Thorsten holds a Master in Economic Geography, Sociology and Political Sciences from University of Bonn and Bologna. From 2000 - 2003 Thorsten worked as Research Fellow at the Universities of Bonn and Bristol within a research project on regional innovation development. From 2003 - 2010 he worked as Project Manager and Deputy Head of Unit at the Economic Development Agency Dortmund and was responsible for acquisition campaigns in ICT, MEMS and logistics industries in South Korea, Singapore and Turkey. In 2010 he was appointed as Chief Executive Officer of EffizienzCluster Management GmbH (ECM), today Digital Hub Management GmbH (DHM). In 2016 he was additionally appointed as Head of Unit Strategic Initiatives at Fraunhofer IML. In 2018 he was appointed as CFO of International Data Spaces Association IDSA.

Thorsten focuses his work on the management and coordination of innovation networks, initiatives and clusters. He uses stakeholder engagement and qualitative research methods as well as strategic foresight tools.

Sendy Limited, a Tech Logistics platform making it easier for businesses to trade in Africa. Headquartered in Nairobi, Sendy was launched in 2015, has raised over $30m in funding, and today boasts a team of 250 full-time employees across Kenya, Uganda, and Ivory Coast, supporting over 60,000 businesses and 10,000 Transporters.

Before Sendy, Malaika was a Principal at Savannah Fund in Kenya where she worked on 16 different early stage tech investments across Africa. Previously Malaika worked for Mobius Motors in Nairobi and TomTom in Amsterdam.

Malaika holds a BA in International Relations and Economics from University of Pennsylvania and London School of Economics, and a MSc in Economics from Tilburg University and Toulouse School of Economics.

With a career span of over 28 years in the international logistics industry, Stephane Jarmache has meandered through the specialized and celebrated halls of the supply chain sector.

He started his career in California with JAS WORLDWIDE, where he held various roles for 26 years between the USA and the Middle East.

As a real challenger and believer, in September 2019, Stephane took on the role of CEO Middle East North Africa with Integrated Service Solutions, a brand-new Dubai based Freight forwarding company, with offices in over 25 countries.

I am a strategic business leader with 15 years experience in product supply, business, and organization management. I have a wealth of experience in product supply spanning from sourcing of raw & pack materials, through manufacturing and distribution of finished products, to product display on customer shelves. I have led several innovation projects in material optimization, product formulation, supply network design, and Go-To-Market transformation.

I have experienced and enjoyed diversity of talents and cultures, having lived and worked in Nigeria, Switzerland, Kenya, and UAE, with responsibilities that cut across several countries. Excellent people management is the foundation of my career and business goals because, I believe in the power of “capable and motivated” organization.

I derive satisfaction in leveraging my wealth of experience and resources to improve the lives of the people around me and make positive impacts in the communities I live and work in.

Kingsly has spent the most part of his 14 year professional carrier helping international traders, insurance companies and shipping lines seamlessly manage their cargo claims. In 2018, he founded OPTIMIZ with the goal of digitising the cargo inspection process and automate cargo claims resolution.