Director, Science and Technology Policy Research Institute (STEPRI), Council of Science and Industrial Research, Ghana

Dr. George Owusu Essegbey is the President of African Network for Economics of Learning, Innovation and Competence Building Systems (AfricaLics). He was the Director of the Science and Technology Policy Research Institute (STEPRI) of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) of Ghana, in Accra. He held this position for more than ten years spearheading the institute’s development of research projects and partnerships. He served on a number of national and international Boards including Ghana’s National Development Planning Commission (NDPC). He has several years of experience in Science and Technology (S&T) policy research, innovation studies, climate change and sustainable agriculture. He holds a Ph.D. in Development Studies (University of Cape Coast) and M.A. in International Affairs (University of Ghana). He did Ph.D. internship at the United Nations University (Institute for New Technologies, now UNU-MERIT) in Maastricht, The Netherlands. Dr. Essegbey was a recipient of a Commonwealth Fellowship at the Policy Research in Engineering, Science and Technology (PREST) of the University of Manchester, UK. In the course of his research career, Dr. Essegbey served various national and international organisations with his expertise including FAO, UNESCO, UNCTAD, UNEP, WIPO and the World Bank. He was a member of the 10-Member Expert Group supporting the United Nations Technology Facilitation Mechanism with the UN Inter-agency Task Team on Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) for the SDGs.

Chief Technology Officer, Gro Intelligence

Nemo Semret is the Chief Technology Officer of Gro Intelligence, he joined Gro Intelligence after 8+ years in engineering at Google, where he first worked for several years in web search on ranking algorithms. He was then Tech Lead on Google’s Ad Exchange. He led the engineering team responsible for auction algorithms and mathematical optimization.

Previously, Nemo was co-founder of Invisible Hand Networks, Inc., a software startup that developed real-time auction-based bandwidth exchanges for content providers and ISPs, which grew out of his academic research on game theoretic mechanisms in communication networks. Nemo was also co-founder of a VOIP startup, and Adjunct Professor of Electrical Engineering at Columbia University.

Nemo is the author of dozens of highly cited research publications, and inventor on 7 US patents, with several more pending. He obtained a PhD in Electrical Engineering from Columbia University, where his thesis won the Eliahu I. Jury award for his dissertation. He also holds a Masters in engineering from McGill, where he specialized in control theory applied to biomechanical robots, and a B. Eng (Honours) in Honours Electrical Engineering and Math, where he graduated with distinction and a university scholar award.

Ministry of Science and Technology, China, and Chair of the Twentieth Session of the UN Commission on Science and Technology for Development

Dr. Wang Ruijun is Chair of the Twentieth Session of the UN Commission on Science and Technology for Development. Dr. Wang Ruijun is Director-General of National Centre for Science and Technology Evaluation, Ministry of Science and Technology, PRC. Dr. Wang Ruijun is in charge of evaluations of the National SandT Major Projects, national key SandT programs, project, institute, budget and policies. He had been working in the Ministry of Transport, the Maritime Safety Administration, the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) and Supervision Department of CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. He has long term engagement in STI management and development strategy research. He was responsible for the research on and formulation of the National “12th Five-Year” Development Plan for Science and Technology, the National “12th Five-Year” Plan for Indigenous Innovation Capacity Building and the related plans, National Medium and Long-Term Science and Technology Development Plan (2006-2020), the National “11th Five-Year” SandT development plan and planning system, relevant transportation plans and technical policies, maritime development strategy.

Co-Facilitator of the negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda and Permanent Representative of Kenya to the United Nations

Macharia Kamau is the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Kenyan Mission to the United Nations. Along with the Irish Ambassador to the United Nations, Mr. Kamau is the cofacilitator for the intergovernmental negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda and was the co-chair of the UN Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Regulatory Product Strategy Lead, DuPont Pioneer (USA)

Mr. Jim Gaffney, PhD., DuPont Pioneer Global Biotech Affairs & Regulatory Lead-Ag Traits grew up in southwest Minnesota on a farm, where he and his family grew corn and soybeans, and raised hogs. He started with Pioneer in fall 2010 and work on advancing agronomic traits like those that help our crops better use water and nitrogen. Jim holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota, a master’s degree from South Dakota State University and a Ph.D. from the University of Florida. He is particularly passionate about improving African Agriculture – an interest that dates back to his time as a Peace Corps volunteer in Cameroon, Central Africa.