Three Indians in the Fortune - U.S. Department of State Global Women’s Mentoring Program
| Onkareshwar Pandey - Editor in Chief - CEO, IOP - 11 May 2022

All 15 women from 11 countries will spend a month working with executives from the Fortune Most Powerful Women community to enhance their business and leadership skills and expand their networks

By Onkareshwar Pandey

New Delhi/Washington D.C., May 12, 2022:

Three Indian women leaders in business and entrepreneurship are part of an exclusive 15 women member team from 11 countries who have been chosen by the United States State Department for  the Fortune–U.S. Department of State Global Women’s Mentoring Partnership.

These selected women leaders will spend a month working with executives from the Fortune Most Powerful Women community to enhance their business and leadership skills and expand their networks. The partnership leverages the expertise of American leaders in the public and private sectors to support and advance women’s economic empowerment.

Amrita Gupta, Director, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII); Tage Rita, an agri-entrepreneur and the Founder-Director of Naara Aaba Kiwi Winery in Arunachal Pradesh and Advocate Neha Mehta, a social entrepreneur pushing the envelope to create equal opportunity for all by deploying innovative technologies and FinTech solutions have been chosen from India to become part of this prestigious group.

A powerful meeting was organised on May 11, 2022 at the U.S. Department of State with this group of emerging women leader mentees which was joined by senior women leaders including Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and Exchange Programs - U.S. Department of State's Lee Satterfield and moderator, Chris Miner, the Managing Director for Professional and Cultural Exchanges.

During this powerful conversation, the panel of women leaders explored the meaning of success, leadership, and paying it forward. During the meeting, #FortuneMPW mentees received great advice from women leaders about how to best build professional networks for lasting success. It was amazing to hear how these accomplished women are making an impact in the field of foreign policy and paving the way for future women leaders. #Empowerwomen #FortuneMPW

Earlier, on May 10th 2022, President and CEO, Alyse Nelson, hosted a welcome dinner for the #FortuneMPW mentees’ first full day in Washington DC kicking off one of the first in-person programs after the opening of new #VVHQ. This dinner provided an opportunity for the cohort to connect with each other and reflects the journey to come within the next few weeks through growing networks, learning opportunities, and empowerment. #Empowerwomen

Throughout the mentorship program, they will strengthen their skills and networks to accelerate positive change in their communities. The program will close in New York with a Fortune Most Powerful Women dinner event.

This year’s class of emerging leader mentees includes women from Bolivia, Colombia, Egypt, Ghana, Guatemala, India, Jordan, Serbia, South Africa, Tunisia, and Turkey. 

WHAT IS THIS PROGRAM

The Fortune – U.S.  Department of State Global Women’s Mentoring Partnership is a public-private partnership between Fortune Most Powerful Women, the U.S. Department of State, and Vital Voices Global Partnership.  The program draws on the expertise of America’s most accomplished leaders to enhance the business and leadership skills of international women professionals. During the program, mentees engage in skills trainings, panel discussions, networking events, and a mentorship program with top women executives and their teams. Past mentors have come from America’s most prestigious companies, such as CVS Health, Johnson & Johnson, AIG, and Accenture. From this program, mentees gain critical business and leadership skills and the inspiration to pay it forward, accelerating positive change in their home communities. 

Full List of Women Participants:

1.            EBRU METIN, TURKEY

2.            NEILA BENZINA, TUNISIA

3.            JESSICA LAWRENCE, SOUTH AFRIC

4.            BUSISIWE MAVUSO, SOUTH AFRICA

5.            NATASA PAVLOVIC BUJAS, SERBIA

6.            LAMA SHA’SHA’A ABU DAHAB, JORDAN

7.            TAGE RITA, INDIA

8.            NEHA MEHTA, INDIA

9.            AMRITA GUPTA, INDIA

10.          YARA ARGUETA, GUATEMALA

11.          EMI-BETH AKU QUANTSON, GHANA

12.          MARWA HUSSEIN MAREI, EGYPT

13.          ALEYA SERAGELDIN, EGYPT

14.          NATALIA ARANGO, COLOMBIA

15.          GOVINDA RIVERA, BOLIVIA

Profiles of Women Leaders participating in the Fortune - U.S. Department of State Global Women’s Mentoring Program

EBRU METIN, TURKEY

Founder & CEO, Legal Design Turkey

Ebru Metin is the founder and CEO of the award-winning social enterprise, Legal Design Turkey, and director of Bilgi Legal Design Lab at Istanbul Bilgi University. Prior to this, she held several positions in various organisations located in Turkey, United Kingdom and Spain. She is acting as European Legal Technology Association’s Ambassador for Turkey and as one of the Law Circle Leads at Turkish Women International Network. She has been given the “Advanced Practitioner” title at World Commerce and Contracting in 2020. In 2022 she became one of the 5 honorees as part of Influential Women in Legal Tech initiative by International Legal Technology Association. She is also awarded as one of the Top 100 Women in Social Enterprise by EU funded Euclid Network. She has pursued her masters degree in International Financial Law at King’s College London as a Jean Monnet Scholar in 2014.

Ebru was selected to be part of the 2022 FORTUNE-U.S. Department of State Global Women’ s Mentoring Program.

Mentor: Lucy Fato, Executive Vice President, General Counsel & Global Head of Communications and Government Affairs, AIG

 

NEILA BENZINA, TUNISIA

Founder and CEO, Wimbeetech, TUNISIA

Neila Benzina was CEO Middle East & Africa, Business & Decision. After graduating from the National Institute of Telecommunications of Paris (TelecomSud Paris), she has worked for 3 years in France, as a consultant in the field of Business Intelligence, Customer Experience and Digital with major French groups such as than Saint-Gobain, Renault and LVMH. She was President of Business & Decision for the MENA region until the group was acquired by Orange Telecommunication. Following the acquisition of Business & Decision in 2018, she left the group and co-founded Wimbee, a consulting and engineering company in the field of digital and data analysis. She developed the activities to become a leader in the MENA region addressing both local and international customers in a co-localised mode.

In July 2019, she co-founded the Holberton School Tunis, a computer computer science school founded in Silicon Valley.

In 2015, she was decorated as a Knight of the National Order of Merit. She was selected among the 50 most powerful women in Africa by Jeune Afrique in 2017.

She was President of the Tunisian Association for Communication & Technology, Founding Member of Amena (Development & Microfinance Association), Vice-President of AmCham, in charge of information and communication technologies and Vice-President in charge of the Communication of Réseau Entreprendre.

Neila was selected to be part of the 2022 Fortune-U.S. Department of State Global Women’ s Mentoring Program.

Mentor: Angela Yochem, EVP, Chief Transformation & Digital Officer, Novant Health

 

JESSICA LAWRENCE, SOUTH AFRICA

Attorney, Head of the Johannesburg Law Clinic, Lawyers for Human Rights,  SOUTH AFRICA

Jessica Lawrence is an attorney at Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) and is currently the head of LHR’s Johannesburg Law Clinic. In that role, Jessica manages client needs and the daily operations of the law clinic, including developing and implementing policies, procedures, and standards to guide the clinic operations. She further manages a team of lawyers who provide legal advice and representation to asylum seekers, refugees, and migrants to ensure due process within South Africa’s refugee and immigration systems. She is further responsible for conducting strategic advocacy and impact litigation to address systemic challenges with South Africa’s asylum system as well as combat xenophobia. Prior to heading the Johannesburg Law Clinic, Jessica was the head of LHR’s Labour Unit where she initiated strategic litigation to develop legal protection for precarious workers. She further worked in LHR’s Environmental Rights Programme, where she focused on environmental justice for marginalised communities and Business and Human Rights.

Jessica holds an honours degree in law and a master’s degree in human rights law. With more than 8 years of experience within the civil society sector, she hopes to continue making a positive contribution towards achieving social justice and is committed to changing the landscape of refugee protection, environmental justice, and gender equality.

Jessica was selected to be part of the 2022 Fortune-U.S. Department of State Global Women’ s Mentoring Program.

Mentor: Jami McKeon, Chair, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP

 

BUSISIWE MAVUSO, SOUTH AFRICA

CEO, Business Leadership South Africa, SOUTH AFRICA

Busisiwe Mavuso is a Chartered Certified Accountant, CCA, qualified with Association of Certified Chartered Accountants (ACCA –UK) and holds a Master’s Degree in Business Leadership, a Postgraduate Qualification in Management from GIBS and a B. Compt in Accounting from the University of South Africa (UNISA).

She is the Chief Executive Officer at Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) and a NonExecutive Director on the Board of ESKOM; Business Unity South Africa (BUSA) and Resultant Finance (a PIC investee company) and serves on the Human Resources Development Council (HRDC), the Advisory Committee of the Local Government Ethical Leadership Initiative (LGELI), The Alcohol Industry Advisory Council (TAIAC) and the Social Justice Council. Furthermore, Busi is a Visiting Adjunct Professor at the Wits Business School (WBS).

Busi is a member of the YPO (Young President’s Organisation), the IoDSA and ACCA.

She was awarded the ‘2020 Influencer of Influencers Award’ by the Africa Brand Summit in October 2020 and was named second runner up for ‘Businessperson of the Year’ by Daily Maverick in 2021.

Busisiwe was selected to be part of the 2022 Fortune-U.S. Department of State Global Women’ s Mentoring Program.

Mentor: Karen Mercer, Senior Vice President and Treasurer, AARP

 

NATASA PAVLOVIC BUJAS, SERBIA

Founder & Managing Director, Blumen Group, SERBIA

Natasa is a curious explorer and an inexhaustible performer, passionate about behavioral science and behavioral economics. She graduated from the University of Belgrade in chemistry, but soon left the academic career to found Blumen group, one of the first agencies for integrated communications and business development in Serbia. She stands for the female touch in business and society development. More than 25+ years of experience, as well as her expertise in communications and business consulting earned her 25+ national and international awards, including the “IPRA Golden World Award” and the “IPRA Grand Prize”. She also received the special award for personal achievements in public relations by the PR Society of Serbia, and many others. Natasa is IPRA board member, SAE board member, ICF member, business coach, mentor, lecturer and conference speaker.

She shortly describes herself as: Creative thinker. Problem solver. Business coach. Communication Expert. Mom non-stop.

Natasa was selected to be part of the 2022 Fortune-U.S. Department of State Global Women’ s Mentoring Program.

Mentors: Ellyn Shook, Chief Leadership & Human Resources Officer, Accenture; Jill Kramer, Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, Accenture

 

LAMA SHA’SHA’A ABU DAHAB, JORDAN

Co-Founder and Chairwoman, International Robotics Academy, JORDAN

From belief in students’ potentials to innovate and invent solutions, Lama Sha’sha’a, co-founded the International Robotics Academy – IRA in 2014, a private institution that specializes in STEM Education. On her mission towards realizing blended, differentiated, and inclusive education in the Middle East, Lama, along with her team, scaled IRA from a rented classroom in North Amman to a recognized center of innovation, creativity, and alternative Education in the MENA region. Lama holds her master’s degree in International Trade with a focus on Business Development from the Jordan Institute of Diplomacy.

Lama was selected to be part of the 2022 Fortune-U.S. Department of State Global Women’ s Mentoring Program.

Mentor: Jacqueline (Jaqui) Nevils, Vice President and Chief Information Officer, L3Harris Technologies

 

TAGE RITA, INDIA

 CEO, Lambu Subu Food and Beverages, Arunachal Pradesh, INDIA

Tage Rita is an agri-entrepreneur and the Founder-Director of Naara Aaba Kiwi Winery in Arunachal Pradesh.  She is India’s first brewer of kiwi wine.  She became an entrepreneur after working as an agricultural engineer for 17 years in a government job.  On International Women’s Day 2022 she was awarded the prestigious Nari Shakti Puraskar by the Honorable President of India for her outstanding work in promoting women’s entrepreneurship and local product internationally. Arunachal Pradesh’s young woman entrepreneur Tage Rita was the lone award winner from the entire northeast for the prestigious award for the year 2020-2021. In 2018, she was honored with the Women Transforming India Awards, organized by the United Nations and NITI Aayog too.

An agricultural engineer from Ziro Valley, Rita was India’s first kiwi wine brewer. She studied and was trained as an agricultural engineer from NERIST (North Eastern Regional Institute of Science and Technology), Nirjuli, Arunachal Pradesh. Rita has been working to expand the winery and establish a state-of-the-art world-class winery along with a wine academy to teach locals the skill and become empowered.She has employed local school or college dropout boys and girls from the area who have learned how to make wine and handle wine machines. Around 25 staff is employed on a regular basis and the numbers get higher during the fruits ripening season. Rita had worked as an engineer in the Rural Works Department for 17 years before turning an entrepreneur.

Tage is an Academy of Women Entrepreneurs (AWE) 2020 alumna.

Rita was selected to be part of the 2022 Fortune-U.S. Department of State Global Women’ s Mentoring Program.

Mentor: Jessica Spence, President of Brands, Beam Suntory

 

NEHA MEHTA, INDIA

Founder & CEO, FemTech Partners, INDIA

Neha Mehta is a social entrepreneur pushing the envelope to create equal opportunity for all by deploying innovative technologies and FinTech solutions. Neha is a lawyer and has worked with financial regulators to achieve UN Sustainable Development Goals and amplify the voice of women in Tech. Her volunteering work has democratized financial services and bridged the financial, digital, and gender divide in the ASEAN and South Asia region. Neha has over 15 years of experience across hedge funds, private equity, venture capital, ClimateTech, and FinTech. She mentors young girls interested in pursuing a career in STEM and opens doors for women in FinTech. Neha is an alumnus of Kings College London and has attended Chevening Financial Services (UK) and Austrian Leadership fellowship programs. Neha has won many accolades for her work in FinTech and Climate Change.

Neha was selected to be part of the 2022 Fortune-U.S. Department of State Global Women’ s Mentoring Program.

Mentor: Karen Orosco, President, Global Consumer Tax and Delivery Service, H&R Block

 

AMRITA GUPTA, INDIA

Director, Confederation of Indian Industry, INDIA

Amrita Gupta is a Director, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). She has over nineteen years of experience in business facilitation, marketing and communication, advertising and brand strategy across various sectors of industry such as education and financial markets. Her current work responsibilities include strategic development of projects and initiatives pertaining to women empowerment, industry academia engagement, international investment and trade, manufacturing excellence and social development. She is also responsible for liasoning with government departments, business leaders and creating relevant networking platforms for strategic stakeholder engagement.

Amrita was selected to be part of the 2022 Fortune-U.S. Department of State Global Women’ s Mentoring Program.

Mentor: Bethany Baran, Vice President – Community Asset and Medical Cost Savings Integration, CVS Health

 

YARA ARGUETA, GUATEMALA

Independent Consultant/Board Member, GUATEMALA

Former CEO of Grupo Solid, market leader of Paints and Coatings in Central America and Panamá, position held for 11 years. In 2016 Yara decided to retire and became board member of Grupo Solid and in charge of M&A and geographical expansion. She is also consultant and strategic advisor for other companies in the region in corporate governance, strategic planning, turnkey projects; and independent board member of companies such as Ingenio Santa Ana, Grupo Solid, Milésimo, Grupo Nabla and Wakami. In 2019 she was candidate to the vice presidency of Guatemala during the presidential elections. Yara has been honoured by the World Economic Forum (WEF) as Young Global Leader in 2011 and honoured as Distinguished Professional of the year by INCAE Business School in 2013.

Member of the Central America Leadership Initiative – CALI / Aspen Global Network. Board Member of FUNDESA (2016 – 2018). President and Mentor of Vital Voices´ Guatemalan Chapter (2015 y 2016). Board Member of the Guatemalan Board of INCAE Business School (2014 – 2019). Industrial Engineering Director in Universidad Rafael Landivar (2004 – 2005).

She was also appointed as one of the most powerful and admired women in Central America by the most recognized business magazines of the area, as Forbes Central America, Summa, Estrategia y Negocios, among others, for several consecutive years. Yara has an MBA from INCAE, an Industrial Engineer degree from Universidad Rafael Landivar and additional education in Harvard Kennedy School and in Stanford Graduate School of Business. She is single, Guatemalan and 45 years old.

Yara was selected to be part of the 2022 Fortune-U.S. Department of State Global Women’ s Mentoring Program.

Mentor: Tiffany Monroe, Chief People and Culture Officer, H&R Block

 

EMI-BETH AKU QUANTSON, GHANA

Chief Innovator, Kawa Moka Limited, GHANA

Emi-Beth is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Kawa Moka, a coffee producing and packaging company. Emi-Beth Aku Quantson represented #Ghana at the 2017 Global Entrepreneurship Summit in #India! #GES2017. Emi-Beth is a coffee entrepreneur and gender advocate with over 10 years’ experience in accounting and the hospitality industry as well. She works with rural farmers, predominantly women, to source premium quality fine robusta (variety of coffee). She is also challenging the African narrative by adding value (processing and roasting of coffee) locally, thereby creating jobs and empowering women along the value chain. Emi-Beth graduated with a Bachelor of Science (Cum Laude) in Business Administration from Ashesi University.  She was recognized in 2019 by the President of the Republic of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for her contribution in creating jobs and industry through Kawa Moka. A large part of her work involves transferring skills and knowledge through training and purchasing of the beloved crop. Waste material from the production process is utilized in the production of a Kawa Moka skin care line which includes handmade cappuccino soap, coffee detox scrub, coffee infused body oil and coffee body butter. Emi-Beth graduated with a Bachelor of Science (Cum Laude) in Business Administration from Ashesi University. While at Ashesi she started a campus cafe that became a popular hangout for students. After graduation Emi-Beth ran the cafe successfully for two years, while working full time with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and obtaining her Association of Certified Chartered Accountants (ACCA) qualification. In six years at PwC, Emi-Beth rose rapidly up the corporate ladder in Ghana and Kenya. In 2015 she took the decision to become an entrepreneurship with Kawa Moka. Emi-Beth was recognized in 2019 by the President of the Republic of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for her contribution in creating jobs and industry through Kawa Moka.

Emi-Beth was selected to be part of the 2022 Fortune-U.S. Department of State Global Women’ s Mentoring Program.

Mentor: Faye Iosotaluno, Chief Strategy Officer, Match Group

 

MARWA HUSSEIN MAREI, EGYPT

Founder & CEO, EduPal, EGYPT

Marwa Marei brings over 20 years of professional experience in the high-tech sector, innovation and business consulting with leadership roles spanning multinational organizations, midsize companies and startups across the Middle East and Africa where she continued to spearhead the companies’ growth.

During her tenure, she has consistently built high performing teams, developed strong ecosystems, driven change and delivered solid growth, positioning her perfectly to support the rapidly growing opportunities in the MENA region. Marwa is an impact-driven technologist, venture builder, entrepreneur and World Bank advisor for women entrepreneurs’ program passionate about women empowerment by helping women fulfilling and unlock their potential and turning challenges into opportunities through mentoring and coaching of women entrepreneurs. Marwa is a Founder of an innovative platforms supporting the women community in Egypt, Middle East and Africa.

Marwa was selected to be part of the 2022 Fortune-U.S. Department of State Global Women’ s Mentoring Program.

Mentor: Heather Combs, CEO, StraighterLine, Inc.

 

ALEYA SERAGELDIN, EGYPT

SVP - Executive Director, Ghabbour Foundation for Development, EGYPT

Aleya Serageldin is the SVP – Executive Director of Ghabbour Foundation for Development, an NGO specialized in the development of vocational education in Egypt by bridging the gap between industry needs and quality of vocational education, applying international qualification standards. The Foundation currently counts under its umbrella 5 vocational schools and training centers in 3 governorates: Cairo, Alexandria and Gharbeya, with more than 850 students enrolled and over 100 staff members.

Prior to her work in Ghabbour Foundation, Aleya has worked for over 12 years in the education and NGO sector. As Director of the Office of Institutional Advancement at Nile University, she has successfully led Fundraising, Grants Management, Marketing and PR Functions of the University.

At the onset of her career, Aleya has worked in the field of Architecture, specializing in Urban Planning and Design. She holds a BSC. of Architecture Engineering from Ain Shams University as well as an MBA from the American University in Cairo and was chosen as a member of the Higher Education Reform Experts (HERE) Egyptian Group (A group established under the Erasmus + program by nomination from the Ministry of Higher Education).

Aleya was selected to be part of the 2022 Fortune-U.S. Department of State Global Women’ s Mentoring Program.

Mentor: Mary Petryszyn, Corporate Vice President and President, Defense Systems, Northrop Grumman Corporation

 

NATALIA ARANGO, COLOMBIA

Executive Director, Fondo Acción, COLOMBIA

Natalia Arango is a biologist and ecologist and has 30 years of experience working in strategic planning, development of new business areas, consolidating partnerships with national and regional authorities, multilateral organizations, international donors, corporations and NGOs and fundraising for conservation initiatives.  Natalia has worked in Fondo Acción since 2010; between 2014 and 2018 she was its Technical Director and  since October 2018 she has been the Executive Director, leading  a team of approximately 120 staff members and working with approximately 24 donors.

Natalia was selected to be part of the 2022 FORTUNE-U.S. Department of State Global Women’ s Mentoring Program.

Mentor: Kelley Morrell, Head of Asset Management, Blackstone

 

GOVINDA RIVERA, BOLIVIA

Owner and Manager, La Huerta, BOLIVIA

Govinda Rivera is the founder and manager of La Huerta, the first chain of natural products stores in Bolivia. She has experience in project development, sales, and customer service. Her current responsibilities include marketing strategies development, structuring of new business units, and performance evaluation of her stores. She has a bachelor’s degree in International Business from the Bolivian Catholic University.

Govinda was selected to be part of the 2022 Fortune – U.S. Department of State Global Women’ s Mentoring Program.

Mentor: Andrea Wainer, Executive Vice President, Rapid and Molecular Diagnostics, Abbott

Photo Courtesy - Neïla Benzina photo from cio-mag.com; NEILA BENZINA photo from ilBoursa.com; EBRU METIN from ceelegaltech.com; JESSICA LAWRENCE photo from Zoominfo.com; NATASA PAVLOVIC BUJAS, SERBIA from twitter handle of @Blogomanija; Tage Rita Photo courtesy from Time8.in; Lead 1 Photo courtesy from vitalvoices.org; Lead 2,3 Photo courtesy - Neha Mehta facebook Page; Lama Sha’sha Abu Dahab of #Jordan photo Twitter @UNCTAD; Yara-Argueta Courtesy - Soundcloud.com; Emi-Beth Aku Quantson photo from @USEmbassyGhana; LAMA SHA’SHA’A ABU DAHAB From worldinvestmentforum.unctad.org/imd.org; 

#FortuneMPW


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(Onkareshwar Pandey is Founder, Editor in Chief & CEO, Indian Observer Post and former Senior Group Editor- Rashtriya Sahara (Hindi & Urdu) and also former Editor, (News), ANI. http://bit.ly/2mh7hih Email - SMS- 9910150119)


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