WASA Execs 2011
Wharton African Student Association (WASA) 2011 Executives
WASA is led by a highly dedicated group of individuals who ensure the association is well managed and efficiently run. Below are the current officers:
Abimbola
President
Abimbola Okeowo graduated from the School of Engineering and Applied Science at the University of Pennsylvania with a BSE in Systems Engineering. Immediately after graduating from Penn Engineering, she worked in the New York offices of Citi and Goldman Sachs where she traded interest rate derivatives and credit derivatives/loans. Most recently, she spent a couple of years working in Development Finance in Nigeria. The projects she worked on ranged from equity raises for affordable housing to principal investments for toll road projects. Abi plans to major in Multinational Management and will be pursuing a career in Strategic Consulting immediately after her MBA degree. Contact…
Evangeline
Evangeline is a 2012 MBA candidate majoring in Entrepreneurial Management and Finance. Prior to Wharton, she worked as an Associate in the Global Strategic Capital Group at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. At BAML, Evangeline focused on private equity investments that were a strategic priority to the bank. Prior to her role at BAML, she was an investment banker at Oppenheimer & Co. and a research associate at Cambridge Associates. At Wharton, she is actively involved with the African Students Association and the Private Equity/Venture Capital Club. Evangeline graduated from Dartmouth College with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Government. She is a dual Liberian and American citizen. Evangeline enjoys international travel and gourmet cooking. Contact…
CJ
Conference Co-Chair
CJ began his career at a New York-based emerging markets hedge fund, where he helped develop the firm’s Africa strategy. After New York, CJ moved to Dar es Salaam where he partnered with a Tanzanian advisory firm to execute regional M&A and fundraising strategies for local corporates. He concurrently founded a business that franchises American brands in East Africa. CJ is a graduate of Williams College, where he studied economics and political science.
Hatem
Hatem
CFO & Fundraising
Prior to Wharton, Hatem Sabry worked in Equity Research at EFG-Hermes covering stocks in the Middle East and North Africa. He also worked in Private Equity focusing on Egyptian SMEs. He will intern at Deutsche Bank London Investment Banking in 2011, and plans to work in Investment Banking/Private Equity after his MBA. Hatem graduated from Cairo University with a BA in Economics and is a CFA charterholder. He enjoys playing tennis, and is an avid soccer fan.
Essie
Co-VP, Prospective Students and Academics
Essie Yamoah is a 2012 MBA student majoring in Finance. Prior to Wharton, Essie worked as an Associate Consultant at Bain & Co. where she worked on strategy cases in a range of industries including Retail, Financial Services and Pharmaceuticals. Essie also spent a year working for TechnoServe Inc. in Kenya and Ghana developing strategies for the organization to expand its work with smallholder farmers through value chain improvements. Essie is currently completing a dual degree with the Harvard Kennedy School where she is majoring in International Development. At Wharton, Essie is also active in the Wharton Social Venture Fund and on the Volunteer Admissions Committee. Essie holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from Brown University.
Tunde
Co-VP, Prospective Students and Academics
Babatunde Ojo graduated with a BSc (Hons) Biochemistry from the University of Lagos and a Masters degree from Imperial College, University of London. Prior to attending Wharton he was the Head of Equity Research and Portfolio Manager at Asset & Resource Management (ARM) company and an Associate at PricewaterhouseCoopers. Babatunde is a CFA charterholder and plans to major in Finance and Strategic Management. He would love to continue a career in emerging market equity research after his MBA.
Lola
VP, External Affairs
Lola is a 1st year MBA student at Wharton, majoring in Finance. Prior to Wharton, she spent five years working as a project manager for HP, where she was responsible for advisory and implementation of IT and infrastructure projects for numerous clients across various industries. Lola holds a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering from North Carolina State University. Lola is passionate about promoting math and science education to middle and high school students in under-served communities, and is involved in community service, mentoring, and tutoring programs at Wharton. She enjoys reading mystery novels, running and spinning.
Tolu
VP, Internal Affairs
Tolu Owodunni graduated with a B.Sc in Electrical Engineering from the Johns Hopkins University in 2007 and worked as a Trader at Lehman Brothers, then at Nomura International both in London, in the UK prior to attending Wharton. He is planning on majoring in Finance and Multinational Management at Wharton and will be pursuing a career in International Finance after business school. He enjoys DJing.
VP, Careers
Bibi is a first year MBA candidate at Wharton. Prior to Wharton, Bibi worked for boutique financial services companies in Johannesburg, South Africa. Before moving to South Africa, Bibi worked in international development in DC, first as a consultant at a DC-based development consulting company and later at the World Bank.A native of Togo, Bibi holds a Master of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University and a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Rockford College. She enjoys film, cooking and all forms of arts, and hopes to continue working on her tennis game and rock climbing ability.
VP, Careers
Rachel Balsham graduated from Smith College in 2005 with a degree in Government and Economics. She worked for five years at the Millennium Challenge Corporation, focusing on Francophone Africa. A fluent French speaker, she is pursuing an MA in French and International Affairs through the Lauder Institute in addition to her MBA. At Wharton she plans to major in Finance and Strategic Management, with an aim to continue promoting economic growth in Africa after obtaining her MBA.
Ranga
Africa Trek Coordinator
Ranga is a first year MBA student at the Wharton School, majoring in Business and Public Policy. Prior to Wharton, he was a consultant at Bain & Company in Boston and Melbourne, Australia, covering a broad range of industries from medical devices and packaging to telecommunications, grocery retail and industrial manufacturing. A Zimbabwean native, Ranga graduated from Harvard University in 2007 with an AB in Applied Mathematics (Economics). He is a classical pianist, a member of the squash and boxing clubs, and a staff writer for the Wharton Journal.
Sanaz
Africa Trek Coordinator
Sanaz Memarsadeghi graduated with a BA in Geography from UC Berkeley and a Master’s in International Finance and Economic Policy from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs. Prior to Wharton she worked in international development. She served as a Peace Corps Small Enterprise Development Advisor in Burkina Faso and subsequently as the Senior Program Officer for Microfinance at The Hunger Project (THP), where she supervised the implementation of THP’s microfinance initiative across eight countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. She has also conducted economic research and policy analysis for the Institute for Food and Development Policy, USAID Mali, and UNDP’s Office of Development Studies. At Wharton Sanaz is pursuing a double major in Finance and Management.
Kofi
Chief Information Officer
Kofi Darkoh is a 2012 MBA Candidate in Finance and Strategic Management. Prior to Wharton, he worked at Ernst & Young’s Financial Services Office, providing economic consulting services to banks and other financial institutions in the New York area. Kofi is also a co-founder of a fledgling magazine based in Accra, Ghana, as well as a non-profit organization supporting education in Ghana. He enjoys soccer, boxing and live jazz music. Kofi graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a BA in Economics.