ONE WORLD no hunger - Meet the people driving rural transformation

Christine Mhundwa

Moderator and Journalist I Zimbabwe

Christine Mhundwa studied journalism at Monash University. Went on to work for CNBC Africa in Johannesburg reporting on South Africa’s politics, economy and stock market. Also reported on European equities at Bloomberg in London. Now hosts DW’s Africa News bulletin.

Dr. Maria Flachsbarth

Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Economic Development and Cooperation I Germany

Azola Devi

Agripreneur I India

From a small tribal farmer to a successful vegetable and fruit collective poly-nursery entrepreneur, Azola Devi’s have come a long way. She was a small farmer from Sirsa village, Deoghar district, but had a large family to look after. She joined the NEEDS Green College and then underwent the Fast Track Program. Her business idea was to establish one polynursery to cater to 500 farmers. Establishment of the polyhouse proved to be very helpful to the farmers as they could do paddy cultivation along with vegetable cultivation due to timely availability of soilless saplings. Azola Devi and her SHG group members also sells seedlings like tomato, eggplant, chilli, cabbage, cauliflower, and fruit crops like papaya. She was trained and guided regularly by the Green College project team during her journey. Currently, the group also caters to the need of the nearby villages. With this initiative, she now earns an additional income of INR25700/- per season and is able to take care of her family. With increasing income season by season, she is confident of setting an example of success in the region.

Million Belay

Alliance for Food Sovereignty for Africa I Ethiopia

Million Belay coordinates the Alliance for Food Sovereignty for Africa, a network of networks of major networks in Africa. He is a member of the International Panel of Experts on the Sustainable of Food Systems (IPES-Food). Million is a founder of MELCA – Ethiopia, an indigenous NGO working on issues of agro-ecology, intergenerational learning, advocacy and livelihood improvement of local and indigenous peoples. Million has been working over two decades on the issues of intergenerational learning of bio-cultural diversity, sustainable agriculture, the right of local communities for seed and food sovereignty and forest issues. His main interest is now advocacy on food sovereignty, learning among generations, knowledge dialogues and the use of participatory mapping for social learning, identity building and mobilization of memory for resilience. He has PhD in environmental learning and MsC in tourism and conservation and BsC in Biology.

Carola van Rijnsoever

Director of the Inclusive Green Growth department at the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs (BZ) I Netherlands

Carola van Rijnsoever is the Director of the Inclusive Green Growth department at the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Between 2013 and 2017 she was the Representative of the Netherlands to the Political and Security Committee of the EU. She is also the current Dutch Arctic Ambassador.

Juliette Kouassi

Aboucao cacoa cooperative I Côte d’Ivoire

As director of the Aboucao cocoa cooperative, Juliette Kouassi used a very common and in Côte d’Ivoire largely-available product, cocoa beans, to create a large variety of innovative by-products. With her creativity, her observation of consumer preferences and her bold approach, she has been tapping new market opportunities that others will be able to follow after her. Her products include coated cocoa beans with different local flavors (lemon, ginger, etc.); cocoa-husk tea; or even seasoning made out of cocoa fermentation juice. She had the idea to partner with the women of her home village and cooperative to collect her raw material, provide them with better incomes and prove them that women can be responsible for their own success. In her region and largely in Côte d’Ivoire, traditions make it hard for women to make their way independently from men.

Nana Adjoa Sifa Amponsah

Social Entrepreneur I Ghana

Co-founder of Yo!Gate Foods and an initiator of Guzakuza, a social enterprise that empowers young women to create jobs, wealth, and food security. She is a certified social entrepreneur from the International Institute of Social Entrepreneurs and has hands-on experience in food security, strategic management, and agriculture in Africa, Europe, and Asia. Nana Adjoa A. Sifa has run issue-based awareness campaigns. Member of the Association for Women’s Rights in Development, World Pulse, and the Alliance of Young Entrepreneurs.

Joseph Ngaah

Kakamega County Farmers Association I Kenya

Chairman of the Kakamega County Farmers Association (KCFA) in Kenya. Working with Andreas Hermes Akademie to strengthen his association, and has done a lot during corona to make the voice of the farmers heard through the media and in discussions with the county government (possibly in conjunction with the national level, which could provide overarching responses). KCFA also works with the Innocentrum, as well as with TMG from Potsdam. Bukura Agricultural College board member.

Elizabeth Nsimadala

Pan Africa farmers Organization I Uganda

Elisabeth Nsimadala is President of the Pan Africa farmers Organization (PAFO) and President of Eastern Africa Farmers Federation (EAFF). She also sits at the Governing Council of Africa Fertilizer Financing Mechanism (AFFM) and Chairs the Governing Council of the Uganda Cooperative College in Tororo among others. Elizabeth is a successful agriprenuer and has been championing farmer-led agriculture technology and innovation at the EAFF through the E-Granary initiative that virtually aggregates farmers for markets. She is a passionate cooperator and she spearheaded the push to have the regional law on cooperatives – The East Africa Cooperative Societies Bill 2015 through the East Africa Legislative Assembly. As a result of her efforts, she was recently awarded and Globally recognized by the World Farmers Organization (WFO) as one of the exemplary women leaders in Farmers Organizations’ contributing to sustainable development.

Mathias Mogge

Chairman of the Board of Directors of German Welthungerhilfe I Germany

Mathias Mogge is an agricultural engineer and environmental scientist. He has worked for Welthungerhilfe since 1998. From 1998 to 2001 he worked in the East Africa Regional Desk and was responsible for programmes in Ethiopia, Uganda and Sudan. From 2001 to 2005, he worked as Regional Director for West Africa in Bamako/Mali and was responsible for the regional programme there. Since 2010 he has been full-time responsible for the Executive Director's programmes.

Moses Kimani

CEO Lentera Africa I Kenya

Moses Kimani, Founder and CEO of Lentera Africa. Lentera is an agriculture technology company that enables farmers to adapt to climate change and increase their yield through precision agriculture and climate smart inputs. Lentera uses satellite data to tell farmers when to plant, when to irrigate and when to scout for pests and diseases. Lentera also provides farmers with customized inputs that are suited to their soil and climate conditions. Moses is a graduate of IMD Business School, Lausanne Switzerland and enjoys using technology to solve persistent problems for his community.

Devi Murthy

Social Entrepreneur I India

A social technology entrepreneur who loves working on problem statements that have the potential to create large scale impact on eliminating poverty and increasing sustainability. Devi develops small scale mechanisation solutions in rural India to increase profitability for small farmers. Her company Kamal Kisan designs, develops and manufactures relevant agricultural equipment that can save money and time for the farmer. Kamal Kisan's solutions have been impacting lives of over 5000 famers across the tough terrains of rural India.

Clas Neumann

Senior Vice President SAP, Head of Global SAP Labs Network | China

As the Head of Global SAP Labs Network, Clas Neumann is leading in growing SAP’s business in geographies such as China, the Middle East and Russia. Today, SAP Labs is ranked among the best employers in most countries and has transformed its business to support global, innovative product development and local field operations alike. Part of SAP’s Senior Executive Team, Neumann’s experience includes a 25-year SAP career in fast growth markets, with more than 18 years in India and China, where he was instrumental in SAP’s entry into China. Neumann has led the Global SAP Labs Network for nearly 10 years. Prior to this, he was the President of SAP Labs India, helping to establish the largest research & development Hub of SAP outside Germany in Bangalore by growing it to its current strength of 8,000+ engineers. Neumann is recognized for his business achievements in Asia. He currently serves as Chairperson of German Chamber of Commerce East China, a spokesperson in the Asia Pacific Association of German Industries (APA), a board member in the East Asian Association (OAV) and a member of the Indo-German advisory council of the Prime Minister of India and the German Chancellor.