The 19th edition of KWITA IZINA, the Gorilla naming ceremony, is currently at a 100% stage of preparation with just hours remaining to go.
The ceremony is scheduled to be held in Kinigi on September 1, where the event will involve naming 23 babies born in the past year.
This story is going to brief you about each namer of the 19th Edition.
Namers if this edition include dedicated people in animals and ecosystems protection, various football-team members, film actors, international guests, friends of Rwanda and others celebrities.
Sol Campbell- Arsenal FC and Three Lions team member
Football legend, Sulzeer Jeremiah Campbell [Sol Campbell], who made history while playing for Arsenal and the England National Team, is expected at the Naming event.
Sol Campbell was part of Arsenal’s undefeated Premier League team, known as ‘The Invincibles’, in the 2003–04 season.
The 48-year-old spent 20 years in the English Premier League and also played for the England national team ‘Three Lions’ for 11 years.
Sol Campbell, one of the best defenders ever, spent five years at Arsenal FC, playing 195 games. He won two Premier League trophies and two FA Cups.
Larry Green, on the Board of Directors at the African Wildlife Foundation
Larry Green is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and co-founder of US-based System Pavers. The South African is on the Board of Directors of the Africa Wildlife Foundation (AWF).
System Pavers is a company that works in the field of modern architecture through the transformation of living spaces.
Green is active in the creation of campaigns aimed at gathering capacity for the preservation of ecosystems in and care for the restoration of wetlands in Africa.
Umuhoza Ineza Grace, who has a Non-Government Organization dedicated to protecting the environment
She is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and founder of Green Protector, a Youth Organization for the Protection of the Environment.
In 2020 she was awarded National Geographic Young Explorer while in 2021 awarded for the results of her projects, through USAID #WaterOurImpact.
Bernard Lama, Former PSG and France National team Goalkeeper.
Bernard Pascal Maurice Lama is a famous French goalkeeper in two decade ago.
As a player he went through the dominant teams of his native France such as Rennes, Metz, Lille and Paris Saint-Germain [PSG]. He also played in England for West Ham.
While playing for PSG he won various trophies including the Coupe de France in 1993, the French Championship [1994], the Coupe de la Ligue [1995] and the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup [1996].
Bernard Lama, 60, together with the French national team, he won the 1998 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2000.
Anders Holch Povlsen, a leading fashion entrepreneur
He is the CEO of Bestseller, a global fashion retailer. He invested in fashion design and related businesses.
Anders with 50 years old, from Denmark, is the foremost shareholder in the British fashion agency, ASOS; He is also the second in Zalando, a German online shoe and clothing retailer.
The billionaire owns 220,000 acres of land in Scotland and his fortune is estimated at £8.5 billion, increasing by £2 billion from 2022
Audrey Azoulay, Director of UNESCO
She is the Director General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), since 2017 to present where she is particularly committed to education and environmental protection.
She made history as the second woman to head UNESCO.
Before named the boss of UNESCO, She served as the Minister of Culture in France since 2016 to 2017, for François Hollande ‘s Government.
Winston Duke, Black Panther’ Super star
From Trinidad and Tobago, Duke has made a big name in film acting. He is best known for playing the villain M’Baku in Black Panther (2018).
The actor and producer has worked on films including Us (2019), Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Spencer Confidential (2020).
Jonathan Ledgard, British Author
Jonathan Ledgard is an Author and Expert in Technology, Environment and Modern Economics.
For 20 years, he has been the lead writers for The Economist, a magazine that writes about the economy, in various sections. For 10 years he has put his efforts into working on the African continent.
He is one of the contributors to the introduction of the method of transporting medical drugs with the help of drones, which has already taken root in Rwanda through Zipline
Zurab Pololikashvili, UNWTO Secretary General
The 46-year-old Georgian is the Secretary General of the World Tourism Organization, UNWTO, since 2018.
Before receiving these responsibilities, Pololikashvili served in the Government of Georgia as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Ambassador of his country to Morocco, Algeria and Andorra.
In his duties at UNWTO, Pololikashvili, focuses on the role of tourism in finding sustainable solutions for people and the world, sovereignty and security.
BUKOLA ELEMIDE Nigerian-french singer Known Asa
Aṣa born in September 17, 1982, is a Nigerian-French singer, songwriter, and recording artist with a smoky voice.
Her musical career started after she left Nigeria for France. In 2004, Asa met her manager and friend, Janet Nwose, who introduced her to Cobhams Emmanuel Asuquo, who in turn became the producer of her first studio album, Asa (Asha).
Prof. Ozlem Tureci, M.D. Chief Medical Officer, BioNTech SE,
Chief Medical Officer, effective June 1, 2018. Dr. Türeci has chaired BioNTech´s Scientific and Clinical.
Dr. Türeci has over 25 years of experience in cancer research and immuno-oncology, specifically in the identification of immunotherapeutic drug targets and the development of antibodies, as well as vaccine-based therapies.
In 2001, Dr. Türeci co-founded Ganymed Pharmaceuticals as Chief Scientific Officer and became its Chief Executive Officer in 2008. Ganymed Pharmaceuticals, which focused on developing a new generation of first-in-class antibodies in solid cancers, was sold to Astellas Pharma, Inc. for EUR 422 million in 2016. Dr. Türeci is chairman and co-initiator of Ci3, the German Cluster Initiative of Individualized ImmunIntervention (Ci3) e.V., based in Mainz, Germany. She is also an executive board member of the Association for Cancer Immunotherapy (CIMT). She authored over 110 peer-reviewed
publications and is an inventor on more than 80 patents and patent applications.
Dr SIERK POETTING, Chief Operating Officer, BioNTech SE
Dr. Poettingis german born in1973 joined BioNTech in September 2014 from Novartis, where he served in various positions and from May 2012 to August 2014 as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for the Sandoz Division in North America. Dr. Poetting started his career as a consultant with McKinsey & Company. A German citizen, Dr. Poetting holds a Master of Science in Optical Sciences from the University of Arizona and a Ph.D. in Physics from the Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich.
Cyrille Ballore, Chief Executive Officer of Ballore.
Cyrille Bolloré began his career in the investment fund Alpha Value Management, then became a trader in petroleum products in New York.
In 2007, he joined Bolloré Energy, where he became CEO in 2010.
In August 2012, he became vice-president, managing director of Ballore , then deputy managing director in June 2013.
He then took care of Bolloré Transport & Logistics. He developed the freight forwarding activity there.
In September 2017, he was appointed vice-president and general manager of Financière de l’Odet , the head holding company of the Bolloré group, of which his father is president.
In 2018, he replaced his father on the supervisory board of Vivendi , chaired by his brother Yannick.
He was appointed Chairman and CEO of the Bolloré group on March 14, 2019in place of his father.
Nick Stone, Lead Director Wilderness
Partner at FS Investors Served as Vice President for TPG Capital, one of the world’s largest private equity funds Lead director of Wilderness Safaris, the largest conservation tourism operator in Africa, and also Kelvin Inc. Sits on the board of Bayside Communities among others Previously worked as an investment professional at Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. Graduated cum laude from Harvard University and was an Arjay Miller Scholar at the Stanford Graduate School of Business
DANAI GARURA, Zimbabwean-American actress
Born February 14, 1978) is a Zimbabwean–American actress and playwright. She is best known for her starring roles as Michonne on the AMC horror drama series The Walking Dead (2012–2020, 2022) and as Okoye in the Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero films, including Black Panther (2018) and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022).
Idris Elba, British actor
Idrissa Akuna Elba born September 6, 1972. He became interested in drama while attending school and was awarded a grant by the Prince’s Trust to join (1990) the National Youth Music Theatre. Beginning in his late teens, he worked as a disc jockey under the name DJ Big Driis (later Big Driis the Londoner) while auditioning for acting roles. From the mid-1990s he appeared often on British TV, his roles including recurring characters on Insiders (1997), Family Affairs (1997), and Dangerfield (1999). In 2018 Elba made his feature directing debut with Yardie, a drama about a drug courier who is sent to London, where he seeks revenge for the death of his brother. That year he also created the TV series In the Long Run, a comedy about his childhood; he also appeared in the show. Elba again returned to his roots when he starred as a struggling DJ in the British TV series Turn Up Charlie (2019), which he cocreated.
Sabrina Dhowre, UN Goodwill Ambassador for IFAD as well CEO, Model and activist
Sabrina Dhowre Elba, Idris Elbas’ spouse is a CEO, model and activist. Born in Vancouver, Canada and of Somali Descent, Sabrina was appointed UN Goodwill Ambassador for International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) in April 2020 and has since dedicated herself to the challenges faced by rural women and girls.
Sabrina also works with various civil society organizations, including Farm Africa, Conservation International and the European board for Global Citizen.
Sabrina received a TIME100 Impact award and The Crystal Award from World Economic Forum.
Innocent Dusabeyezu, ranger
Dusabeyezuhas been a ranger, in Volcanoes National Park since 2007 and a dedicated individuals with special gorilla monitoring skills
H.E Hazza AlQahtani, The UAE Ambassador in Rwanda
Ambassador AlQahtani is the current United Arab Emirates (UAE) Ambassador to Rwanda since June 2018, Prior to this posting, he was Advisor in the Department of African Affairs in the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs & International Cooperation.
Rt. Hon. Andrew Mitchell MP, The minister of State in the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, United Kingdom
Andrew Mitchell was appointed as a Minister of State in the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) on 25 October 2022.
He was previously Secretary of State for International Development from May 2010 to September 2012. He was elected Conservative MP for Sutton Coldfield on 7 June 2001.
Kevin Hart, American comedian and Actor
Kevin, born July 6, 1979, is an American comedian and actor. Originally known as a stand-up comedian, he has since starred in Hollywood films and on TV. He has also released several well-received comedy albums.
Hart’s comedic reputation continued to grow with the release of his first stand-up album I’m a Grown Little Man (2009). He has since released four more comedy albums: Seriously Funny (2010), Laugh at My Pain (2011), Let Me Explain (2013), and What Now? (2016). In 2015, Time magazine named him on its annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world. In 2017, he launched the Laugh Out Loud Network, a subscription video streaming service in partnership with Lionsgate.
