Ryan Ombara, Project Leader, Open Capital Advisors

Ryan Ombara is a Project Leader at Open Capital Advisors with over eight years of experience in strategy consulting, development finance, and investment advisory across sub-Saharan Africa. He has extensive experience working with community-based organisations, governments, and foundations to design financing solutions and build organisational capacity for inclusive development. He recently co-facilitated Open Capital's three-day CBO financial management training with Aga Khan University’s Institute for Human Development and has supported organisations across East Africa to strengthen their financial management, governance, and impact storytelling.

Everlyne Okeyo, ECD Technical Specialist, Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University

Everlyne is an Early Childhood Development Specialist with over a decade of experience in managing ECD programmes across different contexts. She is currently the ECD Technical Specialist at Aga Khan University’s Institute for Human Development. She holds a master’s degree in education and a Diploma in Project Management. Over the years, she has led the development and delivery of various courses for different cadres of ECD stakeholders including government leaders and frontline workers in Kenya and beyond.

Prof. Robert Oostenveld, Associate Principal Investigator, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour

Prof. Oostenveld is internationally recognised for his pioneering contributions to neuroscience data analysis and brain imaging methodologies, particularly in EEG and MEG research. He is ranked among the world’s top 2,000 neuroscientists and among the top 100 in the Netherlands. He has also been named a Highly Cited Researcher in Neuroscience and Behaviour by Clarivate for seven consecutive years, among other international recognitions for his outstanding contribution to the field of neuroscience.

Dr Ronald Kipkirui, Aga Khan University, Institute for Human Development

Dr Ronald has experience applying neuroscientific techniques such as Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation and Electroencephalography. Previously, he applied TMS to understand the causal role of distinct brain areas in various aspects of human cognition, including executive functions. Dr Ronald is passionate about studying the neurophysiology of developmental disorders, particularly in children and adolescents, and examining conditions like HIV and Sickle Cell Disease.

Prof. Shawneequa Callier, Associate Professor, Department of Clinical Research and Leadership, George Washington University

Shawneequa Callier is an Associate Professor in the Department of Clinical Research and Leadership at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences in Washington, DC. She has nearly two decades of experience analyzing the ethical, legal, and social implications of emerging technologies, including genomics research, data science, and artificial intelligence.

Noni Mumba, Head of Engagement, KEMRI Wellcome Trust Research Programme

Noni Mumba is an engagement practitioner with over 10 years experience in community and public engagement for global health research in low-and-middle-income-country settings. This expertise also includes engaging with broader specific publics of interest, including local, national and international global health research stakeholders, including funders. Her role at KWTRP includes development of engagement strategies and innovative approaches for the engagement and involvement of host communities, stakeholders, and policy makers in research planning, conduct and uptake of findings into policy.

She is involved in building capacity of KWTRP engagement staff as well as researchers on engagement. In the last five years, this capacity strengthening has extended beyond KWTRP, through webinars, teaching engagements and collaborative research projects. She is a member of the Global Health Bioethics Network, the NIHR Community Engagement and Involvement Advisory Network, and has co-authored several publications on community engagement and ethics.

Dr Patricia Wekulo-Kitsao, Research Scientist and Lead, Early Childhood Development Unit, African Population and Health Research Center

Dr Patricia Kitsao-Wekulo is a Research Scientist and Lead of the Early Childhood Development Unit at the African Population and Health Research Center. Her work focuses on strengthening caregiving environments through evidence-based, scalable interventions that improve child development, caregiver well-being, and women’s economic empowerment. Her current research integrates neuroimaging, gender-transformative parenting, and childcare systems to generate policy-relevant evidence.

Dr Vibian Angwenyi, Assistant Professor, Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University

Dr Vibian Angwenyi is an Assistant Professor at Aga Khan University’s Institute for Human Development. She supports research on early childhood development, with a focus on parenting interventions and childhood disabilities, applying mixed-methods research and implementation science. She currently serves as the Nairobi-based project coordinator for the NIHR-funded multi-country collaborative research SPARK.