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A Team rooted in building
Africa’s rural economies
INSPIRED is a woman owned, Delaware Limited Liability Corporation, registered on 1 November 2007 and has operated exclusively in Africa for 15 years. INSPIRED is a shareholder in three joint ventures:
- INSPIRED Associates, Kenya;
- INSPIRED Associates Uganda;
- INSPIRED Impact Ghana;
INSPIRED’s consultancy services focus on using local knowledge to drive practical, measurable, and high impact support for: Market System Analyses and Strategies; Financial Products, Planning and Strategies for Financial Institutions; Financial Sector Deepening Strategies; Investment Design Sector and Country Strategies for Private Sector, Public Sector and Development Partners
Our Team
Richard Pelrine
Technical Director
Mr. Pelrine has over 35 years of experience in management of investments and strategic planning for investments in agricultural development, rural SMEs, rural focused financial institutions, and development/blended finance in Africa. He has designed, established, and facilitated capitalization of development trusts; consulted on the acquisition of businesses and banks; and directly managed agribusiness and financial sector investments. Mr. Pelrine served as IFAD’s Lead Economist for West and Central Africa and Country Director for Nigeria; project Team Leader for GIZ’s Agricultural Finance Project in Nigeria; CEO for Uganda’s Agribusiness Loan Guarantee Company; and Technical Director for INSPIRED International. He holds degrees from The University of Massachusetts in Anthropology and Agricultural Economics and from Erasmus University (Rotterdam) in Rural Policy and Project Planning. He completed all course work for a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics with Stellenbosch University. He completed the professional development series at Harvard University in mastering negotiation.
Carol Ann Kotilainen
Managing Director
Ms. Kotilainen holds degrees from Northeastern University in International Business and from The Ohio State University in Cultural Policy and Administration. She has over 12 years of experience working in several high-level administrative posts including managing Harvard University’s Global Equity Initiative and serving earlier as a Human Resources Manager for Harvard Medical School. She has worked in a consulting capacity on administrative and technical issues in Ethiopia and Uganda for USAID, GTZ, Danida and various Embassy funded initiatives. Ms. Kotilainen is majority shareholder and the Managing Director of INSPIRED International since 2007.
Mark Bitarabeho
Senior Consultant
Mr. Bitarabeho is an accomplished banker with more than 12 years of experience. During his Banking career, Mark rose through senior management positions to become the first Principal Head of Sales and Derivatives, Financial Markets where he was involved in creating customized hedging solutions to a cross section of clients including Banks. He developed strong ties within the business and banking community and gained experience in assessing client portfolio risk and providing creative solutions to manage FX, Interest Rate and Commodity risk, all aimed at providing value to the client or sector. A dedicated leader, Mark believes that each client is unique and as such, requires appropriate and customized solutions that ensure sustainability and profitability. Mark loves following global economic and technology issues, politics, sports, agriculture and is passionate about saving the environment.
Etienne Rouge
Senior Consultant
Mr. Rouge is a private agribusiness specialist focused on African market entry strategies, route to market development, production, training of sales structures, development of full commercial projects, supply chain development, and Merger and Acquisition support.
Abdulai Ishau
Senior Consultant
Mr. Ishau has over 15 years working experience in banking, market systems development, investment management, rural and agricultural finance, and project management. He has a strong track record of delivering above specifications. Starting his career as a banker, his specialization over the past years has trended toward financial inclusion of rural people, particularly women and youth; formalization of economic relationships to enhance the predictability of incomes for poorer members of the society; analysis of agribusiness markets for strategic value chain development; and risk management. He holds a Master of Financial Management, Bachelor of Business Administration- Accounting, and a Post Graduate Diploma in Agricultural Value Chain Development and Analysis.
