WACREN is administered by the interim Chief Executive Officer - Dr Eyouléki Tcheyi Gnadi Palanga and a team of collaborators (staff). Together, they handle the day-to-day administration and operation of the Regional REN.
Board Chair and Interim CEO
Dr Eyouléki Tcheyi Gnadi Palanga is the Interim CEO of WACREN and doubles as the Board Chair. Between 2000 and early 2010, he was at the heart of the University of Lomé's digital transformation. For several years, he was the Technical Advisor in charge of digital technology for the Minister of Higher Education and Research of Togo after serving as the Deputy Director of the University of Lomé's Computer and Computing Centre. Since 2006, he has worked for the Togo Education and Research Network (TogoRER) and was confirmed as Executive Director in 2020.
He is one of the actors in developing the digital ecosystem at the university and the national level in Togo. He is a Regional Centre of Excellence for Energy Management staff member based at the University of Lomé. Dr Palanga is a teacher-researcher and lecturer at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure d'Ingénieurs of the University of Lomé. He was a member of the Board of Directors of WACREN before being elected Chairman of the Board in 2021.
Chief Strategy Officer
Omo is WACREN’s Chief Strategy Officer (CSO). He leads the development, execution and sustenance of WACREN business plans and initiatives. He was the pioneer Chief Technology Officer of the organisation and continues to work with development partners and sister regional networks on the technical development of high-capacity Internet network infrastructure for research and education.
Before WACREN, he was CEO of Datasphir Solutions Limited, a private sector consultancy company. A certified SIM3 Auditor, he uses the model developed with the European Union Agency for Network and Information Security (ENISA) to assess the governance, performance and function of security teams and processes.
Omo leads the LIBSENSE programme aimed at building the information management capability of librarians and researchers, fostering communities of practice, and strengthening local services to support open science and research in Africa.
He has taken courses towards a Masters in Learning Technology from Birkbeck College, University of London and has a Pharmacy degree from the University of Benin, Nigeria.
Senior Networking & Infrastructure Engineer
Edward leads the networking and infrastructure domain of WACREN’s operations. Having worked in the telecommunication industry for over 15 years, he has invaluable experience and rare acumen in handling networking and infrastructure.
He kicked off his career at Viaoni Group as a line support engineer, and in the course of his career gleaned exposure and global best practices from leading OEMs and technologies.
He understands that innovation never happens in a vacuum, this makes him value, build and sustain valuable teams and assets. Collaboration and diversity of perspective fuels his work. His avid ability to re-imagine things and the world around him gets the best of him.
He holds a Bachelor of Engineering Degree in Communication and Electronic Engineering from the Manchester Metropolitan University, UK.
Executive Assistant to the CEO
Tigui works at WACREN as the Executive Assistant to the CEO. She provides support to the CEO in a variety of ways including administrative tasks, liaison functions, as well as secretarial duties..
Tigui hasa wide experience in office management and secretaryship, having had solid education and been in practise for several years.
Network and Systems Engineer
Eric is WACREN’s Network and Systems Engineer (SNE), after moving from Université d’Abomey-Calavi where he served as a senior level IT Manager since 2007. At WACREN, Eric works closely with the CTO to deploy the network infrastructure and accompanying services to our community.
Eric has proficient knowledge in Windows, Linux system and network administration, System, network and application security and penetration testing and DevOps engineering.
While at Université d’Abomey-Calavi, he was in charge of connection of 29 remote sites to the central campus.. As a system administrator, he worked on installation, configuration of various system and networking services. He has worked with Université de Ouagadougou and Université de Lomé, as associate consultant in charge of student management system audit and the deployment of Invenio (a Library Management System), respectively. Between 2005 and 2006, Eric served as the IT Engineer at OTI (Omnium des Télécommunications et de l’Internet, Benin), where he oversaw the implementation and deployment of customer authentication and billing system (PostgreSQL database), development of Incident management system and handling users and customers supports.
Eric holds a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from Université de Parakou and a Master’s degree in Computer Science from Université d’Abomey-Calavi.
Finance and Administration Officer
Ivan is the Finance and Administration Officer (FAO) in charge of the day-to-day management of Finance, Accounting, administration, and HR-related matters at WACREN. He is a highly skilled professional with experience managing various high-value project finances.
Ivan holds an MBA in Accounting and Finance from the University of Professional Studies Accra, Ghana and BSc. In Business with Mathematics from University of Cape Coast, Ghana. He is a Certified Professional in Human Resources - International (PHRi) from HR Certification Institute, USA and holds an Executive Certificate in Strategic HR Management from the HR Certification Center, Ghana.
Ivan has over 10 years of experience in Finance, Accounting, Administration and HR Management. Prior to Joining WACREN, he was with LMI Holdings, a highly diversified Ghanaian conglomerate with interests in Ghanaian ICT sector, utilities, logistics, property development and construction, as an Accountant, Asset Manager and Accounting systems and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Administrator at various times.
Communication and Marketing Officer
Effah is WACREN’s Communication and Marketing Officer in charge of internal and external communication and marketing. He is a consummate professional who blends the art and science of marketing and communication to produce value for companies he has worked for, for close to 15 years.
Before taking the position at WACREN, he was the stop-gap Group Head of Communication for CDH Investment Holdings - a diversified services group of companies with interests in banking, insurance, hospitality, manufacturing, health and asset management.
Effah is an accredited public relations professional (APR) by the Institute of Public Relations, (IPR - Ghana), where he has been a trainer for the Continuous Professional Development (CPD Programme) in Project Communication. He has also been a consultant at the London School of Public Relations – Ghana, as a trainer.
His area of expertise are public relations, branding and brand marketing communications, journalism, digital marketing and project communication. Having worked with several media outlets he is very familiar with content creation and distribution for print, broadcast and digital media.
Effah holds a Master’s degree in Communication Studies and a Bachelor of Arts from Ghana’s premier university - University of Ghana, Legon.
DevOps Engineer
Sefakor is a DevOps Engineer at WACREN. He comes onboard with more than seven years of broad range experience in information technology. His main areas of expertise include developing, deploying, and automating cloud infrastructure using Code. He is pretty proficient in some high-end open-source and proprietary DevOps tools.
Sefakor holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Information and Communication Technology from the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA). Before joining WACREN, he was a software engineer at GetInnotized and the National Coordinator for Ghana Code Club.
He holds a number of certifications on popular cloud platforms including Microsoft Certified Trainer, Microsoft Azure Developer Associate, and Microsoft Certified Azure AI Fundamentals. On Amazon, he is a AWS certified cloud practitioner and AWS SysOps Administrator. He is also a certified Cybersecurity professional.
NOC Engineer
Brahim NAGI is a member of the NOC team at WACREN based in Dakar, Senegal.
He has worked in telecommunications in Senegal since 2014, notably for the historic and leading operator in Senegal, SONATEL. He also worked on a major project by France Telecoms for Africa called GNOC (Global Network Operations Center), where the supervision and operation of 10 Orange subsidiaries are directly managed from this NOC.
This experience has allowed him to gain a solid understanding of incident management and oversight, as well as IP networks, routing protocols (ISIS, OSPF, BGP), and multi-vendor routers/switches (JUNIPER, HUAWEI, CISCO).
He holds an engineering degree in telecommunications from ESMT in Dakar.
Koudoussou is a NOC Engineer at WACREN. Before joining us, he was a Networks and Systems Administrator at BFIX - the Burkina Faso Internet Exchange Point, where he was in charge of the provisioning of services as well as a host of other key tasks.
Koudoussou also worked at ANPTIC, the national agency for promotion of ICT in Burkina Faso; there he focused on the study and implementation of the National IoT platform on the G-Cloud.
He has a Master’s degree in Networks and Systems with a specialisation in Cybersecurity and a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science with a specialisation in Networks and Systems, with honours, all from the Nazi Boni University in Burkina Faso.
He continues to upgrade his knowledge in his professional field as he participates in continuous professional development programmes in areas like Mutually Agreed Norms Routing for Security (MANRS), cybersecurity and internet governance.
Accountant
As an Accountant, Juliet Ahiagbede plays a crucial role in managing the accounting operations at WACREN, bringing over eight years of experience.
Juliet is highly experienced in external audits, internal audits, payroll management, tax consultancy, and accountancy. As a Chartered Accountant and Chartered Tax Practitioner, she brings a wealth of expertise to her role at WACREN. Her proficiency extends beyond traditional accounting, encompassing a broad spectrum of financial disciplines.
Juliet holds a Master’s degree in Petroleum Finance and Accounting, demonstrating her ability to navigate the complexities of finance in specialised industries. She is currently furthering her academic pursuits by pursuing a degree in Law. This diverse educational background reflects Juliet's commitment to continuous learning and staying abreast of the latest developments in both financial and legal domains.
Project Manager
Abigail is WACREN’s Project Manager (PM), overseeing all key projects in WACREN. She is a highly skilled project management expert with ten years of experience managing and delivering projects across various industries. Abigail is a Project Management Professional (PMP®) and has been certified in Practical Project Management (PPM) and Certified Data Protection Supervisor (CDPS). She is well-versed in data protection principles and regulatory compliance.
Abigail holds a BSc in Computer Science & Engineering from the University of Mines and Technology, Tarkwa and an MSc in Engineering & Management from Coventry University, UK. She excels in business operations, strategy, and business process re-engineering.
In her previous role as Head of IT Projects at Prudential Life, Abigail spearheaded digital transformation initiatives, significantly boosting technological capabilities and operational efficiencies. She has a robust IT background and is dedicated to driving success through meticulous project planning and strategic analysis. She is an invaluable asset to any organization committed to growth and innovation.
