Justus Nwaoga

Justus Nwaoga is among ten 2013 African innovators who were nominated for developing practical solutions to some of the continent’s most intractable problems. They were chosen from more than 900 applications from 45 countries.  The finalists for the Innovation Prize for Africa, IPA, 2013 provided practical examples of Africa’s investment potentials.

Nwaoga was nominated for developing a new way to collect renewable solar energy by using the mimosa pudica weed, an organic African medicinal plant.  With this breakthrough, it was possible to construct a functional mimosa solar panel with the Mimosa plant extract. The solar panel is designed in such a way that the electrical potential of the cells can be restored on exposure to direct sun rays, after they have been discharged.

The Innovation Prize for Africa is an award founded by the African Innovation Foundation and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa.  It mobilises African innovators and entrepreneurs by providing a total of $150 000 to winners who deliver market-oriented solutions for African-led development. The prize encourages private equity investors, government and development leaders to invest across sectors and build a climate that fuels Africa’s economic growth.

Nwaogu is with the Department of Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.

Ijeoma Emesowum

One to Watch

Ijeoma Emesowum returns for her fifth season at the Shaw Festival as Sarah Undershaft in Major Barbara and Vernon in Guys and Dolls. Last season, she appeared in Ragtime and A Man and Some Woman. Previous Shaw credits include Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Admirable Crichton, The Women, Serious Money, Born Yesterday, Half an Hour and The Devil’s Disciple.

After making the jump to Toronto in May 2008, Ijeoma began the quest to enrich herself. She began with the help of b currents rAiz’n ensemble, then with Canadian Stage Company’s GYM and by getting out in the big city, whose skyscrapers and huge crowds continue to amaze this small town girl. Ijeoma has also been part of the annual reading of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, hosted by the Shaw Festival.

Other theatre credits include a workshop of Lisa Codrington’s The Aftermath (New Groundswell Festival, Nightwood Theatre); Binti’s Journey (Theatre Direct); A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Canadian Stage Company); The Norbals, Jitters, The Women, Appointment with Death (University of Windsor).

Ijeoma holds a BFA in Acting from the University of Windsor.

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Francisca Okeke

Francisca Okeke is a Professor of Physics at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. She recently received the L’Oreal-UNESCO for Women in Science Award for her significant contributions to the understanding of daily variations of the ion currents in the upper atmosphere which may further our understanding of climate change.

In a statement, UNESCO said Okeke has made the study of the ionosphere her lifetime work. The ionosphere lies between 50km and 1000km above the earth surface. “A very thick layer of charged particles, the ionosphere produces changes in the magnetic field on earth’s surface that affect the planet in a host of ways. Her research could lead to a better understanding of climate change and help pinpoint sources of dramatic phenomena like tsunamis and earthquakes”

She was also the Dean in the faculty of Physical Sciences at her University, from 2008 to 2010.

On YouTube

Chinwe Lucy Ozoegwu

Chinwe is currently researching autonomous self-adapting industrial in-house built robots, and how they can be used to facilitate mass customization. Robots, she hopes, will learn from their own experiences without being restricted to pre-conceived routines. In other words robots will use their experiences to think for themselves.

Chinwe Ozoegwu received her BEng in Electrical and Electronics (4.62/5 GPA) from Moscow Power Engineering Institute, an MSc in Electronics and Information Technology (with Distinction) from Sheffield Hallam University and is currently pursuing a PhD in Industrial Automation and Robotics in Sheffield Hallam University, UK.

In line with her stellar academic credentials, Chinwe secured a Bilateral Education agreement between Nigeria and Russia including free tuition, maintenance, insurance, book and travel allowances from the Russian and Nigerian governments, at Tver State Technical University and Moscow Power Engineering Institute.

She is also currently lecturing a range of engineering subjects at the undergraduate level. She is also fervently committed to inspiring young women to study Engineering and Science disciplines, and is a member of Women in science, Engineering and Technology of Sheffield Hallam University.

LINK: Chinwe explains the science behind the Festo robot arm (YouTube).

Nicholas Okoye

Nicholas Okoye (@NickyOkoye) is presently the President and Chief Executive Officer of Anabel Group Inc, the group includes Anabel Mobile Limited, Nigeria’s pioneer tier one Manufacturer of Smart Mobile Devices, online portals and data platforms, Anabel Capital, Advisor and capacity building Consultant to the Central Bank of Nigeria. Anabel Technology specializes in developing applications that allow groups, associations and corporations to share work reports off site and integrate solutions from anywhere in the World.

Nicholas Okoye is the founding Group Executive Director and the first Leader of the pioneer Executive team that set up the Transnational Corporation of Nigeria Plc (Transcorp), Nigeria’s first home grown conglomerate, involved in Oil, Gas, Hospitality and Agriculture. At Transcorp, Nicholas was responsible for rising over $1 billion USD in less than twelve months which was recorded and still is, one of Nigeria’s most successful capital raising exercises till date.


In 2005 Nicholas was nominated as one of the top forty Nigerians “under forty” by Nigeria’s leading News Papers. He was also nominated twice, first in 2006 and then 2008 as one of the top five most innovative young Executives in Nigeria by one of the Country’s leading New Papers, ThisDay, at its annual Thisday Awards ceremony.

Nicholas was educated at the Anambra State University of Technology where he gained a Bachelor’s degree in Applied Micro Biology and Genetic Engineering. He has participated in extensive higher educational programs including Executive Educational courses at Harvard Business School and London Business School. He is married with three children.

Ikenna Azuike

Ikenna Azuike (33) is an ex City lawyer turned internet personality and entrepreneur. After turning his back on a successful career as a lawyer in London, New York and Singapore, Ikenna took the surprising step of becoming a youtube video blogger focussed on Africa and an internet entrepreneur with a niche in sustainability. Four years on, Ikenna’s youtube show What’s Up Africa has a following of thousands. His foundation and company Strawberry Earth has also become a well established name in the sustainability field in the Netherlands.

Ikenna’s digital life is devoted to finding the latest creative and innovative trends being embraced by young Africans as well as by young people interested in living more sustainable lifestyles. He shares the results of his search through What’s Up Africa and Strawberry Earth.

In a nutshell What’s Up Africa is a youtube video blog launched in March 2011. The show features satirical news, comedy sketches, music and general creativity from the booming continent of Africa! In January 2012 What’s Up Africa was also recognised by US platform: TheRoot.com as one of the 25 “blogs to watch” in 2012.

Strawberry Earth is a platform built around a community of people interested in sustainable lifestyle. Since its launch in December 2008, Strawberry Earth has grown from a weekly blog about sustainable design to a platform offering: daily sustainable inspiration to thousands of people, creative events and fantastic deals on great items. Strawberry Earth’s media partnership with PresentPlus means it is now a pivotal platform linking sustainable businesses and initiatives with young and influential creatives all over the world.

Ikenna is regularly invited to host Africa and sustainability related events where the emphasis is on creative branding, internet trends, new media journalism and digital life in general, and he does so with enthusiasm and lots of energy.

YouTube Channel

Source: http://thenextspeaker.com/

Enyinne Owunwanne

In 2008, Enyinne ( @enyinneo ), a former Hedge Fund Operations Analyst, decided to leave the world of Wall Street behind and pursue a path of entrepreneurship.

She started Heritage1960, a blogzine and an online retail destination offering a curated view of global African fashion, lifestyle, and design.  Named after the year 17 African countries won their independence, Heritage1960 celebrates freedom, individuality and unique style inspired by the continent.

Born in the US, Enyinne grew up in Kuwait and has lived and studied in Philadelphia. She has a Masters Degree in Global Fashion Management and worked as a US Business Development Manager at London-based trend forecasting company Worth Global Style Network (WGSN). 

H1960MUSE is Enyinne’s Tumblr moodboard, “a collection of people, places and things that inspire” her. She is one to watch.

Emmanuel Ohuabunwa

Emmanuel Ohuabunwa is an incredibly intelligent 22-year-old Nigerian, who in May 2012, emerged the best graduating student of John Hopkins University in the United States.

Ohuabunwa made history when he obtained a Grade Point Average of 3.98 out of a possible 4.0 to earn a degree in Neurosciences; he also holds the highest honours conferred during the May 24, 2012 graduation ceremony.

Ohuabunwa, who hails from Abia State, was born in Okota in Lagos State. He was 13 years old when, with his family, Ohuabunwa left the hustle, bustle and familiarity of Lagos, Nigeria for Houston, Texas.

An outstanding young mind, Emmanuel recently joined the Phi Beta Kappa community, a prestigious honor group that features membership of 17 US Presidents, 37 US Supreme Court Justices and 136 Nobel Prize winners. Emmanuel Ohuabunwa is currently furthering his studies at the Yale University School of Medicine.

Sunday Mba

Sunday Mba, born 28 November 1988 in Aba, Abia State, is a Nigerian football player who currently plays as a central midfielder for Nigerian Premier League club Warri Wolves.

He was a member of the Nigeria B team that won the 2010 WAFU Nations Cup and made his senior debut in the Eagles' 0-0 tie against Angola in January 2012. 

Sunday was called up to Nigeria's 23-man squad for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations. He scored the winning goal in Nigeria's 2-1 semi-final win over Côte d'Ivoire. On February 10, 2013, in the final against Burkina Faso, he scored the first and only goal of the game, displaying prodigious ball control with a right-footed juggle and a left-footed finish, to hand Nigeria their third Africa Cup of Nations title.

Source: Wikipedia

Kelvin Okafor

Artist Kelvin Okafor (@KOkaforart), whose accurate drawings are often mistaken for photographs, is making waves in the art world after scooping a number of national awards and exhibiting at galleries across the country.

The Middlesex University Fine Art graduate spends around 80-100 hours to complete his amazing pencil drawings over approximately three weeks in the studio.  The genre is known as ‘photo-realism’ and Kelvin creates his detailed work based on a mixture of life and photographs.

The highly skilled 27-year old has already had more than 50 commissions and is generating a buzz at galleries he exhibits at and online. One of his recent accolades, The Catherine Petitgas Visitors’ Choice Prize part of the National Open Art Competition, was awarded to Kelvin after he received the most votes from the public.  Kelvin has also recently been selected as one of the top two pieces of work in Cork Street Gallery Open Exhibition Winter Show.

Okafor also attended St Ignatius College, a prestigious Jesuit school in Enfield.

YouTube Channel
Flickr Photostream

Chinelo Okparanta

One to watch

Chinelo Okparanta received her BA in Secondary Education (French, English & Communications) from the Pennsylvania State University, her MA in English (17th & 18th Century British Literature, or The Restoration) from Rutgers University, and her MFA in Fiction from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. Among other honors, she is the recipient of the Coral Lansbury Graduate Award for Academic Excellence at Rutgers University, and the Dean’s Graduate Fellowship at the University of Iowa.

She was one of Granta's six New Voices for 2012 and has stories forthcoming from Conjunctions, Subtropics, and elsewhere.

Granta is a literary magazine and publisher in the United Kingdom whose mission centers on its "belief in the power and urgency of the story, both in fiction and non-fiction, and the story’s supreme ability to describe, illuminate and make real.

Ogo Offodile

Ogo Offodile is a New York based fashion stylist whose passion for creative expression and eclectic work can been seen across new stands, billboards, and numerous red carpets. Best known for her work styling Solange Knowles, her experiences range from styling fashion editorials to advertisements, campaigns, music videos, celebrity styling, brand consulting, and much more.

She attributes a large portion of her creative influences to the "geek" in her and derives strengths from her vibrant multicultural Nigerian background. With a boundless creative vision, keen eye for detail and versatile approach to styling that explores the unique experiential relationship with fashion, art and technology it is no wonder her work has carved its unique signature and captivated the attention of A-list celebrities and publications like Vogue, Glamour, Harper's Bazaar, In Style, Marie Claire, and Women's Wear Daily.

Adaora Akubilo

Nigerian-American model Adaora Akubilo (@AdaoraAkubilo) is one of the few models who got a coveted spot in Sports Illustrated’s 2012 Swuimsuit Edition. The annual swimsuit issue has elevated the careers of supermodels and superstars including Tyra Banks and Beyonce. Adaora was photographed by Walter Iooss Jr. in Cairns, Queensland, Australia.

Born in Windsor, Connecticut, USA, Adaora has worked for Garnier Nutrisse, Burt’s Bees, Verizon Wireless,Target, Zappos, House of Dereon, Ray Ban, Essence, Seventeen, Abercrombie, Glamour, CosmoGirl, Agatha, Mary Kay, YourProm, Jewel and Ebony Magazine.

One to watch! 

Vera Ephraim

Vera Ephraim's full name is Vera Nkechi Anenyeonu. She is from Anambra state, Nigeria.

Vera is a celebrated Nigerian Award wining Dancer, Choreographer and international Actress who has worked with Lavelle Smith Jr.(Micheal Jackson and Beyounce's choreographer) and collaborated also with the likes of Orlando Julius, Hugh Masakela and Femi Kuti.

Vera has starred, co-starred and guest starred in theatre, film, television,Tv commercials, music videos and Radio. Since in South Africa, she has featured in top drama series like Generations, Intersextions, Jacobs Cross and played the role of Ayo in Lifestyles, a Nigerian soap opera.

She is the CEO,founder/artistic director of Vera's Danse Hauz.

Jason Njoku

Jason Njoku is the founder and CEO of Iroko Partners, the largest digital distributors of Nigerian music and movies, with a library of over 1600 licensed movies. Mr. Njoku’s, Iroko Partners, consist of 5 web brands; iROKOtv, iROKING, iROKtv, NollywoodLove and YorubaLove. Mr. Njoku is building a modern digital distribution infrastructure using Amazon Web Services, Ooyala and several video ad networks, to service the second largest movie industry in the world (by volume), Nollywood, or Nigerian cinema.

According to Pando Daily’s,last year Iroko did eight million YouTube streams a month, with a $1 million revenue run-rate. This traffic has soared.

Mr. Njoku holds a BSc, Chemistry from The University of Manchester, University of Manchester - Manchester Business School, 2002 – 2005. He was a speaker at TEDxEuston 2012.

Uzoamaka Maduka

Uzoamaka Maduka, 24, and a recent Princeton graduate, is the founder and Editor-in-chief of American Reader, a new monthly literary magazine aimed at intelligent young people between the ages of 25 and 35.

American Reader is devoted solely to literature and literary criticism. This sets it apart from established names such as Harper’s and the New Yorker, which also include reportage.

It is committed to inspiring literary and critical conversation among a new generation of readers, and restoring literature to its proper place in the American cultural discourse.

The American Reader serves as a hardy and handy compendium of new literature and current critical and industry-related discussions. It will feature new fiction; new poetry; translated portfolios of international fiction, poetry, and drama; well-argued reviews of new literature; considered essays on all matters literary; and occasional interviews with writers, publishers, editors, and various industry professionals.

TheAmericanReader.com provides a free-ranging, dynamic space for readers to take up the conversation inaugurated in our pages.

Jekwu Anyaegbuna

Jekwu Anyaegbuna was raised and educated in Nigeria where he qualified as a chartered accountant. A graduate of the University of Ilorin, he writes both poetry and prose; and his work has been widely published, or will be published, in literary journals in the United States and the UK including Ambit, Orbis, Word Riot, Other Poetry, The Journal, Bow-Wow Shop, Eclectica Magazine, Atticus Review, Yuan Yang Journal, The Talon Magazine, Dark Lady Poetry, Asinine Poetry, Vox Poetica, Breadcrumb Scabs, Haggard and Halloo, New Black Magazine, Pattaya Poetry Review, Dcomp Magazine, Tipton Poetry Journal, Obsession, Black Heart Magazine and many other places. 

Jekwu lives, works and writes in Lagos and he won the 2012 Commonwealth Short Story Prize for Africa for “Morrison Okoli (1955-2010)". It was first published in June 2012 as part of a collaboration between Granta Magazine (granta.com) and Commonwealth Writers. 

Nkemdilim Uwaje

Miss Uwaje is a Director of Future Software Resources Nigeria Ltd.. She attained a BSc. Hons in Bioinformatics at the Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU), as well as the Technical University of Munich (TUM) Germany. She has worked on various research projects at the Max Planck Institute for Psychiatric Research in the department for Statistical Genetics and Proteomics, as well as for the Pharmaceutical Company Affectis Pharmaceuticals AG, Germany. These research projects encompass the development of software solutions for complex biological as well as chemical calculations and simulations, database design and administration as well as statistical analysis.

After re-locating to Nigeria in 2005 Miss Uwaje was involved in various research projects, such as the Wazobia Linux initiative, the E-Government Interoperability Framework, NITDA Open Standards Framework, as well as the deployment of e-commerce and e-portal solutions in the Nigerian public and private sector.

In early 2008 she took up her position as a Director of Future Software Resources Nigeria Ltd. and re-branded the company, thus changing its focus from stand-alone solutions to web-based educational, enterprise and business solutions.

Nkem is also a co-founder of Bake for Change, a charity baking club that is focused on empowering street children that are being catered to in 7 Lagos State run homes. Their activities span from renovation projects to educational initiatives.

Nkem @ TEDxIfe

Sources: The Naija Careerist, TED, YouthAward.org

Hugo Obi

Serial entrepreneur Hugo Obi is currently pioneering the African electronic gaming world with Maliyo Games, a Lagos-based startup that specialises in creating games with an African stamp.

The online games company has already published several African themed titles including Okada Ride, Kidnapped, Class Fight, Football Goal, Aboki and Mosquito Smasher. The firm is set to release additional titles throughout 2012 making African games available not only to Nigerians and Africans, but to Africans in the diaspora and people the world over.

Maliyo Games titles are currently available as web browser based games and the company is on track to release their first mobile title in Q3 2012.

Hugo has a B.A. (Hons.) degree in International Business, Finance and Economics from the University of Manchester. He also studied Strategy at Singapore’s Nanyang Business School before joining General Electric in London as a Financial Analyst.

Hugo is one to watch.

Source: Mobile Entertainment Africa, TechLoy

Emeka Okoro

Emeka Okoro is a Igbo artist who left his architecture studies to pursue business administration, banking and painting. His work recalls the art of the 1960's Oshogbo movement in the southwest Nigerian state of Oshun with its geometric forms and vivid colors. The art of this movement and subsequently the art of Emeka Okoro celebrate both traditional subject matter and modern artistic styles. Emeka integrates Christian imagery into some of his work as well.

Emeka has had three major art exhibitions (in Charlotte, North Carolina and in Atlanta, Georgia) and has clients and benefactors that span the globe from the United States, Japan, and Nigeria. He is currently in the process of building a body of work for his upcoming exhibition in the United States. Emeka continues to seek other media to showcase his work – particularly in the commercial space.  You can find Emeka’s work on stamps, shoes, neckties, t-shirts, bags, as well as rugs (currently in production).

Emeka holds a bachelors degree in Finance and a Masters of Business Administration (MBA) in General Management.

Obiora Okafor

The son of an Ibo lawyer Okafor studied, practiced and taught law in Nigeria before coming to Canada. He won a scholarship to the University of British Columbia, earned two graduate degrees and joined Osgoode Hall Law School in 2000.

At Osgoode, Obiora lectures on international human rights law, human rights in Africa and the international law of south-north relations.  In 2010 Professor Obiora Okafor was awarded the prestigious nationwide, 2010 Prize for Academic Excellence by the Canadian Association of Law teachers.

He is the first African and black person in history to receive a top Canadian nationwide award for academic excellence for his outstanding contributions to legal research and teaching in Canada and around the world.

His most recent research projects include a study of human rights activism in Nigeria and a comparison of refugee rights in Canada and the United States post 9/11.

He is also affiliated with York’s Centre for Refugee Studies, the Harriet Tubman Institute and the Graduate Program in Socio-Legal Studies.

Okafor has also served as an expert panelist for the UN Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent and a human rights consultant for the British Department for International Development. He has been a visiting scholar at the International Institute of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France, and in Harvard Law School’s Human Rights Program.

Professor Obiora Okafor was recently elected to the advisory committee of the United Nations Human Rights Council. He hails from Ukpo, Dunukofia Local Government Area of Anambra State.

Njideka Akunyili

US-based artist Njideka Akunyili is fast becoming the art world’s newest star. At this year’s Art Basel five of her large figurative collage paintings sold out in just half an hour. She was selected for the prestigious Studio Harlem residency program in 2011-2012 and is currently one of the three artists in its exhibition Primary Sources. Rumour has it that major collectors and museums are now vying for the works on show – an impressive feat for the recent Yale University MFA graduate.

Her art addresses her internal tension between her deep love for Nigeria, her country of birth, and her strong appreciation for Western culture, which has profoundly influenced both her life and her art. She uses her art as a way to negotiate her seemingly contradictory loyalties to both her cherished Nigerian culture that is currently eroding and to her white American husband. Most of the Nigerian traditions she experienced growing up are quickly disappearing due to the permeation of Western culture and the ensuing opinion that being ''too Nigerian'' is uncool.

Akunyili refers her work to Professor Homi Bhabha’s theory of hybridity and the ‘third space,’ in which cultures come together to create a new hybrid social space. It is this big mixed bag of emotions which clearly drives unique and beautiful art as in the case of Akunyili.Njideka was born in Enugu in 1983.

Ngozi Braide

Deputy Superintendent of Police, Ngozi Conchita Braide is the first female Lagos Police Command Public Relations Officer, PPRO.

She joined the Nigeria Police in 1996 as a Cadet Inspector and has attended several professional courses both within and outside Nigeria. She was part of the United Nations Peace Keeping Operation in Liberia in 2006 where she was appointed the head of Finance Unit of the United Nations Police in Liberia. There, she earned a commendation award for devotion to duty and hardwork.

Ngozi also served with International Criminal Police Organisation, INTERPOL between 1999 – 2003. While at INTERPOL, she was also attached to Organized Crime Division, OCD. From 2007, she worked at Force Intelligence Bureau (FIB) and Special Fraud Unit. While at the SFU, she was attached to Commercial Fraud Unit and later she rose to become the Sectional head of Oil and Gas Fraud Section.


Ngozi who hails from Imo State is  a graduate of English from the Lagos State University.

Chioma Amaechi

One to watch
Chioma Amaechi is a member of the USA's female Weightlifting team for the 2012 Olympic games in London. She’s the top junior female (20-and-under) in the country according to USA Weightlifting.

Born in San Fransico, Chioma attends UC Berkeley where she studies History and Education. 22 year old Chioma who began weightlifting in 2009 and will compete in the +75 weight class.

Paul Chiedozie

One to watch

Paul started his professional acting career at the age of 16, as an extra in harry potter and the goblet of fire. He went on to study performing arts at NewVic college, also joining east London's Theatre Royal putting on performances such as conflictions.

Paul got his first big role in the Feature turned Short Stick With Me, giving Paul the resources to open up his own performing arts company ZEMS. Paul will feature in Brash Young Turks, an expected blockbuster about several young people who collide as they struggle to deal with issues of greed, deception, money and power in an attempt to pursue their dreams.

We think he is one to watch.

Prosper Nwankpa

Mr. Prosper Nwankpa Co-Founded iVentster, Inc. and serves as its Chief Technology Officer. Mr. Nwankpa oversees the software development unit and directs his team in building highly available scaleable systems. Under he aegis of his software architectural genuis, his team has built the infrastructure behind Peanut Labs™ unique sampling technology.

He began his IT career in the early days of social media. Prior to Peanut Labs™, he co-founded, designed and built XuQa.com, a social network application, a competitor to MySpace, that grew to support a user base of more than 2 million monthly users and 500 million monthly page views.

In addition to his love of computers and software, he served as President of the Williams Institute of Technology (WIT) from 2002 to 2004, where he mentored aspiring web engineers. During his tenure, his team built a suite of applications that were immediately put to use by various departments of the college. He served as a Director of iVentster, Inc.

Chioma Okereke

One to watch

Chioma was born in Nigeria and came to London at the age of seven. She started her writing career as a poet before turning her hand to fiction. Her writing has been published in Bum Rush The Page and The Callaloo Literary Journal.

Additionally, her work has been shortlisted in the Undiscovered Authors Competition 2006, run by Bookforce UK, and in the Daily Telegraph's Write a Novel in a Year Competition in 2007.

 BITTER LEAF, Virago Press June 27, 2010,  was her first novel.

Victor Olisa

Victor Olisa is a Chief Superintendent with the London Metropolitan Police and the the first black commander for Bexley local council in London.

Olisa, 52, is one of the three chief superintendents from black minority ethnic background working for the Metropolitan Police.

He started his career in Surrey Police in 1982 before transferring to the City of London Police in 1990 as detective inspector in the Fraud Squad. After a spell at the Home Office, he transferred to the Metropolitan police in 2006 as a superintendent in Southwark Council before his recent appointment.

Catherine Ugwu

Catherine Ugwu is co-director of the Live Art Development Agency, London and joint artistic director of Keidan/Ugwu, an organization concerned with developing and positioning new performance work. Ms. Ugwu formerly served as deputy director of Live Arts at the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA), London (1991-1997). She is currently combined arts and drama advisor for The Arts Council of England and London Arts Board; board chair of the Talawa Theater Company; and board chair of the Showroom Gallery, London. She frequently organizes and contributes to national and international conferences, seminars and debates.

Catherine Ugwu got into "live arts" production working at the ICA in the nineties, and has been involved in performance arts ever since. The Millennium Dome opening was probably her first solo work - which brought her into contact with Mark Fisher. She went on to produce the opening and closing ceremonies for the Commonwealth Games in Manchester in 2002, the 2006 Asian Games in Doha, and was part of the team that produced the opening and closing of the Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Catherine and Mark are currently working with the Glasgow 2014 team to produce the Commonwealth Games flag handover, to be staged in Delhi in October 2010


Based at the Three Mill Studios in Bromley-by-Bow, Ugwu has been charged with the responsibility of producing the London 2012 opening ceremony.