Amini Kajunju

 

A native of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ms. Kajunju is the first African to ever serve at the helm of The Africa-America Institute (AAI), the oldest nonprofit organization of its kind in the United States.

 

Ms. Kajunju joined AAI in October 2012 from the New York-based Workshop in Business Opportunities (WIBO), a non-profit organization whose mission is to educate, train and inspire under-resourced entrepreneurs in the Tri-State Area of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, where she served as executive director for 10 years. Under her leadership, she bolstered the organization’s programming and served more entrepreneurs than any other institution of a similar size in New York City.

 

Prior to WIBO, Ms. Kajunju served as a program manager at the International Executive Service Corps (IESC), an organization providing free consulting services to businesses in developing countries. At IESC, Ms. Kajunju recruited and managed U.S. volunteer experts who assisted small- to medium- businesses in the fisheries, clothing, and mining industries in Southern Africa.

 

An entrepreneurial leader with strategic, fiscal, organizational and mentoring skills, Kajunju interned at the Center for Humanitarian Outreach & Intercultural Exchange, and The Carter Presidential Center. She is a founding member and was the Vice-President of the Board of ANGELAFRICA, a nonprofit organization whose mission seeks to build a network of business and professional leaders and promote economic growth in Africa.

 

She holds a Bachelors of Arts degree in International Relations with an emphasis on economic development from Brigham Young University and a Masters degree in Public Administration with a concentration in finance and management from New York University.

 

Ms. Kajunju assumed the role of AAI President and CEO on October 1, 2012.