Ayodeji Balogun, AMIP Lagos 2011

Lagos Business School‪ 2011

Ayodeji comes to the Foundation with experience as an entrepreneurand has also spent some time as an analyst with Unilever Nigeria Plc. and Doreo Partners – an agriculture consulting firm. Ayodeji is an alumnus of the pioneer African Markets Internship Programme. He holds an MBA from the Lagos Business School, BSc. In Mech. Engineering from Lagos State University and a Diploma (Distinction) in Heavy Equipment Engineering from Penn Foster Career School, USA.‬

Thomas Venon, AMIP Accra 2011

University of Capetown Business School 2011

A French national, Thomas spent over ten years working in financial markets, most recently employed at the Royal Bank ofScotland, focusing on private equity and hedge fund investments. He holds a Masters in Finance degree from the University of Melbourne, a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration and International Economics from the American University inParis, and recently graduated with distinction from the University of Cape Town with an MBA. He wrote his MBA research report on the case for foreign private equity investment in South Africa. The paper will be presented at the 2011 Global Development Finance Conference in Dubai in November. Thomas' interests reflect his deep commitment to the African continent and his conviction of the critical role of the investment community must play in its future economic development.

Michelle Larivee, AMIP Nairobi 2011

Wharton 2012

Michelle Larivee is a second year student pursuing a dual-degree MBA/MA in International Studies at The Wharton School. Prior to Wharton, Michelle spent 2 years at International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank, where she traveled to Asia, South America, and the Middle East analyzing equity and debt investments in the pharmaceutical and construction materials sectors. Before IFC, Michelle was an Associate at Merrill Lynch in the Public Finance Healthcare Group where she structured capital solutions involving taxable and tax-exempt debt and derivative structures for healthcare and higher education clients. Michelle holds a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service, cum laude, from Georgetown University. Her interests include international travel, farmers’ market cooking, biking and wine discovery.