Zouera Youssoufou - Program Manager
Zouera Youssoufou is a Financial Services professional with experience in international development, investment management, and management consulting. Prior to becoming the Program Manager, Zouera headed the Women's Access to Finance Program in IFC's gender program. Zouera joined IFC in 2005 from Citigroup's Smith Barney unit in New York and Atlanta where she worked as an equity research analyst, covering emerging markets and 13 industry sectors. She has developed a strong understanding of the issues facing women entrepreneurs in Africa, having worked on private sector development issues - including capacity building initiatives for entrepreneurs in Niger and consulting in Ghana -through the European Union and Deloitte & Touche Consulting. Zouera holds an MBA (Finance) from New York University's Stern School of Business, and a BBA in Marketing from the University of Massachusetts' Isenberg School of Business. She is fully multi-lingual in English, French and Hausa.
Natalie Africa - Senior Program Officer
Natalie has been with IFC's Gender team since August 2005. Until December 2007, she served as regional gender coordinator for Sub Saharan Africa based in Johannesburg before transferring to the Washington DC office. Natalie focuses on promoting access to finance, adding value to IFC industry investments and mainstreaming gender through partnerships within IFC departments. Natalie's career prior to IFC included merchant banking, diplomacy, and working within women's non-profit organisations. Natalie holds an MA in International Studies from the Graduate Institute of International Studies, Geneva.
Carmen Niethammer - Program Officer
Carmen Niethammer is a Program Officer in IFC's gender team and IFC focal point for the World Bank Group's Gender Action Plan. Based in Washington, D.C., Carmen coordinates and provides technical cross-support to gender and private sector development initiatives across the World Bank Group. Previously, Carmen was the gender program manager in IFC's Cairo-based PEP-MENA facility, where she led the team that provides technical assistance solutions to growth-oriented small and medium female-owned enterprises. Carmen joined the IFC from the World Bank, where she was an Operations Officer in the Office of the MENA Chief Economist. Prior to joining the World Bank Group in 1999, Carmen was an Aid Coordinator as part of the UN Resident Coordinator System in Sana'a, Yemen. Carmen is a graduate of The Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).
Marième Esther Dassanou - Program Officer
Marième Esther Dassanou is a Program Officer and Secretariat Manager of the Global Banking Alliance for Women. Esther joins IFC from the Corporate Council on Africa where she worked for over five years on private sector development through micro, small and medium enterprise support, access to markets, and HIV/AIDS workplace policies for US and African companies. Throughout her work with the Corporate Council on Africa, Esther has assisted several women entrepreneurs grow their business and access the US market. Previously Esther also worked at Meridian International Center on the US State Department Professional Visitor program. Esther holds a BA in International Studies from Miami University, Oxford Ohio, and an MBA in Management and Marketing from Strayer University. A native of Senegal, West Africa, Esther is fluent is French, Spanish, English and Wolof.