Upcoming ACFR Europe Program Launch
The 2026 High- Level Conference
A landmark gathering of thought leaders, policymakers, and practitioners charting the future of transatlantic cooperation on governance, peace, and sustainable development.
Transatlantic Cooperation
July 31, 2026
11:00 AM ET • Virtual
The 2026 conference brings together leading experts, policymakers, and practitioners to explore innovative approaches to shared challenges in governance, peace, security, and sustainable development. Through strategic dialogue and collaborative problem-solving, we will chart pathways for strengthened transatlantic cooperation and institutional partnerships.
This year's conference emphasizes the critical importance of building resilient institutions, advancing democratic governance, and fostering sustainable development in an era of rapid global change. Participants will engage in substantive discussions on policy innovation, institutional reform, and the future of European-African partnerships.
Meet Our Speakers
Get to know the passionate voices behind our events, each bringing unique experience and expertise.
Opening Remarks
Dr. Jean Narcisse Djaha
Dr. Jean Narcisse Djaha is a senior global executive and strategic advisor operating at the highest levels of corporate diplomacy, multilateral engagement, and global strategy. As Global Executive Chair of the African Council on Foreign Relations (ACFR) and Global Chair of Foreign Relations at ACFR Global, he leads cross‑border initiatives that strengthen institutional resilience, elevate executive decision‑making, and shape the strategic posture of organizations navigating geopolitical complexity.
A Distinguished IR Scholar and Ivorian Disruptive Author, Dr. Djaha is recognized as the Father of the Market‑Made World Order (MMWO)—a pioneering paradign that redefines how corporations, governments, and multilateral institutions compete and collaborate in a world driven by markets, technology, and systemic disruption. His work also advances the AIEO, a new architecture for influence and executive order in the 21st century.
He is the author of several groundbreaking books, including Market Power & The New Geopolitical CEO (2026), The Incoming Market Made World Order (June 2026), Geopolitics of AI (Feb. 2026).
Conference Chair
Keynote Speaker
Ambassador (Retried) Charles Ray
Charles Ray retired from the US Foreign Service in 2012 after a 30-year career. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, he spent 20 years in the US Army, retiring with the rank of Major. During his army career, he did two tours in Vietnam, served in Military Intelligence, Special Operations and Public Affairs, with assignments in Germany, Korea, Vietnam, and Panama, as well as several posts in the United States.
He currently teaches three online graduate courses for Arizona State University, on the geopolitics of Africa and the Indo-Pacific and the International Affairs and Leadership program’s Capstone course.
He is a member of the American Foreign Service Association, a fellow of the American College of National Security Leaders, a member of the American Academy of Diplomacy, a member of the board of the Cold War Museum, and a member of the Association of Black American Ambassadors.
Distinguished Speaker
Prof. Andrew Defor
Professor Andrew Defor is the Executive Director of the Center for Global Health Security and Diplomacy
Distinguished Speaker
Prof. Chimezie Anyakora
Professor Chimezie Anyakora is the Chief Executive Officer of Bloom Public Health and a leading pharmaceutical chemist with extensive experience in public health and medicines quality across Africa. He holds a PhD in Pharmaceutical Chemistry and taught for over a decade at the University of Lagos, where he was named Researcher of the Year in 2009. A prolific scholar, he has supervised multiple PhD students and published widely in his field.
He has served in several academic roles, including professor at Pan Atlantic University, adjunct professor at Nnamdi Azikiwe University, and postgraduate supervisor at the University of Western Cape. He founded the Centre for Advanced Research on Separation Science and has contributed to institutional development initiatives such as the African University of Science and Technology, Abuja.
Professor Anyakora previously served as Nigeria Country Director for the United States Pharmacopeia, leading the Promoting the Quality of Medicines program and supporting public health projects across numerous African countries. Today, he leads Bloom Public Health’s continental work in Nigeria, Rwanda, Botswana, and Cameroon, with a growing focus on vaccine policy and ecosystem development, including support for Nigeria’s National Vaccine Policy and WHO‑funded vaccine manufacturing mapping.
Chief Executive Officer, Bloom Public Health
Distinguished Speaker
Dr. Ibrahima Amadou Niang
Dr. Ibrahima Amadou Niang is a highly acclaimed Governance Team Leader within the UNDP Senegal Country Office. He has over 18 years of experience working in governance, including for notable organizations such as the Open Society Foundations (Global Programmes and West Africa (OSIWA)), International IDEA, UNDP, European Union, African Union (AU), ECOWAS, EISA and IFES. I have experience in management (including people’s management) and driving donor-funded projects in sectors such as rule of law, access to justice, human rights, election management, administration, and observation; political and economic governance; philanthropy and reparative justice. A researcher, Grantmaker and thought leader, Dr. Niang has designed multiple training curriculums and tools, advocacy initiatives and various strategic plans for stakeholders across the continent (governments and institutions, civil society, philanthropy, political actors, election management bodies.) Ibrahima has organized high level advocacy missions with African heads of states. I have also written multiple articles on constitutional and electoral reforms. He has appeared regularly on the Debrief Show (Medi1 Africa TV) as a political analyst and I am currently teaching at New York University as the Fall 2023 Gallatin Faculty in Residence. I have held management positions at country-level, regional level, and global level. Among his exceptional skills are leadership, mentoring, management, problem-solving, emotional intelligence, curriculum development, strategic planning, and fundraising.
Governance Team Leader - UNDP Senegal Office
Distinguished Speaker
BGen Robert Mansour, PhD
Dr. Robert Mansour is Brigadier General Engineer, Commander of Signal Corps, Acting Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations (G3) and Director of Signals (G6) from the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF). His role ranks from administrative and operational responsibilities regarding: Operations, Borders Management, Domain Awareness, Army Maritime and Land Borders Concept of Operations (CONOPs),Training, Borders Control Committee (BCC), CIvil Military Cooperation (CIMIC), Demining Actions, Signals, Tactical Intelligence. Robert holds Ph.D. in International Strategy and Security.
Instructor & researcher in International Strategy, AI, Technology, and Security. Experienced Engineer in Communications, with a demonstrated history of working in the Telecom applications, Mission Critical Networks, Military Communications & Services. Skilled in Private Mobile Radio (PMR) & Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Project Management, Business Support System (BSS), Defense Acquisition Systems, and Network Design, Technology Evolution & Security, and Domain Awareness. Entrepreneurship competencies & engineering professional with a PhD focused in Cyber Security & Cyber Deterrence within International Relations and Diplomacy from CEDS - Centre d'Études Diplomatiques et Stratégiques- Paris, part of OMNES Education
Commander of Signal Corps - Lebanon Armed Forces
Distinguished Speaker
Nashiru Abdulai
A diplomat and strategist with decades of practical experience shaping multilateral policies,, leading institutional reforms, and driving high-stakes diplomatic engagements across Africa, Europe, and global platforms, Mr. Nashiru Abdulai serves as a Senior Policy Advisor for Health, Humanitarian Affairs and Social Development at the African Union.
He is an expert translating complex geopolitical dynamics into actionable strategies, and re-imagining African solutions to African problems.
Abdulai is an alumni and highly-equipped product of the Flectcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Harvard Law School, Oxford University, Addis Ababa University and the University of Ghana.
Diplomat & Senior Policy Advisor - African Union
Distinguished Speaker
Dr. Fedelis Etah Ewane
Dr. Fidelis Etah Ewane is a geopolitical and development analyst based in Germany. He holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of Freiburg and his regional expertise is sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East. He is presently a political advisor at the European External Action Service and had previously served as Senior planning, Evaluation and Reporting of the Regional Advisory and Coordination Cell of the European Union in the Sahel, electoral officer with the United Nations and outreach consultant for diaspora mapping with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in Germany.
He is the author of Regional Integration and Cooperation in Central Africa: From State-Centric Perspective to Multi-Level Governance (Verlag Dr. Kovac), which finds innovative approaches to the challenges of regional integration for poverty reduction paged on a model of regional integration in Africa and its relevance for inclusive/ equitable growth and development.
Political Advisor - European Union Representative for Sahel
Distinguished Speaker
H.E Frantz Sawyer
Frantz Che Sawyer is a Liberian strategist, policy advisor, and nonprofit leader with more than 25 years of experience in strategic planning, policy analysis, project management, and international stakeholder engagement. Throughout his career, he has successfully secured over US$5.6 million in international contracts that have directly supported key Liberian institutions, including the Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Public Works, Ministry of Finance, and Roberts International Airport.
He currently serves as Senior Advisor at SGR LLC, where he provides strategic counsel on government relations, public policy, and lobbying initiatives. In this role, he acts as a liaison between clients, the firm, and government stakeholders, developing policy strategies and fostering partnerships that advance organizational objectives. His work extends across West Africa, where he collaborates with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to promote regional economic integration and collective self-sufficiency among its fifteen member states.
Frantz is also the Founder of the Amos Claudius Sawyer Foundation, established in 2023 in honor of the late Professor Amos Claudius Sawyer. The Foundation is dedicated to strengthening the think-tank landscape in Liberia and the sub-region by providing evidence-based analysis, advisory services, and policy support in the areas of democratic governance, rule of law, peacebuilding, and public policy. Under his leadership, the Foundation partnered with USAID to organize a successful series of presidential debates during Liberia’s 2023 electoral cycle, implemented civic education initiatives focused on voter registration and participation, and is spearheading the establishment of a Debate Secretariat to facilitate and moderate informed dialogue and debates in schools and universities on critical contemporary issues.
Combining expertise across the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, Frantz Che Sawyer has built a distinguished career advancing governance, civic engagement, institutional development, and regional cooperation in Liberia and across West Africa.
Former Deputy Minister for Administration - Government of Liberia
Distinguished Speaker
Professor Kwaku Nuamah
Dr. Kwaku Nuamah is a Senior Fellow at the Center for Conflict Resolution at Salisbury University and a Senior Associate in the Department of International Health at Johns Hopkins University’s Bloomberg School of Public Health. With a PhD in Conflict Management from Johns Hopkins SAIS and two decades of experience in the United States and Africa, he has built a distinguished career researching, teaching, and practicing conflict resolution. His early work at the Legon Center for International Affairs and Diplomacy and the Institute for Economic Affairs in Ghana focused on civil war dynamics, early warning systems, traditional dispute resolution, and civil society roles in peace negotiations. His doctoral research examined negotiated settlements in the Ethiopia‑Eritrea and Peru‑Ecuador border conflicts, as well as ethnopolitical conflict in northern Ghana.
Dr. Nuamah has taught conflict resolution at Salisbury University, American University, Georgetown University, Brown University, and the University of Maryland, and has trained negotiators through institutions such as the Center for Peace Building International, ICONS, and KEDGE Business School in France. His governance and global security experience includes roles with the Open Society Institute, the Council on Foreign Relations, IFES, and the Ghana Center for Democratic Development, as well as consultancy work for Africom, UNDP, and several U.S. and international security institutions. Born in Ghana and a naturalized U.S. citizen, he is co‑author of Getting In: Mediators’ Entry into the Settlement of African Conflicts and continues to publish widely on conflict resolution while developing new research on leverage in negotiation.
Senior Professorial Lecturer, School of International Service, American University
Distinguished Speaker
Joseph Vallai
Joseph K. Vallai serves as Deputy Presidential Press Secretary at the Office of the President of the Republic of Liberia, bringing extensive experience in governance, public policy, and strategic communications.
His public service career includes roles as Political Advisor, Legislative Research Analyst, and Chief of Staff in the Liberian Senate, where he contributed to legislative development, policy analysis, and institutional leadership.
A former Desmond Tutu Fellow and two-time participant in the World Bank Group Youth Summit, he has also participated in the ITCILO Forum, reflecting his commitment to leadership, global dialogue, and sustainable development.
Deputy Press Secretary - Office of the President of the Republic of Liberia
Secure Your Seat
Join leading policymakers, diplomatic delegates, and academic researchers in shaping the next generation of co-equal institutional partnerships. Registration is open for both virtual and in-person delegates.