Africa Accelerating Day 1: Champions of Accelerated Canada-Africa Business

Paula Caldwell St-Onge is a recipient of the Head of the Public Service Award for Excellence in Policy and the Queen’s Gold Jubilee medal. She worked in several government departments where she gained expertise in communications, environmental sustainability and political risk.

Randy McAuley's practice focuses on various aspects of corporate and securities law. He has acted for public and private entities, reporting issuers, investors and underwriters in capital markets transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance transactions and corporate reorganizations.

Justin Trudeau is Canada’s 23rd Prime Minister. Justin was elected Leader of the Liberal Party in April 2013. On October 19, 2015, he led his party to victory, winning a majority government. On October 21, 2019, he led the Liberal Party to re-election, earning a second mandate. On September 20, 2021, Justin once again led the party to re-election, earning a third mandate to govern from Canadians.

Samuel Matekane is the 10th Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Lesotho and was inaugurated as such on October 28, 2022.

William Ruto was sworn in on September 13, 2022, after winning the presidential election. Before ascending to be President, William served as the Deputy President of the Republic of Kenya from April 3, 2013, to September 12, 2022.

Mary Ng was first elected as the Member of Parliament for Markham—Thornhill in 2017. She previously served as Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business & Economic Development and as Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion & International Trade.

Joe Lombard is one of the world's foremost authorities on the design and construction of aluminum smelters, with more than 30 years of experience in the development and expansion of metallurgical facilities in Europe, North America and South Africa.

Neil Reeder joined B2Gold following a distinguished government career of over 35 years with Global Affairs Canada. He helped advance Canada's trade, foreign policy and development agenda during seven different diplomatic postings overseas and in increasingly senior positions in Ottawa.

Daniel Barankin is the founding CEO & Chairman of 6ix, where he leads the company's mission to eliminate barriers to investment through connected investor communities. Beyond his leadership at 6ix, Daniel serves on the board of the Canada-Africa Chamber of Business, where he has been elected five consecutive times, demonstrating his long-standing commitment to fostering economic ties between Canada and African nations. As founder of Save Canadian Mining, Daniel has led a significant advocacy initiative to restore fairness and transparency to Canada's capital markets, particularly for junior mining companies. Working alongside industry leaders like Eric Sprott and Rob McEwen, he has championed regulatory reform to address predatory short selling practices that disproportionately impact emerging resource companies, further demonstrating his commitment to creating equitable access to capital. Daniel's passion for international development and community building extends to sports, where he is an owner of the Ghanaian football club Sekondi Eleven Wise F.C., a historic team founded in 1919 that now stands over 106 years old with a rich legacy in Ghanaian football. A serial entrepreneur, investor, advisor and board member, Daniel's interests span a diverse range of sectors. His portfolio includes founding, advising, and investing in companies ranging from B2B, consumer, crypto, entertainment, hardware, luxury travel, natural resources, nutrition, software, specialty retail, and sports. He maintains an active investment portfolio that spans from early-stage startups to late-stage growth companies and venture funds globally. His track record includes involvement with companies that have grown from seed to multi-billion dollar market capitalizations, reflecting his ability to identify transformational opportunities across traditional industry boundaries and geographical limitations. Through these diverse roles, Daniel brings a unique global perspective to his vision of creating investment opportunities that transcend all barriers - whether geographical, socioeconomic, educational, or institutional - to democratize access to capital and expertise for innovators everywhere.

Louis Watum joined Ivanhoe Mines in December 2014 as General Manager of the company’s operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He is the lead manager of Ivanhoe’s mining development activities for the discovery of the Kamoa copper mine and the Kipushi zinc-copper-silver mine.

Susan Namulindwa is the Founder & Exec. Director of Africa Trade Desk; VP, Canada, of the Canada-Africa Chamber of Business; and Board Chair of the Afro Canadian Chamber of Commerce.

Sebastian Spio-Garbrah is Head of the AfCFTA Unit for Free Trade at the Canada-Africa Chamber of Business. He helped establish the Africa risk research practice at Eurasia Group, a leading global political risk consultancy firm.