PROF. STEFAN ALLESCH-TAYLOR CBE | FOUNDER & CHAIRMAN

Professor Stefan Allesch-Taylor CBE is a London-based financier, entrepreneur, charity chairman and philanthropist with over 25 years’ experience in business startups, turnarounds and public companies. He has served on boards in Europe and the USA as CEO, chairman or senior non-executive director for both public and private companies. He has served on the boards of companies in the property, retail, industrial, financial services, banking, asset management, hospitality, technology and medical sectors.

Stefan is a recognised advocate of using entrepreneurship as a force for social change and social mobility in both the UK and Africa. He is the chairman of Pump Aid, an international charity providing clean water and clean water solutions to Zimbabwe and Malawi. Since inception Pump Aid has provided over 10% of all rural water points for both countries, providing clean water to more than 1.5 million people. Pump Aid is a multi award-winning charity, winning Charity of the Year 2017 (International Aid & Development) at the UK Charity Awards for its self-supply entrepreneurial driven solution. The Charity has won financial support from the UK’s Department for International Development for the last five years and has partnered with many respected NGOs including UNICEF.

Stefan is the chairman of Team Up, a charity in the UK recruiting a volunteer network of university students to give tuition to the most disadvantaged children attaining their GSCEs in the UK. He is also the deputy chairman and co-founder of the Central London Rough Sleepers Committee (CLRSC), providing events and assistance to vulnerable homeless people in Central London. Since its founding 10 years ago the CLRSC has provided events every two weeks and served over 12,000 meals in restaurant pop-ups. Stefan also chairs a number of social ventures and socially impactful startup businesses in the UK and South Africa.

Stefan is a supporter of diversity and new talent in film making, having been an executive producer on over a dozen short films and a feature, regularly adding to his slate. He is a partner and judge for the annual Triforce Short Film Festival, promoting diversity in film, held at BAFTA each year.

In 2016 he was appointed the first professor in the Practice of Entrepreneurship at King’s College London, a globally ranked top 20 university. Stefan lectures and provides master classes at both the Business School and the Entrepreneurship Institute.

Stefan was appointed a CBE in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours 2014 for services to charity and philanthropy in the UK and Africa.

CAMILLE PATERSON | PROGRAMME DIRECTOR

Cape Town born and educated, Camille studied public relations and journalism and has over 13 years’ experience in the corporate hospitality. She worked as an adviser to The Afri-CAN Cafés in Malawi and was the driving force in bringing the project to South Africa.

While still passionate about the Café project, her key focus is on making South Africa better through education. Knowing that the majority of South Africa’s youth are from disadvantaged backgrounds, she believes that the only way they can pull themselves out of poverty is through education. To do this requires a strong foundation and healthy brain development. Cami is widely considered throughout the Afri-CAN Charity to be the heart of the Charity, the person who with genuine compassion, zeal and purpose keeps the team focused on making a real difference where it matters most – in the education and nutrition of South Africa’s children.

She says: “I have always been someone who wants to help. Now I can help effectively where our impact is measurable. The long-term impact will only be seen in years to come but right now I know that what we are doing as a Charity will make a huge difference to thousands of children’s lives.”

ROBERT RAW | FINANCE DIRECTOR

Born and raised in Cape Town, Robert has broad-based experience providing management accounting support and tax administration to various nonprofits and for-profit companies in and around Cape Town. He worked in the United States for six years and comes with a wealth of knowledge in this area.

Robert’s passion is to support business growth and development through providing financial information for business decision-making. His involvement with Afri-CAN Cafe is exciting to him – not only for the growth of the business and the concept but for the opportunities, it provides the cafe staff to grow in skills, training and to find employment.

ASHLEY LOPEZ | DIRECTOR OF MENTORING

Ashley Lopez BA, MA, MSc, studied in her native Chicago and latterly in London. She is a partner in and currently serves as the Chief Executive OfficerCEO of the Department of Coffee & Social Affairs, a fast growing independent coffee company based in Central London. Ashley is a Founding Member of the Central London Rough Sleepers Committee (‘CLRSC’). The CLRSC provides meals and services to the homeless and rough sleepers in Central London and has served 10,000 meals since it’s inception.

She is also the Non-Executive Chairman of The Goldfinger Factory, a London based social enterprise that is an up-cycling production and learning hub for the training, support and inspiration of London’s most disadvantaged residents to create desirable furnishings and fits-outs for London’s trendsetters with a social conscience.

In June 2015 Ashley joined in June 2015, the Board of Business for Social Progress, a new forum established by UCL’s Institute for Global Prosperity, where business leaders discuss how to implement the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in today’s business world.

Ashley holds a BA in Law from Winona State University, an MSc in Law & Finance from Queen Mary University, London and an MA in Management from the University of Westminster, London.

MATTHEW GILL |  DIRECTOR

Matthew Gill has been part an executive director of a number of public and private organiszations, both public and private over the last 15 years in the US and United Kingdom. He has worked principally in corporate start- ups and turnarounds as CEO in a variety of sectors, including property, technology, food retail and financial services.

He is also a Co-Founder and Deputy Chairman of the Department of Coffee and Social Affairs Ltd. and is responsible for the roll- out and management of a growing number of artisan coffee -shops in Central London which sell, selling in excess of more than 1 million cups of coffee per year.

Matthew is a founder member of The Central London Rough Sleepers Committee and, providing free meals and support for the homeless in Central London. Since inception in 2008 it has served over 10,000 meals. He also serves as a Director of Pump Aid, an award winning UK charity that has provided clean water to over 1.35 million people in the poorest communities in rural Malawi and Zimbabwe.

CHARLES KAY | DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR

Charles Kay is a UK- based entrepreneur and consultant. He has operated in Sales, Business Development and Customer Retention in both the public and private sectors. Charles is the co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of iSculpt, an innovative medical technology company and under 52VBL Ltd he holds a number of patents in defence medical technologies.

He spent the first half of his career in the Interactive Entertainment industry with companies such as Sega, Virgin, GT Interactive and Codemasters. With the advent of online, he specialised in developing methods of monetising content for gaming, music and film publishers with Exent Technologies and The Royal Bank Of Scotland. Since 2009, Charles has also undertaken various projects on behalf of the private office of Prof Stefan Allesch-Taylor CBE, a London based Financier and Entrepreneur. These projects have involved roles within a London based Investment Bank, as Commercial Director for a UK based financial services PLC and Communications Director of the award winning UK charity Pump Aid. CharlesHe also co-presents Stefan’s Social Experience Radio Show on London’s Soho Radio interviewing social entrepreneurs based in the UK.

ALAN FLEMING | DIRECTOR

Alan has been involved in community-based upliftment and support projects for 30 years, from smallholder agricultural development work in Brazil and the Caribbean, to enterprise development work in the townships of Cape Town. He spearheaded the development of a non-profit organisation specialising in township-based entrepreneurship, growing it over ten years into one of the largest asset-based non-profit companies in the region.

Alan believes the future of South Africa is assured only through education, and has joined The Afri-CAN Charity to drive this vision through their various Early Childhood Development programmes. He says: “Of all my work, this is the most exciting. Ensuring the future success of an entire generation through quality education and nutrition at an early age is the best investment a nation can make.”

GORDON ROSS | DIRECTOR OF Afri-CAN YOUNG EAGLES FOOTBALL ACADEMY

Gordon Ross is a recent arrival to South Africa, having lived in London, Scotland, and America for the past 30 years. He has studied aArchitecture, Bbiology, Ggenetic Eengineering, and Russian at universities in four4 countries, and speaks five5 languages. He has had a varied career in art, interior design, journalism, video game development, and environmental and political campaigning. Gordon is excited to be part of the Afri-CAN Young Eagles Football Academy which, that is making a positive difference in young people’s lives.

TAWANDA GUMBO | EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT CENTRES

Tawanda was born and raised in Harare, Zimbabwe. He graduated from Speciss College in 2003 and started working for Cimas Medical Aid Society in 2005. In 2008 he relocated to Cape Town in search of a better standard of living for his family. He worked as a gardener, painter, construction labourer, pest control assistant and sales representative. While working as a sales representative for Classic Home Improvements, Tawanda was assigned as project manager for their client, Afri-CAN Charity. He was tasked with evaluating ECDCs that had the potential to join the Afri-CAN Charity programme, assessing what the ECDCs needed to become compliant with regulatory bodies and then getting their infrastructure compliant for registration. During this project he became very passionate about ECDCs and when the opportunity arose to work for Afri-CAN Charity, Tawanda did not hesitate. He is involved in the School Meal Programme and in impact evaluation.

NOSISEKO SISWANA | EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT CENTRES

Nosiseko (“Nosi”) has a passion for working with young children, and volunteers at various community initiatives to facilitate education, homework and afterschool care. She has worked as a teacher’s assistant at Oranjekloof Moravian Primary School in Hout Bay, as assistant coach for the girls’ soccer team, Happy Hearts, and as team leader for the City of Cape Town’s Sport and Recreation department. She is an active role player in the development of the Hout Bay Imizamo Yethu community and loves to inspire economic independence, encouraging both young and old to become self-employed entrepreneurs. Nosi is on the Board of Thula Thula, an organisation that facilitates disaster relief in Hout Bay. She heads up the Hout Bay ECDCs.