April Ernest

Managing Partner Novus Law & Advisory Group in Tanzania 
 

Bio: April Ernest is a vibrant, highly driven investment lawyer with nine years of pre- and post-qualification experience delivering legal and strategic support across regional and international sectors. She is an Advocate of the High Court of Tanzania and a registered arbitrator with both the Tanzania Institute of Arbitrators and the National Construction Council. She has helped numerous entities and individuals set up business in Tanzania, providing corporate legal advice, contract review, and company incorporation and post-incorporation services.

Talk: Your Legal Blueprint: How to Live and Do Business in Tanzania Long-Term

Justa Lujwangana

Founder of Curious On Tanzania
 

Bio:  Justa Lujwangana is a Tanzanian-Brooklynite, storyteller, and curious traveler, and the founder of Curious on Tanzania. Born and raised in Tanzania before moving to the US at age 12 to reunite with family, she rediscovered her homeland years later on a return visit and saw it with new eyes, as both a local and a tourist. In 2015 she founded Curious on Tanzania to help travelers unlock a richer experience of the country, inside and outside its borders.

Talk: Unlocking Authentic Travel in Tanzania: How to Go Beyond the Safari

Ambassador Tim Ford

Founder of T3 & Me, African Union Agenda 2063 Ambassador
 

Bio: Ambassador Tim Ford relocated to Tanzania from Memphis in 2020 with no map and never looked back. Over five years on the ground, he built T3 & Me and became a recognized Ambassador within the African Union's Agenda 2063 Parliament, guiding thousands of diaspora families through the process of finding, buying, and building in East Africa. His work bridges the property market, the residency landscape, and the practical realities of relocating with intention.

Talk: Land, Property and People: What It Actually Takes to Buy, Build and Stay in Tanzania

Ambassador Chavon Ford  

CEO of Fords Herbal Medicine Academy and Fords Herbal Wellness Center, African Union Agenda 2063 Ambassador
 

Bio: Ambassador Chavon Ford is a Clinical Herbal Practitioner, author, educator, and entrepreneur, and a recognized Ambassador within the African Union's Agenda 2063 Parliament. With academic foundations from Fisk University and Maryland University of Integrative Health, she built Fords Herbal Medicine Academy and Fords Herbal Wellness Center on Tanzanian soil, where she now serves as CEO. Her work combines traditional plant medicine with modern entrepreneurship to create a business deeply rooted in the land.

Talk: From Soil to Business: Agribusiness, Herbalism and Land Opportunity in Tanzania

Naila Best 

Head of Brand, Ashley In Afrika 

Bio:  Naila Best is a freelance social media strategist, content creator, and digital designer based in Tanzania, serving as Head of Brand across Ashley Cleveland's ecosystem of companies. She builds the content systems and brand voice that keep Ashley in Afrika visible and consistent across platforms, without Ashley needing to be in the room. Her work sits at the intersection of strategy, storytelling, and the operational infrastructure that makes location-independent business possible.

Talk: Build a Business That Works From Anywhere: The Systems, Content and Operations Behind Location Freedom

Aleshi and her daughters Shanira and Shakwana 

Founders of Kijiji Chetu 
 

Bio: Aleshi is the founder of Kijiji Chetu, a family-owned sanctuary rooted in community, culture, and intentional living on the Tanzanian coast, built alongside her children Shanira and Shakwana. A longtime friend and confidant of Ashley Cleveland, she has spent years showing what it looks like to plant roots in Tanzania and raise a family inside a shared vision. Together, the three represent what is possible when a household decides to build something that belongs entirely to them. Talk: Fireside Chat: Home Is Where We Built It — Life, Land and Legacy at Kijiji Chetu

Talk: Fireside Chat: Home Is Where We Built It — Life, Land and Legacy at Kijiji Chetu

Paul Ngwilimi

Financial Analyst, Equity Advisory 
 

Bio: Paul is a Financial Analyst in the Equity Advisory division at one of the top botique advisory firms in Dar es Salaam, where he works on sell-side and buy-side transaction advisory across East African markets. He has also worked in brokerage and trading covering equities listed in the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange, he is an avid stock investor with a passion for financial inclusion and investor sophistication.

Talk: Capital Raising & Investment in Tanzania

Bethel Esamah

Engineer, Execution Officer, Fractional COO, PhD Researcher

Bio: Bethel Esamah works as an Execution Officer for AirAssistant.io and Fractional COO for Ashley in Afrika Media, focused on supporting founder-led businesses through operations and outreach strategy. She is also a PhD researcher in Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering at Texas Tech University. She serves on multiple NGO boards and is Chairperson of the Board of Trustees for CITIZINRE Nigeria.

Talk: Build a Business That Works From Anywhere: The Systems, Content and Operations Behind Location Freedom

Neema Mwasha

Mental Health Professional and Educator
 

Bio: Neema Mwasha is a mental health professional and educator based in both the US and Tanzania, with notable experience in administrative leadership, project management, and case management. She is a strong communicator, advocate, and problem-solver, fully fluent in Swahili, and experienced serving diverse populations with mental illness and developmental disabilities with empathy and cultural sensitivity.

She also co-founded MR Property Management, a Tanzania-based property management company, where she gives the diaspora peace of mind by managing their properties well.

Talk: We Gave Our Children the One Thing America Couldn't — Their Roots

Diana Taylor

CEO & Business Developer

Bio: Diana Taylor is a Sales and Marketing professional and CEO with over 20 years of international experience across tourism, hospitality, luxury travel, retail, and brand development. After more than two decades in the United States, she returned to Tanzania to combine global business expertise with local opportunity, building strategic partnerships and impactful marketing campaigns across the tourism, real estate, and events sectors.

Beyond her professional career, she is passionate about mentoring young people and empowering women across Tanzania.

Talk: We Gave Our Children the One Thing America Couldn't — Their Roots

Zee & Penelope

International Learners and Young Leaders
 

Bio:  From homeschool pods to international schools — they’ll walk you through the real options, and what it’s like to be a child growing up abroad. They’ll bring a fresh outlook on friendships, culture shock, identity, and what they wish more parents understood when moving their children to Africa.

Talk: Raising Global Learners: Navigating Education in Tanzania