Kaakpema Yelpaala, MPH
Founder and President
Kaakpema Yelpaala is the Founder of Network for the Improvement of World Health. He specializes in a broad range of matters related to health and development, including both program implementation and scholarly research. He has worked for the Clinton Foundation in various capacities, including for the Clinton Foundation HIV/AIDS Initiative (CHAI) and the Clinton-Hunter Development Initiative (CHDI). For CHAI, his work focused on scaling up access to Antiretroviral Therapy (and broader HIV prevention, care and support initiatives) in collaboration with the public sector and other stakeholders in Tanzania and the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States, both regionally and at the country-level. He also held a regional role based out of Nairobi where he did work in Kenya and Ethiopia. Kaakpema worked for CHDI in Rwanda on rural development and agriculture, including models for increasing agricultural financing options for cooperatives and farmers.

In Tanzania, Kaakpema was a member of the consultative group that drafted Tanzania’s first National Communications Strategy for HIV/AIDS and was the primary author for the care and treatment chapter the strategy. He has published an article and book chapter on research he conducted in Ghana in 2003 on mining, development, and public health and a working paper on the ICT in the health sector in Africa in 2005. Kaakpema received a Master of Public Health degree from the Yale School of Epidemiology and Public Health, and holds a BA in an independent major from Brown University entitled "Public Health and Development in an International Perspective." He is the recipient of the 2007 Yale Alumni in Public Health New Professionals Award and the 2006 Jesuit High School Man for Others Alumni Award for his work in global health and development. Kaakpema received a Master of Public Health degree from the Yale School of Epidemiology and Public Health, and holds a BA from Brown University with an Independent Major entitled "Public Health and Development in an International Perspective."

Michael Kubayanda
Director of Strategy and Public Policy
Michael Kubayanda assists Network in its strategic vision, approach to public policy, and work with the public sector. Michael’s work with Network includes identifying, negotiating, managing relationships with partners in the public and private sectors and African diplomatic community on behalf of Network. In addition, as Network’s Secretary, Michael oversees compliance with state and federal policies, and manages a number of internal reporting systems and controls.

Michael currently works in the public policy arena for a large enterprise, advising its senior management on a number of issues, including aspects of economic regulation, as well as relations with executive branch entities, the U.S. Congress, and private sector firms and coalitions. Formerly, Michael served as an associate with a bipartisan government relations firm in Washington, DC creating legislative strategies and drafting legislative and other policy proposals on biofuels, climate change, infrastructure, federal-local relations, and education policy. Michael holds a BA in Journalism and Political Science from The Ohio State University and a JD from Northwestern University. He also attended Georgetown University, where he studied network economics and public policy toward network industries.

Nick Montgomery
Information Technology Administrator
As Network’s Information Technology Administrator, Nick Montgomery oversees and manages all of Network’s technology related matters, and also volunteers as an advisor on Network’s goals related to health and ICT. Nick designed and implemented the current (and previous) Network website, and also developed Network’s virtual office, which is an online forum for sharing information, work planning, and managing operations processes. After completing his Bachelors degree in computer science at Brown University, he worked in the private sector in IT consulting for CGI-AMS. With a Masters degree in Education Research and Policy from the University of Michigan, Nick currently works as a research analyst for the Consortium on Chicago School Research at the University of Chicago. His research is focused on the effects of the past decade of policy and curricular changes on students in Chicago's public high schools.

Anthony Brenneman
Media Director
Anthony Brenneman provides planning and technical support to Network on film projects and media/communications related activities. Anthony’s first project with Network was the film, “Hardest to Reach,” for which he served as a consultant during all phases of production. Anthony’s experience in projects of social significance includes his public service with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps to address HIV/AIDS in inner-city Atlanta, GA and as a member of AmeriCorps to promote education in inner-city Pittsburgh, PA.

Anthony holds a BA in Studio Arts from Loyola Marymount University (LMU) in Los Angeles. At LMU, Anthony developed his skills in photography and video projects, serving as Photography Editor for the Los Angeles Loyolan newspaper and holding various crew positions on the film “Borders,” which won the Directors Guild of America-sponsored Angelus Award. Anthony’s skill in filmmaking has taken him to the alpine regions of Germany and Austria where he captured documentary footage for the film “Behind Holy Walls.” Anthony is currently pursuing a Masters in Film & Video Production at American University’s School of Communication in Washington, DC.

Samuel Manteaw
Country Director, Network Ghana
Samuel Manteaw is a lawyer and lecturer of law at the University of Ghana, Legon. He is a legal and governance expert and is the global legal counsel for Network for the Improvement of World Health. He has consulted for the Government of Ghana Good Governance Program and as a resource person on corruption for Ghana’s Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ). He is also an expert on HIV/AIDS in Africa and a resource person for the International Law Institute’s Center for Legal Excellence HIV/AIDS workshop in Uganda. He manages an Africa-focused regional Bio-security project for a U.S. institution based in Accra, Ghana. Samuel completed his Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) degree at the University of Ghana and LLM in Transnational Business Practice from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento, CA. He also holds an LLM in Intellectual Property from the George Washington University where he wrote his thesis on HIV/AIDS, treatment access, and patents in Ghana.

Benjamin Manu
Country Coordinator, Network Ghana
Benjamin Manu coordinates a diverse portfolio of projects for Network Ghana. In his role as coordinator, he manages our relationships with various districts in which we work, supports our efforts in seeking new partners and donors for our work, and directs and supervises local and international interns and volunteers. Benjamin has experience in consensus building with community coalitions, grassroots groups, public/private partnerships, group facilitation, and participatory processes. Prior to joining Network Ghana, Benjamin served as Assistant Project Coordinator for Global Bargain for Bio-security’s Africa Office in Ghana. Benjamin holds a Bachelor of Arts in Archaeology and Theatre Arts from the University of Ghana with relevant work in anthropology, cultural resource management, and media. He is in the final stages of completing his Masters in Social Work from the University of Ghana, Legon.

Jo-Angeline Kalambo
Country Director, Network Tanzania
Jo-Angeline Kalambo is an independent consultant working in different public health areas including orphans and vulnerable children (OVC), HIV prevention, and capacity building. Based in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Jo-Angeline most recently worked for Family Health International (FHI) as Associate Director of Coordination and Capacity Building for their UJANA Project. Jo-Angeline’s work in this youth HIV prevention project includes developing and managing the implementation of the partners’ strategy, leading the coordinating committee for youth programs, managing the grant making budget, and developing and implementing the UJANA capacity building model. Prior to joining FHI’s UJANA project, Jo-Angeline worked with Management Sciences for Health (MSH) as an Assistant Technical Advisor to the Rapid Funding Envelope (RFE) for HIV/AIDS. She has a wealth of knowledge and experience in matters related to CBOs and capacity building, global health governance, multi- and bilateral agencies, public/private partnerships, and OVC. Jo-Angeline holds a Master in Public Health from the Yale School of Epidemiology and Public Health.

Steven Kisakye
Program Director, Network Kenya / Technical Advisor for Network Global
Stephen Kisakye is a public health and program management professional with experience in public health, epidemiology and surveillance, HIV/AIDS care and treatment, sustainable rural development and strategy development for government and private health organizations. He has specific expertise in HIV/AIDS program management at national and regional levels in sub-Saharan Africa, procurement and supply chain management, information systems for ARVs and Opportunistic Infection drugs, HIV/AIDS diagnostics, and Monitoring and Evaluation. His experience spans employment with Hygeia Foundation, the William J. Clinton Foundation, Médecins Sans Frontičres (Spain) and collaborative work with UN agencies. Steve is an alumnus of Makerere University (Institute of Public Health) in Uganda.