Managing Partner, Preponderant Advisory / Senior Fellow, Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, University of Toronto Toronto

Templar is the Managing Partner at Preponderant, Canada's leading Africa- focused market entry advisory firm. He specializes in strategic lobbying, government relations, and advisory services, guiding organizations in developing business opportunities and navigating strategy, policy, and risk mitigation for operations and investments in emerging markets. Headquartered in Toronto, Preponderant serves a diverse clientele across the public, private, and not-for-profit sectors. 

In addition to his role at Preponderant, Templar co-chairs the Advisory Council for “The Age of Africa Annual Symposium” at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy. Under his leadership, “The Age of Africa Annual Symposium” has become a premier platform for fostering dialogue and strengthening ties between Canadian and African markets. Renowned for its high-level approach, “The Age of Africa Annual Symposium” attracts influential decision-makers from government and private sectors, as well as thought leaders from both regions. Templar has positioned the Symposium as the foremost nonpartisan forum dedicated to forging cross-sector partnerships that address the challenges and opportunities between Canada and Africa. 

Templar also serves as the Executive Director at the Canadian Centre for African Affairs and Policy Research, a Toronto-based think tank. In this role, he leads the organization in building extensive networks with key players in the private and public sectors, elevating its profile as a leading think tank dedicated to advancing strategic integration between Canadian and African markets. He shapes the Centre's strategic direction by cultivating partnerships, particularly with senior government officials and executives from prominent organizations in both regions. Under his leadership, the Centre supports high-level public and private gatherings, conducts

Director, Strategy & Research, TransAlliance Group. TransAlliance Group is a conglomerate with a vested interest in multiple industries, i.e. mining, fintech, and hospitality, across Africa.

Afam has over a decade’s worth of experience in Business Development, Strategy and Innovative thinking through his work in organizations like Jumia Nigeria, the largest e-commerce startup in Africa and Sujimoto, a leading luxury real estate company in Nigeria. He has also consulted for businesses such as STERN Projects, Adiba, VC Premium Limited.

Experiences such as these has provided him with the ability to provide solutions to challenges and identify opportunities that exist in business. It has also equipped him with the necessary techniques required to drive growth and success even in the most challenging situations.

Lefang is the founder & CEO of Kasi Insight, Africa’s leading decision intelligence company empowering business leaders and entrepreneurs to make crucial decisions with confidence. The company pairs its proprietary high-frequency survey capability with the latest advancements in statistics, data analytics and storytelling to inform better decisions on what Africans think, do and why.

The company works with leading brands in FMCG, Food & Beverages, Banking and Personal Care in addition to the world’s largest foundations and financial data companies.

Prior to starting Kasi, Yannick had over 15 years of experience in banking in North African and Africa. He is an engineer by training, banker by profession and a researcher by passion. He considers himself an unlikely researcher but passionate about African-based data and winning in Africa.

Yannick is a winner of several research awards including best research paper award by MSRA (Kenya), Quartz Africa Innovator award (Nigeria), GRIT Future List Nominee (US).

Martin has a background in venture capital and private equity and he brings over nine years of rich experience in business strategy and operational execution.

Martin has developed strong execution and operations experience, having worked at Jumia, the largest e-commerce startup in Africa, and at Verod Capital, a leading West Africa-focused private equity fund. He has strong value add in both the capital raising side of the business as well as the execution side of things from his time in both the VC and start-up management.

Senior ICT and Innovation Specialist at the African Development Bank 

Michael is a passionate individual who works across the intersections of education, technology and the entrepreneurship ecosystem and is excited about work that improves the quality of lives of people.

He currently works as a Senior ICT and Innovation specialist at the African Development Bank where he leads several projects on improving access to education and enhancing delivery of vocational and technical skills in the Southern African region. Prior to that he led implementation of a digital skills initiative across 5 pilot countries and enjoys designing impactful programs, policy dialogues and high level stakeholder engagement.

He enjoys working on fun complex projects and has managed various programs at community, country and regional levels for international organizations.

He also volunteers as an entrepreneurship mentor for Seedstars Global and a global speaker on digital skilling, job creation and building sustainable businesses with an inclusive mindset.

Originally from Antananarivo, Madagascar, Tahina obtained her Masters Degree in Business Administration (MBA) from the Université de Moncton and her Postgraduate Certificate in Global Health from the University of Manchester. She is a strategic leader with more than 23 years of experience leading the successful implementation of the largest ($160 million +) and most complex international development projects with Plan International, Canadian Red Cross and Oxfam-Québec. She is currently on Interchange at Global Affairs Canada (GAC) bringing partners perspective in GAC first ever department-wide modernization.

Tahina is highly experienced in organizational strategy development, operational and financial planning, grant proposals, program management, donor compliance and talent management.

She also has certifications and experience in global health and methodologies such as agile approach, product management and human-centered design thinking.

In her free time, she enjoys the outdoor during all seasons in Canada. She also volunteers her time as mentor for the Prosperity project where she empowers other women interested in career advancement.

Tahina currently resides in Ottawa, Ontario. She is fluent in English, French and Malagasy.