Z Zurich Foundation: Who Will Create Africa’s Next Jobs? From Learning to Earning to Creating Jobs
A panel discussion featuring Gary Shaughnessy CBE, Chair of the Z Zurich Foundation
Speakers
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Hubert SengaFounder & CEOHubert Senga
Founder & CEO
Hubert Senga is a Congolese refugee, social entrepreneur, refugee advocate, and Founder & CEO of Generation Aid. Forced to flee the Democratic Republic of Congo at 17 due to political instability and security, Hubert rebuilt his life in Kakuma Refugee Camp, Kenya, transforming displacement and personal loss into a mission to create opportunities for others. Through Generation Aid, Hubert empowers refugees and host communities with digital and vocational skills, innovative education, entrepreneurship, and pathways to employment and remote work connecting refugee talent to opportunities in the global economy through remote employment. Today, Hubert is a growing voice for refugee-led solutions, digital inclusion, and economic empowerment. His advocacy has reached platforms including PBS News, FRANCE 24, the International Labour Organization, and Accountability Lab East & Southern Africa. His mission is to help reshape the global refugee narrative from seeing refugees as beneficiaries of aid to recognizing them as innovators, entrepreneurs, professionals, and leaders capable of creating solutions and contributing to the global economy.
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Simi NwoguguPresident & CEOSimi Nwogugu
President & CEO
Simi Nwogugu is CEO of Junior Achievement (JA) Africa, which equips young Africans with financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and digital skills for future success. JA Africa is part of the Nobel Peace Prize-nominated JA Worldwide, one of the world’s largest youth-serving NGOs that prepares young people for the future of work. Prior to joining JA Africa, Simi served as the executive director of JA Nigeria, which she brought to Nigeria in 1999, after she served as a volunteer in New York and realized that the entrepreneurial training programs were exactly what the large unemployed youth population in Nigeria needed. Simi became CEO of JA Africa in 2020, and since then has expanded JA operations to 23 countries in Africa reaching over one million youth annually. Simi has an MBA from Harvard Business School and has been recognized by the school with numerous awards including the Bert King Award for Social Impact. She was also declared winner of the prestigious Africa Education Medal 2023 by T4 Education, HP and Microsoft. Simi is a fellow of the Aspen Global Leadership Network (AGLN) and recently launched 10 Million African Girls (10MAG), a campaign to equip 10 million African girls with entrepreneurship, leadership and advocacy skills to eliminate extreme poverty and build thriving, sustainable communities in Africa by 2050.
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Gary Shaughnessy CBEChairGary Shaughnessy CBE
Chair
Gary worked in the Insurance and Investment sectors throughout his professional career, most recently as a member of the Group Executive Committee at Zurich Insurance Group, as CEO for the Europe, Middle East and Africa region as well as having global responsibility for Bank partnerships. Having been a Trustee of the Zurich Community Trust in the U.K., Gary took on the role of Chair of the Z Zurich Foundation, a global corporate foundation funded by various members of the Zurich Insurance Group. He has overseen the increasingly positive impact made by the Z Zurich Foundation team and Zurich people to the vulnerable in our societies worldwide. Gary was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2015. Gary became a Trustee of Parkinson’s UK in 2018, was appointed as Chair in 2019. He took on a further role, as Chair of England Athletics in 2021. In support of his community involvement and as part of his approach to managing his Parkinson’s, Gary has taken on numerous challenges including wingwalking, abseiling, kayaking, cycling across Europe, and swimming from Nevis to St. Kitts. He has now completed over 50 marathons including 10 in 10 days recently. In 2022, he became only the 47th person to complete the challenging “Arch to Arc” triathlon. He is also now a double Guinness world record holder: having recently broken the records for the furthest distance run 3 legged over 24 hours and 12 hours with a friend, Andy Tucker. Together they completed over 117.1km. They also broke back the 12 hour record. These sporting challenges have helped raise over £1/2 million for Parkinson's awareness, research and support together with funding for numerous local, national and international charities since 2015, with a focus on mental wellbeing, social equity and crisis support. In 2023, Gary was awarded Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to business and to charity from His Majesty the King.
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Allison HugginsAfrica Regional Programmes DirectorAllison Huggins
Africa Regional Programmes Director
Allison Huggins is an experienced international development professional with more than 18 years of experience in senior roles at Prosper Global, including multiple Country Director posts across Kenya, Mali and Liberia before assuming her current Regional Programs Director position. Her expertise spans humanitarian response, climate resilience, strategic partnerships and regional program leadership. She holds a Master’s in Development Studies from LSE and a BA from Dartmouth College in Geography.