Meet Speakers for the 2024 East Africa Hub Convening

Dr. George Mugabe is the Regional Director for the East Africa Hub with the Education Collaborative. Prior to his current post, he worked as the Director of Research and Community Services at Kepler in Rwanda where he successfully spearheaded numerous projects aimed at driving impact in bolstering action research and community services. In addition to his duties, Dr. George also worked as a Senior Lecturer at Kepler, where he mentored students as well as worked as the manager for the Systems Change Program for Employability – an 18-month systems transformation process designed to fundamentally develop the components and structures of key systems that drive outcomes in higher education institutions (HEI) which he also helped to design. Dr. George also has vast experience as an economic policy expert working with different Intergovernmental organizations across Africa and boasts a rich experience in program design, planning, and execution in the academic, policy, entrepreneurship, and economic development sectors. Dr. George holds a Ph.D. in Governance and Regional Integration from the Pan African University Institute for Governance, Humanities and Social Sciences in Cameroon. He also holds an MBA in International Business from Lincoln University in California and an MSc. In Economics specializing in Community Economic Development from the University of Central Arkansas in the USA. As a Pan-Africanist, he is passionate about youth empowerment and engagement in Africa to find solutions for the continent’s problems through research and community engagement.

Karoli Kolokonyi is the Director of Careers, and Alumni Affairs at Kepler College. He has a Master’s degree in Development Practice from Regis University and a Bachelor of Arts in communications with a business focus for Southern New Hampshire University.  
For more than 8 years, he has worked in higher education, focusing on student career preparation, guiding them toward informed career decisions, and building partnerships with industries to create meaningful student learning opportunities to ensure their smooth transition to the labor market. He finds joy in supporting students to grow their aspired careers. He Spearheads the establishment of the Kepler Alumni Association fostering a strong connection and cultivating relationships that extend beyond graduation.  

Prof. Robert Gateru 

Vice Chancellor Riara University 

Prof. Robert Gateru is the holder of a PhD in Microelectronic Engineering & Semiconductor Device Physics from the University Of Surrey (UK), Masters in Microelectronic Engineering &  Semiconductor Device Physics from the University of Cambridge (UK) and BSc.(First Class Honours) in Physics from the University of Nairobi. 

He is a seasoned academic, with over 10 years of teaching and administration experience in various universities; he serves on a number of Boards, including the Rural Electrification Authority, LIWA (Linking Industry With Academia) Kenya Trust, and the Rift Valley Institute of Science & Technology. 

He is a Fellow of the Cambridge Commonwealth Society,  a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical & Electronic Engineer (IEEE), which is the world’s largest technical professional association. He is also a Founding Member of the Physics Society of Kenya where he serves in the Executive Committee. He has served in the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Professional Practice and Chaired many Conference Steering Committees. Selected awards that Prof. Gateru has received include the Distinguished Scholar Award by the ICT Association of Kenya, the Africa HR Leadership Award for Outstanding Contribution to Training & Development, and Kenya’s Top 40 Under 40 Men (2012) recognition by the BUSINESS Daily. 

He has won numerous grants, most notably a KES 46 Million grant from the World Bank through the Government of Kenya for establishment of the Kenya Centre of Excellence for BPO Training. He has published widely in international journals and presented in conferences across the world. 

Prof. Gateru joined Riara University from Kenya Methodist University (KeMU) where he was the Principal of the Nairobi Campus, a position he has held from 2010. He has also worked as founding Dean and Associate Professor in KeMU’s Faculty of Computing and Informatics as well as Head of Department for the same institution. Prof. Gateru has previously served as the Founding Dean of the School of Science, Engineering and Technology at the Kabarak University where he also served as Head of Department for Computing, Mathematics and Physical Sciences as a Senior Lecturer. 

I am a professor of Biomedical Science (Embryology, Neuroanatomy, and Cell Biology) and also an educator My main focus is Transformative Learning for Critical Thinking, Problem Solving skills, and creating Gender responsive spaces in Higher Education.  

I have served in both public and private Universities in Tanzania, including Muhimbili University of Health Sciences (MUHAS), the University of Dodoma (UDOM), which are public universities and the International Medical and Technological University and currently, I am the Vice Chancellor of a newly registered university (Mwanza university in Tanzania), which are both private universities.  I have a special interest in gender; I was the project lead investigator – Baseline data on Gender issues at UDOM (2015 – 2017). The data was used to inform the formulation of the UDOM Gender & Anti-sexual Harassment Policy (Funded by INASP – 2016) and currently in use. Co-author of a Gender Mainstreaming in Higher Education Toolkit, published by INASP and the University of Dodoma (2016). I am part of the Transforming Employability for Social Change in East Africa (TESCEA) partnership, which focuses on Critical Thinking, Problem Solving skills, and Gender Responsive Pedagogy (GRP) in Higher Education, promoting gender-responsive learning spaces. GRP is aimed at promoting equal employable opportunities for both men and women graduates leading to equal economic participation either as entrepreneurs or employees. I was PI for a project titled Leveraging Intelligent Decision Support System to Promote Inclusive and Significant Remote Teaching and Learning in East African Higher Education during Interruptions similar to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

I have published more than 40 publications in peer-reviewed journals both locally and internationally in the areas of Biomedical Sciences, Health, and Education. 

Links to research sites and Affiliations  

1. Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/flora-fabian-64218b15a 
2. Rsearch gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Flora-fabian/stats 
3. ORCI: https://orcid.org/my-orcid?orcid=0000-0002-4880-1021 
4. INASP Associate: https://www.inasp.info/staff/flora-fabian 

Prof. Wanja Mwaura-Tenambergen is an Associate Professor of Health Systems Management. Her main interest is in health financing under the aspect of improved access to primary care health services, especially in rural areas of low- and middle-income countries. Prof. Tenambergen is an accomplished and visionary leader in higher education. With over 15 years of experience, she has held various administrative roles and has consistently demonstrated a commitment to academic excellence, innovation, and student success. 
Prof. Tenambergen holds a PhD and Master in Public Health (Health Financing) both from Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok Thailand, MSc. in Management and Organizational Development from the United States International University-Africa, Nairobi Kenya, and a Bachelor of Arts from Kenyatta University, Kenya.

Prof. Tenambergen previously served as the Chairperson of the Department of Health Systems Management in Kenya Methodist University (KeMU), where she spear-headed the development of training curricula for undergraduate, masters and PhD studies in health systems management in Kenya. She was the country coordinator for the collaborative projects between Kenya Methodist University (Kenya), Neu Ulm University of Applied Sciences (Germany), University of Western Cape (South Africa), and Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (Tanzania), to develop multiple country training programs in health information management and health data analytics with the support from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) financed by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation. 

Prof. Tenambergen served as the Director of Research, Innovation and Extension in KeMU where she guaranteed the quality of research in the university for students and faculty. She has been involved in numerous research projects. She previously held the position of Director of University Advancement and Marketing and was member of the Governing Board of the Directorate of Quality Assurance and Performance in KeMU. As a respected scholar in her field, Prof. Wanja has published extensively on topics related to strengthening the management of health systems.

Prof. Tenambergen has deep passion to improve learning and teaching in higher education. Her vision is to provide relevant inputs to the advancement of higher education through transformational teaching & research methods. She is the current Chairperson of the Association of Faculty Enrichment in Learning and Teaching (AFELT). She advocates for creating partnerships with organizations and the community to advance quality in learning, teaching and research. She believes that teaching and learning has be closely linked to the problems in the community and their solutions. 

Prof. Tenambergen’s leadership style is characterized by collaboration, transparency and focus on evidence-based decision making. She believes in fostering a culture of shared governance and always seeks inputs from faculty and students to inform strategic planning processes. 

Dr. Olive Sabiiti is currently serving as the Acting Vice Chancellor of Cavendish University Uganda. Previously, she held the position of Deputy Vice-Chancellor- Academic Affairs at the same Institution. Dr. Sabiiti is a distinguished Senior Lecturer, a legal scholar, and an advocate of the High Court of Uganda. 
In addition to her role at Cavendish University Uganda, Dr. Sabiiti is a Panel Advisor for the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission Alumni Advisory Panel from 2023 to 2025. She also serves as a Board Member for the Research and Education Network of Uganda from 2023 to April 2025. 

As a Commonwealth Scholar, Dr. Olive Sabiiti earned her PhD degree in law from the University of Manchester, UK. As a British Chevening Scholar, she earned her LLM (Master of Laws in International Business Law) degree with merit from the University of Manchester, UK. She holds a post-graduate diploma in Legal Practice from the Law Development Centre, Uganda, and a Bachelor of Laws degree (LLB) with Honours from Makerere University. 
Prior to joining Cavendish University Uganda, Dr. Olive Sabiiti taught Law and Finance in Emerging Markets, Land Transactions, Business and Commercial laws at the University of Manchester, Makerere University, Uganda Christian University, Mukono, and Uganda Management Institute (UMI). 

For close to a decade, Dr. Olive Sabiiti served as the Speaker of the Mpigi District Council, Chair of the Association of all District Council Speakers in the Country, and Chair of the Conflict Resolution Committee of the Uganda Local Governments Association (ULGA). As an Advocate of the High Court of Uganda, she has practiced law for more than 15 years. She is a member of the Uganda Law Society, East Africa Law Society, and the Society for Institutional and Organisational Economics. She represents Cavendish University Uganda at the International Association of Law Schools. 

Kereesa Carrington-Nunez has been in the education field for over 20 years. She has served as a senior lecturer in areas of organizational behavior, strategic information systems and management, marketing, and human resource management, among others. She has produced numerous global top paper students and assisted in the tutelage of hundreds of students summing to their degrees and masters. Mrs. Carrington-Nunez now holds the position of Director of Caricom & Africa at ABE, where she manages the sales estate of two continents and a significant sum of ABE’s total revenue. She has served as the ABE Global Lead Quality Assurer and has an innate passion for Quality Assurance in education and the delivery of the teaching & learning process. Mrs. Carrington- Nunez is an entrepreneur with numerous business interests as well as a business consultant. Also an ABE graduate, her academic accomplishments include 1st class Honours Degree in Computer Science, a Masters in Human Resource Management, and Post Graduate Cert in Educational leadership. She is currently pursuing a second Masters in Marketing at Arthur Lok Jack Graduate Business School, and she is also on the journey to her PhD. But most notable is her personability and her fierce advocacy for the students that she serve.

Vivian is a passionate advocate for education and youth empowerment. She has extensive experience in project management and strategic program development in Education, Leadership, Employability and Entrepreneurship. As the Senior Manager of Special Programs at The School of St Jude, she spearheads initiatives that enhance transferable skills and holistic education to secondary students, community service, and create a strong and vibrant alum network. Her visionary leadership has significantly expanded access to higher education and improved employment rates among St Jude’s alumni.

Vivian’s daily mission involves mentoring students, guiding them toward becoming moral and intellectual leaders, and collaborating with government and NGO’s institutions to broaden educational opportunities. Like many others attending the EA Convening, Vivian is committed to creating resilient education ecosystems that sustainably empower Tanzania and Africa”.

Prof Baylie Damtie is the Vice Chancellor of Kepler. He oversees the initiation and development of upskilling and regular degree programs at Kepler. He is also leading the region’s employability system change program at Ashesi University. Before joining Kepler, Baylie was the President of Bahir Dar University for seven years (2011-2018). During his term, he initiated and led the expansion of PhD programs that increased from 2 to 32, masters from 5 to 134, undergraduate from 45 to 75, and the publications of the University per year reached 586 from just below 10. He also initiated and led the establishment of one of the largest medical schools in Ethiopia with a teaching hospital. Prof Baylie Damtie has also pioneered high-skill overseas employment opportunities by forging innovative private-public partnerships and enabling about 400 engineering graduates to secure overseas employment per year by establishing ISO-certified and IMO-recognized Maritime Academy at Bahir Dar University. The Washera Geospace and Radar Science Laboratory at Bahir Dar University, a leading space research laboratory in the region, is also the brainchild of Prof Baylie Damtie. 

His educational background includes PhD in Space Physics from the University of Oulu (Finland), an MSc in Space Physics from Tromso University (Norway), and BSc in Physics from Addis Ababa University (Ethiopia)