Biography
Lara Rabiu is an African investor and social entrepreneur with over 20 years of experience. She is currently the Founder-CEO of The Afara Initiative, an organization that is building future-fit and globally competitive university graduates at scale in Africa. Her relentless passion to build ecosystems that will drive inclusive economic opportunities and transformation in Africa continues to be the cornerstone of her life’s work. Prior to her current role at Oppenheimer Partners and as the curator of Afara, Lara held the position of Chief Financial and Operating Officer and interim CEO at African Leadership Academy and Advisor for the Group for a 6-year+ period. Under her leadership the organization became financially sufficient and raised its first endowment. Most recently, she also held senior positions at Bank of America and McKesson Corporation. Lara holds a BA in Business-Economic and Accounting from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and an MBA from UCLA Anderson