes on Gender, SRHR and strategy for poverty reduction. He was also a trainer on SRH Programme and Quality Management at the University of Cote d’Ivoire at the Faculty of Medicine and on Health Quality Insurance at the African Centre for Management and Senior Management Staff capacity building (CAMPC).
Prior to this new appointment, Lucien was the Emergency Response Advisor at IPPF ARO (for 9 months) and the Accreditation, Governance and Emergency Response Advisor (six months). In total, Lucien Kouakou is a pure product of IPPF system. He has worked for a long time with many of the MAs in the west and central sub region even in the eastern region to provide TA. Based on his various capacities, his leadership, his willing and commitment to achieve more, Lucien Kouakou will be able, together with the rest of the team at IPPF ARO, to still improve professionally and bring the West and Central Sub Region Team to achieve the expected objectives.