Board of Directors

1. 2.

PELANI SIWAWA-NDAI - BOARD CHAIRPERSON

Ms. Pelani Siwawa-Ndai is the Chairperson of the BoFiNet Board of Directors. She is currently the Managing Director of Emergence Growth Botswana (Pty) Ltd. She is a Gallup Certified Strengths Coach and Consultant. Ms. Siwawa-Ndai spent many years working as a central banker at Bank of Botswana, where she rose through the ranks of Economist, Deputy Director of Banking Supervision Department and ultimately became Head of the Secretariat Department, a position she held at the time of her retirement.

As a Policy Analyst/Advisor at Business Botswana, a position she held on secondment from the Bank, Ms. Siwawa-Ndai was part of a team that led in articulating business concerns and policy issues for advocacy and engagement with the Government.

Her areas of work are Strengths-Based Development and consulting in the Human Resources and Economic spheres. She possesses a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Master of Arts in Economics from the Universities of Botswana and Kent at Canterbury, England, respectively. Furthermore, her other Board engagements are serving as a Board Chairperson at the Botswana Building Society and Emergence Growth Botswana.

YOLISA PHILIPS-LEJOWA

- VICE-CHAIRPERSON

Ms. Yolisa Philips-Lejowa is a Member of the Board of Directors of BoFiNet and serves on the Board Tender Committee and Board Human Resources Committee. She has over 22 years of experience in the banking industry, with extensive involvement in the Digital Banking environment. Her professional achievements include active roles in introducing innovative solutions such as online banking, cell phone banking, FNB e-Wallet, and mobile banking apps into the Botswana market.

Currently, she is part of the Virtual Payments Solutions (VPS) team, providing integration and aggregation services to manage virtual payments and disbursement solutions.

3.

MR. GADZANI THANGWANE

- BOARD MEMBER

Mr. Gadzani Thangwane serves as the Chairperson of the Board Tender Committee at BoFiNet and a Member of the Board Finance and Audit Committee. A telecommunications expert, he has 37 years of experience within a technical environment, including over ten years in management and executive positions. Mr. Thangwane holds an undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering from South Dakota State University in the USA.

After graduation, he worked for Botswana Telecommunications Corporation, conceptualising, planning, and executing organisational strategies. He was elevated to the rank of General Manager Operations, responsible for service delivery and then General Manager Technology, responsible for planning and developing the entire network infrastructure. He is currently retired.

4.

MR. JOHN VASSILIADIS

- BOARD MEMBER

Mr. John Vassiliadis serves BoFiNet as a Member of the Board Finance and Audit Committee and the Human Resource Committee. He has a Masters in Information Security and Intelligence from Edith Cowan University (Australia), a Post Graduate Certificate in Telecommunications Regulation from Westminster University (UK), and a Bachelor’s Degree in Science (BSc) - Computer Science from the University of Botswana.

In addition, Mr. Vassiliadis holds several professional certifications, including a Datacentre Certified Expert (DCE) from EPI and Accredited Tier Designer from UPTIME. He is currently the ICT Director at HRDC. He was previously a director within the Government Implementation Coordination Office of the National Strategy Office in the Office of the President. Before that, he was also with the e-Government office within the Ministry of Transport and Communications - BTA (currently known as BOCRA) and had experience across the private sector.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

CONTINUED

5.

PROFESSOR SHEDDEN MASUPE

- BOARD MEMBER

Professor Shedden Masupe is a Member of the Board of Directors of BoFiNet. He holds a BSc (Mathematics & Physics) from Mt Allison University (Canada), BSC Eng. Electrical – Communications and Fields from the University of New Brunswick (Canada), Ms.c. in Digital Systems from Cardiff University (UK), and a PhD in Electronics Engineering from Edinburgh University (UK). He is currently the Chief Executive Officer at Botswana Institute for Technology Research and Innovation (BITRI).

He was previously a full-time Professor of Computer Engineering at BIUST and an Associate Professor of Digital Systems and Computer Engineering at the University of Botswana. Professor Masupe has worked extensively as a consultant in the ICT industry in Botswana and internationally.

6.

MR. OTHUSITSE LEBULETSWE

- BOARD MEMBER

Mr. Othusitse Lebuletswe is a Member of the Board of Directors of BoFiNet. He holds a Master of Public Administration, a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Public Administration and a Diploma in Accounting and Business Studies. Appointed to the BoFiNet Board in June 2018, he was later made Chairperson of the Finance and Audit Committee.

During his career, he rose through the ranks within the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development. In 2003, he became a Director of Procurement and later Deputy Accountant General in 2008, which he held until his retirement in November 2017. He has served on several Boards, having been a Board Member and Chairperson of the Finance and Audit Committee at BCL, Chairperson of the Board, Botswana Savings Bank and Member of the Standards and Setting Committee of Botswana Accountancy and Oversight Authority (BAOA).

7.

PROFESSOR MOSEPELE MOSEPELE

- BOARD MEMBER

Professor Mosepele Mosepele is a Member of the Board of Directors of BoFiNet, serving on the Human Resource Committee. Professor Mosepele has been engaged in more than 15 research grants funded by the United States Government, UK Government and European Union. Most of these projects focused on HIV infection, diagnosis, care, complications, and noncommunicable diseases among people living with HIV. A healthcare training professional, he has authored and co-authored more than 40 peer-reviewed publications and given more than 40 presentations at local and international academic meetings.

Professor Mosepele has successfully mentored multiple Master’s Degree and Research and Clinical Fellows in general internal medicine and Infectious Diseases. He is currently the Chairperson of Botswana COVID-19 Vaccine Committee and the Deputy Coordinator for Botswana COVID-19 Presidential Task Force. He has also worked as a Medical Doctor for the Government of Botswana since 2006.

8.

MS. KEETSEMANG NKOKO

- BOARD MEMBER

Ms. Keetsemang Nkoko is a Member of the Board of Directors of BoFiNet and serves as the Chairperson of the Finance and Audit Committee. She has over 18 years of experience in the accounting and investment field, managing an investment portfolio of over P4 billion. Beginning her career as an Accounts Officer at the Motor Vehicle Accident (MVA) Fund, she was later promoted to Senior Investment Officer in 2009.

She is currently serving as a Financial Controller at Alexander Forbes Financial Services Botswana (Pty) Ltd. Her achievements include being rated the best in Internal Customer satisfaction and ensuring the Fund’s sustainability through prudent investment management.