He was elected Best Finance Minister for the MENA region for 2012 and Minister of Finance of 2012 by The Banker, a magazine of the Financial Times press group. On August 2013 he was appointed to head the Conseil Economique, Social et Environnemental .

Since 2012, he has been the host of the international talk show “Quadriga” on Deutsche Welle TV. In addition to his distinguished career in journalism, Aslan has also served for two terms as a policy and media advisor to the German government, including the Federal Foreign Office and the Federal Ministry of the Interior. Aslan holds a master’s of international affairs and a master’s of journalism from Columbia University. He received his bachelor’s in international politics from Georgetown University.

Her current focus is on education and training activities related to women, peace, and security. She coordinated the 2015 publication, Women on the Frontlines of Peace and Security. She is also the editor and author of Fighting Chance: Global Trends and Shocks in the National Security Environment. Arnas is a graduate of Louisiana State University and holds a master’s degree in political science. She has previously worked at the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Senate, the U.S. Government Accountability Office, and the European Parliament.

He has had extensive experience in peacekeeping operations, having served as a deputy commanding officer with the UN Transitional Authority in Cambodia, a military observer with the UN Iraq–Kuwait Observation Mission, personnel officer with the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, and platoon commander with UN Emergency Force II. He was also a member of the UN Military Liaison Team deployed to prepare grounds for the insertion of the UN Protection Force into former Yugoslavia in 1992.

She leads energy and natural resource origination and manages key sector relationships for Lagos-based FBN Capital, part of West Africa’s largest banking group, FBN Holdings. In May 2015, she was named Africa’s Best Oil and Gas Analyst by the Energy & Corporate Africa organization. Akinkugbe has worked for the private and public sector and is a member of the board of directors of the Business Council for Africa. She holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree from the London School of Economics.

In that capacity, he served as the alternate chief negotiator for the Doha Round and head of Nigeria’s Trade Office in the WTO. Agah served as chair of the WTO’s General Council in 2011. He has previously worked as a lecturer at Kaduna Polytechnic, senior features writer/circulation manager with Benue Printing and Publishing Corporation, and sales manager with Benue Bottling Company Limited. Agah holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in economics from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria.

Olukorede Adenowu is managing director and co-head of financial institutions for Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) in Africa. With 28 years of experience in banking and consulting, he has served as managing director for SCB West and Central Africa, deputy managing director of SCB Cameroon, and director in wholesale bank in SCB Nigeria. He was a founding staff member of SCB Nigeria and has held several positions in the SCB Group in the last 15 years. Adenowu has been a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria since 2000.

He is also the industry leader of energy and resources in Deloitte West Africa. In his role, he leads and manages the Energy and Resources Unit. Abegunde is a graduate of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife where he received his bachelor’s degree in management & accounting and a master’s degree in business administration. He is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (FCA) and an associate of the Chartered Institute of Taxation in Nigeria. He is also a graduate of the Pan Atlantic University (AMP) in Lagos.

He is the author and editor of such books as Preventing Deadly Conflict, Arab Spring: Negotiating in the Shadow of the Intifadat, and The Global Power of Talk, Negotiation and Conflict Management. He is former president and founding executive secretary of the Middle East Studies Association founding president of the American Institute for Maghrib Studies, and past president of the Tangier American Legation Institute for Moroccan Studies. He received a Ph.D. from Yale and an honorary doctorate from the Catholic University of Louvain.

Yearwood is a regular guest on national and international radio and television news programs, including National Public Radio, Al Jazeera, BBC and China Central Television. A highly gifted public speaker, Yearwood has been sought out by many global organizations, including the American Jewish Committee, the Toronto Global Forum, the Atlantic Dialogues, the Palm Beach Strategic Forum, the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, and G8 Youth Leaders. He earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Connecticut.