AHP announces a new Leadership Team structure

There are now eleven members of the AHP Leadership Team, including eight Board members who comprise representation from the three AHP groupings (Industry, Associations and Universities) plus a Board representative in Mauritius:

• Industry - 5 Members (including at least one representative of smaller organisations)

• Associations - 1 Member

• Universities - 1 Member

The other 3 non-Board members of the Leadership team are:

• Chairman AHP Advocacy Task Force - Richard Kiplagat

https://www.afr-h2-p.com/post/appointment-of-mr-richard-kiplagat-as-chairman-of-the-ahp-advocacy-taskforce

• Chairman AHP Financial Advisory Group - Junaid Belo-Osagie (Executive Director, Investment Banking, Mizuho)

https://www.afr-h2-p.com/post/appointment-of-mr-junaid-belo-osagie-as-chairman-of-the-ahp-financial-advisory-group

• Secretary General - Siegfried Huegemann

The main goal in 2023 is to create a single plan to address hard to abate sectors in several regions of Africa. Input for this plan will come from both the Industry Committees and the Regional Chapters.

Industry Committees

There will be 6 Industry Committees comprised of AHP Industry members:

• Production of Hydrogen

• Hydrogen Derivatives

• Export Markets

• Domestic Markets

• Attracting Energy Intensive Industries

• Finance and Investment

Regional Chapters

To allow for a regional perspective there will be 6 regional chapters, with individual countries grouped into one of these chapters. They will look at opportunities to co-operate within regions as well as address regional specific issues:

• Northern Africa

• Western Africa

• Horn of Africa

• Central Africa

• Eastern Africa

• Southern Africa

As with the Industry Committees, the Regional Chapters will have a Regional Co-ordination Group who will organise both inter chapter communication but also co-ordination with the AHP Leadership Team.

AHP members will be receiving information in the coming weeks on how they can participate in these new groups.

Dr Innocent Uwuijaren, AHP Director and Chairman said,

“The new Board structure and the Industry and Regional groups will allow the AHP to expand its output and reflect the expertise of its members to external parties and governments. It will allow AHP members to have a say in the combined view of the AHP. I hope that all members will use this opportunity to contribute to the work of these groups and allow the AHP to be heard as a single voice. As an organisation we are more effective when we stand together.”

Mr Junaid Belo-Osagie, Chairman AHP Financial Advisory Group said,

“Africa’s growth story in an era of decarbonisation and digitalisation cannot be actualised without a redirection of some of the world’s capital pools from established markets into Africa, considering that one in every 4 persons living in the world in 2050 would be African. Such capital flow has to be intentional, strategic and substantial.

Hydrogen is possibly one of the levers to enable this transformation, and the AHP is arguably Africa’s foremost platform for connecting the dots across the hydrogen value chain. The AHP Financial Advisory Group recognises that there are trillions of commercial dollars pursuing value, and billions of concessionary capital seeking bankable projects. Our goal is to structure blended finance solutions that are tailored to optimally finance African hydrogen assets in multiple sectors across the regions of Africa. Whilst advising developers, off takers, technology and capital providers on how to navigate Africa’s cost of capital challenges, the group will work with other members of the AHP to develop a wholesome Operational Plan that works for the continent”.

Richard Kiplagat, Chairman AHP Advocacy Taskforce said,

"I am delighted to be appointed to join the Africa Hydrogen Partnership Leadership team. The mission of the AHP and my own desire to support the socio-economic transformation of Africa are fully aligned and this role provides me with a great opportunity to make my small contribution towards the goal of a prosperous Africa."

Siegfried Huegemann, AHP Secretary General, said,

"The AHP leadership team is complete with the appointment of Chairpersons of the AHP Advocacy Task Force and the Financial Advisory Group. I am delighted that the AHP has a team of competent and experienced individuals who come from an assortment of backgrounds. This will not only provide the AHP with great problem solving and management skills but gives the AHP a better understanding required for developing Hydrogen markets in different regions of Africa. Now that the leadership is complete, the AHP leadership team will work with the AHP’s Regional Chapters and Industry Committees on a joint (across different business sectors) and combined (across different regions) Operational Plan that allows us to utilize synergies for achieving economies of scale and to diversify risks accordingly. The focus will be on hard-to-abate sectors (e.g. mining, fertilizer production, building materials, land transport and shipping) in regions of Africa that have a strong potential for producing low-cost green hydrogen and strong domestic markets."