Minutes

FINAL MINUTES
46TH Meeting of the Expert Panel on Social, Environmental and Economic Performance of Cotton Production – SEEP
Friday, March 23, 2018
Bremen – Germany

Members:
Mr. Allan Williams (in the Chair)
Mr. Leon Picon, Turkey
Mr. Jens Soth, EU
Dr. Kater Hake, USA
Dr. Bill Norman, USA
Dr. Bruno Bachelier, CIRAD (By teleconference)
Ms. Elke Hortmeyer, EU
Mr. Damien Sanfilippo, (for Alan McClay) BCI
Observers:
Mr. Wolfgang Bertenbreiter, GIZ
Ms. Mandy Piepke, German Textiles Partnership
Mr. Lyman Stone, USDA
Mr. Mark Messura, Cotton Incorporated
Mr. Neal Gillen, Representative of the ICAC Secretariat to UNCITRAL
Ms. Katharina Graf, GIZ
Mr. Jerzy Kotuhs, Gdynia Cotton Association
Secretariat:
Mr. Kai Hughes, Executive Director
Ms. Yana Pomerants, Executive Assistant

1. Approval of the Minutes 45th Meeting in Tashkent 2017

Allan Williams, Chair of the SEEP panel opened the meeting by welcoming the delegates and observers present. The Chair asked all members if they have any comments or edits to the minutes for the meeting in Tashkent. Seeing none, the minutes were approved.

2. Adoption of the Agenda

The Chair inquired if there were any proposals for changes or concerns regarding the agenda and seeing none found the agenda approved.

3. Follow-up on the 3 areas prioritised by SEEP:

Soil Health (Attachment 1): Dr. Kater Hake gave a brief background about the importance of the soil health and noted that the Tool is designed to help cotton producers to improve their productivity and profitability. The following information was provided on how the Tool would be used:
a. Start with the problems observed in the field and follow the diagnostic key to suspected problems.
b. Each problem will include confirmation methods, references for different regions and a wide range of practices to minimize specific problems for growers with diverse resources.
c. Some soil health problems interact, which requires growers to carefully consider the practices that are most appropriate for their fields
d. As the tool is being used, producers are encouraged to leave comments, enter pictures and data that will allow its continual improvements.
e. The tool will be provided free of charge
f. Sample background information needed: Country, province/state, average annual rainfall, average in-season rainfall, elevation, latitude: longitude, surface soil type, crops grown in the area and irrigation.
Dr. Hake presented the following timeline for the implementation of the Tool:
– 03/2018: SEEP committee reviews & improves proposal for Soil Health Tool
– 04/2018: SEEP members identify potential national collaborators
– 05/2018: SEEP Identified National Collaborators contacted by project coordinator (Dr. Bobbie McMichael, retired USDA-ARS Soil Scientist, currently affiliated with Texas Tech University)
– 06/2018: Feedback from SEEP Identified National Collaborators incorporated into proposal
– 07-08/208: Broad outreach for additional National Collaborators
– 09-12/2018: National Collaborators and Dr. McMichael create global dataset
– 01-03/2019: ICAC contracts with software developer to create beta version (Cotton Inc. will fund)
– 04-06/2019: Existing and New Recruited Collaborators contribute and evaluate beta version
– 07-08/2019: ICAC contractor updates software
– 09-10/2019: Collaborators evaluate version 1.0
– 12/2019: Soil Health Tool version 1.1 demonstrated at ICAC 2019 Plenary, SEEP creates plan to maintain Soil Health Tool and publish algorithms, references and early use statistics and examples as a SEEP publication in 20200
– 01/2020 – Collaborators can utilize ICAC Soil Health Tool software to create their own National Soil Health Tools
Dr. Hake noted that identifying soil health experts in different countries is essential as a starting point to develop the Tool. Dr. McMichael would be in charge for creating the global dataset in collaboration with national experts. Dr. McMichael has been working as a consultant for Cotton Incorporated for the past 8 years. Mr. Hake also proposed to use the same model implemented when developing the “Crop Development Tool”, which was on the ICAC website and funded by Cotton Incorporated. It was agreed that the ICAC should look at the state of the art of the electronic information available for cotton production, especially on the soil health issue. The Executive Director of the ICAC, Mr. Kai Hughes, noted that this task could be done by the Head of the Technical Section, Dr. Keshav Kranthi.
The following comments were made for consideration by Dr Hake:
• Mr. Jens Soth enquired about ‘niche’ soils, i.e. soils not normally associated with cotton growing, which would potentially require a significant degree of information regarding
appropriate management practices based on detailed local knowledge; Dr. Norman indicated that the Tool will be a ‘living’ tool that can be expanded as time goes on. To give the widest coverage, the initial focus should be on the most frequently encountered soils, and ‘niche’ soils can be added in time.
• Mr. Soth suggested that the indicators framework could be integrated into the Tool, i.e. the Tool could be used to help collect relevant indicator data, a concept which was endorsed by Dr Norman.
• Ms. Elke Hortmeyer suggested that the private sector actors who work with farmers (e.g. seed companies, ginners with extension agents) could be approached to provide their domain expertise in order to help with diagnosing and developing an appropriate set of recommendations for the app. It was agreed that this would appropriate to do after the initial pilot stage.
• Mr. Bertenbreiter offered to approach his contacts in east Africa and Mr. Soth offered to present a slide on the concept at the upcoming Textile Exchange Round Table.
• Mr. Hughes asked to clarify the logistics of selecting the national collaborator on soil for each country. Dr. Hake replied that he would write a job description to facilitate the process. Dr Hake estimated that the time commitment required from a national coordinator would be about a month.
• Mr. Damien Sanfilippo indicated that BCI would be very interested in supporting the Tool, and especially in filling in any identified gaps (e.g. in identifying an appropriate national coordinator).
• It was agreed that in the initial stages of developing the Tool a small group should be established to ‘pilot’ the concept, rather than trying to cover as many geographies as possible.
• The need to collaborate as broadly as possible was discussed, including the importance of identifying what apps might already exist that provide a similar service to the proposed Tool.
• Mr. Soth highlighted the need to link in FAO via Dr. Mancini.
Testing and implementation of the guidance framework: discussion of the final ‘lessons learned’ report (Attachment 3): Mr. Jens Soth apologized for not being able to present an update of the “lesson learned report”. However, he briefly commented on some of the advances made on the report, following the recommendations received in the SEEP meeting in Rome:
• Change of title, introduction and quantitative focus
• Inclusion of an annex with original survey questions
• Inclusion of pilots in West Africa by CIRAD
However, the following activities are still pending:
• Collect and process the information of pilots in West Africa by FAO.
• Include processed information in stocktaking tables and update corresponding report conclusions.
• Collect and integrate detailed comments and amendments to the final report by SEEP members.
To a question from the chair about the timeline for the final report. Mr. Soth replied that the document should be ready by the end of April.

4. Update on the ICAC Strategic Review

Kai Hughes, Executive Director of the ICAC, explained that the ICAC is undergoing its first major strategic review in over 10 years. The first stage of the strategic review process, which is the information gathering of other International commodity bodies and associations, has been completed. He explained that there were 7 ICBs, 5 Study Groups and 11 inter-governmental sub groups at the FAO.
Mr. Hughes noted that the next stage of the process is to get feedback from stakeholders working in the cotton industry. This information will be collected in two different ways, through a questionnaire and by meetings with delegates and members.
Mr. Hughes informed members that the strategic review process started with the ICAC staff discussion on its own internal vision and mission SWOT analysis. He discussed the SWOT analysis with participants and asked for their feedback and ideas. In the ensuing discussion, SEEP members stated that the panel should be considered a strength of the ICAC. They also agreed that the weaknesses are: the reputation of cotton, engagement with textile sector, and the final statements of the Plenary Meeting. The members of SEEP suggested that the ICAC should promote itself as the consensus body talking to the United Nations. In addition, the members suggested that there should be a structure in place to address disruptive technologies such as robot harvesters. The suggestion was regarding emerging technology and their impact on the job losses and that the ICAC should be always scanning the horizon for emerging trends and technologies.
Mr. Hughes concluded his presentation by asking members of SEEP to review the SWOT analysis and to provide their comments on the items that were not discussed in the meeting. He noted that the final results of the strategy review will be presented at the next Plenary Meeting in Cote d’Ivoire.
The chair commented that BCI and the International Coffee Organization-ICO have received funding from ISEAL for a project to develop cross-commodity relevant indicators that will measure sustainability, and the best way to communicate the information gathered. He noted that on behalf of SEEP he was approached to act as an adviser on this project, with a view to ensuring that the proposed cross commodity indicators are informed by the guidance framework developed by SEEP. The project application was ‘high-level’, and the specific project activities will be developed between now and June; he will provide a draft of the proposed project activities to the members of SEEP once received for review and comment. Mr. Damien Sanfilippo commented that the project also includes the Global Coffee Platform. He said that the scope of the project is much broader as it will include all crops that are covered by the organization. The project is related to BIG DATA and it is a great opportunity to enhance the utility and harmonization of the indicators recommended by the SEEP panel.
The chair noted that ISEAL, as part of approving the funding application, highlighted the high-level cross-sectoral support for the project as being an important component of its success. There is an opportunity for SEEP to better leverage this status to acquire the resources required to implement the guidance framework in a comprehensive and strategic way.

5. Next SEEP meeting in Cote d’Ivoire

The chair noted that it would be useful to meet again prior to the next Plenary meeting in December in Cote d’Ivoire and will circulate some options for a meeting in Europe based on coordinating with other conferences or meetings; the potential to meet immediately prior to the Plenary meeting, as was done prior to the Plenary meeting in Tashkent, will also be investigated.

6. Other business

The CHAIR thanked delegates and observers for their presence and declared the meeting closed.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:30 p.m.

Dr Mansurbek Muminov is a senior scientist at the Scientific Research Institute of Fiber Crops in Uzbekistan. His efforts have focused on basic cotton ginning and spinning, and he has authored more than 10 comprehensive research papers in those areas.

 

Dr. Mansurbek Mo'minov is the Deputy Director for Scientific Affairs and Innovation at the Scientific Research Institute of Fiber Crops in Uzbekistan.

Dr. Keshav R. Kranthi, Ph.D is the Chief Scientist at the International Cotton Advisory Com­mittee (ICAC), Washington, DC. Before joining the ICAC, he served as the Director of the Central Institute for Cotton Research (CICR) in Nagpur, India, from 2008 to 2017. Dr. Kranthi has thirty-five years of experience as a cotton scientist. He received a gold medal in his Ph.D. in 1991 and has been honored with more than a dozen awards, including the Best CPP Program Award for Research Leadership by the Renewable Natural Resources Research International, UK; the ICAC Researcher of the Year Award in 2009; the Vasantrao Naik Smruti Pratisthan Award in 2004; the ICAR National Award for Leader of Best Team Research in 2006; Fellow of the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences in 2009; the ISCI Recognition Award in 2010; Krishi Gaurav Award in 2010; Bhumi Nirman Award in 2011; ISCI Fellow in 2017; the Plant Protection Recognition Award in 2016 by the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences; Suresh Kotak Global Cotton Award in 2023 and the CRDA life time achievement Award in 2024. Dr. Kranthi has four patents granted in South Africa, Mexico, China, and Uzbekistan, and six patent applications in India. He has published more than 100 peer-reviewed research papers, 20 books/handbooks/manuals, 17 book chapters, and more than 50 popular articles. Dr. Kranthi has presented invited talks and conducted training sessions in more than 40 countries. His research citations are in excess of 6,500. As the chief principal investigator, he coordinated and led more than 35 externally funded international collaboration research projects.

Dr. Charudatta Mayee, Ph.D is a distinguished Indian agricultural scientist and administrator with over five decades of contributions to Indian agriculture. Dr. Mayee currently serves as Adjunct Professor at IARI, New Delhi, and several ICAR institutions and universities. Dr Mayee served as Vice Chancellor of MAU Parbhani, Director of the Central Institute for Cotton Research (ICAR-CICR), Nagpur, and Agriculture Commissioner for the Government of India. Dr Mayee served as Vice President of the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS) India. Dr. C.D. Mayee has received numerous accolades spanning five decades, recognizing his transformative contributions to agricultural science. He is an Alexander von Humboldt Fellow and has received lifetime achievement awards from multiple institutions. His early career was marked by the Prof. M.J. Narasimhan Academic Award (1974) and V.P. Gokhale Award (1998), followed by national honors like the Vasantrao Naik Krishi Award (2002), ICAR Outstanding Team Research Award (2003), and Dr. B. Vishwanath Award (2005). He received Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Indian Society for Cotton Improvement (2008), National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (2011), and Indian Phytopathological Society (2017), among others. Four universities conferred Honorary Doctorates (D.Sc.) for his pioneering work (2009–2023). Recent distinctions include the  Best Cotton Scientist Award (2022, Cotton Association of India), Krishi Maharshi for Cotton R&D (2024) and the winner of the ICAC Researcher of the Year Award 2025.

Dr. Khalid Mahmood is the Co-Founder of SAWiE, where he has been instrumental in developing digital farm advisory and farm data platforms supporting over 10,000 farmers in Pakistan, improving traceability and transparency across agricultural supply chains. He is leading the development of first-mile traceability systems and the TRUE Cotton platform, connecting farmers with sustainable global textile supply chains.

He also serves as Head of Partnerships at the British Society of Soil Science (BSSS), where he leads strategic collaborations to position soil health as a critical climate mitigation solution, linking soil management with carbon sequestration, water quality, air quality, and biodiversity restoration.

Trained as an Agricultural Economist (PhD, University of Göttingen, Germany), Dr. Mahmood combines strong scientific expertise with practical innovation to address global challenges in food security, ESG reporting, climate resilience, and sustainable agriculture.

His past work includes leadership in research programs on carbon reduction in rice and livestock systems, and collaboration with leading institutions such as Rothamsted Research, AHDB UK, and the Thünen Institute (Germany).

Dr. Mahmood is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (UK) and has contributed to international research and knowledge networks including IFCN and UPSIGN.

Recognized among the Net Zero 50 Leaders, he continues to advance international partnerships that place soil at the centre of regenerative agriculture, natural capital development, and ecosystem restoration.

 

Dr Olivier Zieschank studied Management at the university of Lausanne, where he graduated in 2005. Until 2010, he worked in a Swiss-based start-up that specialized in negotiating cell tower lease agreements, where he became associate director. In 2010, he returned to university and studied applied economics in Neuchatel, Switzerland. He wrote his PhD in Economics at the University of Freiberg, Germany, where he developed a theory of organization. Mr Zieschank was appointed Economist at the ITMF in August 2017 and became director in January 2021.

Ashwin Chandran holds a Bachelors Degree in Textile Technology from UMIST, UK and a Masters degree in Business Administration from the University of Illinois, USA.

He is currently the Chairman of the Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) and it’s subsidiary - Cotton Development and Research Association – CITI CDRA. CITI-CDRA works with Indian cotton farmers and collaborates with government bodies and research institutions to improve cotton productivity, promote farmer welfare and expand the knowledge of Indian cotton farmers on the subjects of sustainability, traceability and meeting compliance and certification requirements.

He is the Chairman & Managing Director of Precot Limited, a manufacturer of yarns, threads and cotton based non-woven hygiene products.

He is the Chairman of the Indian Textile Sector Skill Council, a member of the Council of Administration of The Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council (TEXPROCIL) and is a past Chairman of the Southern India Mills Association (SIMA).

Mr. Shreyans Gupta is an officer of the Indian Revenue Service (IRS), currently serving as First Secretary at the Embassy of India in Washington D.C. In his current role, he oversees critical portfolios within the Income-tax Overseas Unit (ITOU) and the Commerce Wing, facilitating bilateral and multilateral cooperation.

Throughout his career, Mr. Gupta has held diverse positions involving both the implementation and policy-making aspects of Indian taxation. His expertise spans complex tax audits, financial and criminal investigations, International Taxation and administration of core IT platforms/infrastructure. He has also served as a delegate of India to various international tax organizations, contributing to high-level discourse on global tax cooperation frameworks

Eric Trachtenberg is the Executive Director of the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC).

Before coming to ICAC, he oversaw more than $700 million in programs to improve food security, support agricultural transformation, and strengthen land productivity at the U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC).

His earlier background includes service with USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) in the Russian Federation, China, and Taiwan where he resolved agricultural market access issues totaling more than $1.3 billion, designed and led investment facilitation initiatives that generated more than $10 billion in new activity, and oversaw export development programs worth $10 million.

He has a Masters in Agricultural Economics from Michigan State University, a Masters in Public Administration from the University of Southern California, and Bachelors degrees in Government and Economics from Cornell University.

Pia Terasa joined the textile machinery manufacturer Saurer over 25 years ago. She is responsible for marketing and communications at the group level. Coming originally from a non-textile background, market intelligence and business development have played major roles throughout her career. Her current main “hobby” is closely monitoring development of the textile recycling industry and circular economy.

Dr. Md. Fakhre Alam Ibne Tabib is the former Executive Director of the Cotton Development Board of Bangladesh, with over 32 years of experience in cotton production, research, and development. He has demonstrated strong leadership and communication skills in engaging with national and international stakeholders in the cotton sector.

His expertise spans Integrated Pest Management (IPM), Integrated Crop Management (ICM), and Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) with a focus on sustainable, regenerative, and organic cotton production. His research interests include high-density planting systems, planting geometry, intercropping, and innovative cropping patterns. Dr. Tabib is also proficient in ICT applications, project planning and monitoring, and scientific report writing.

Dr. Tabib has played a significant leadership role within the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC), serving as Vice-Chair (2023–2024) and Chair (2024–2025) of its Standing Committee. The ICAC is an association of governments of cotton-producing, consuming, and trading countries, recognized by the United Nations as the international commodity body for cotton and related products.

In addition, he serves as Vice President of the Ecological Society of Bangladesh and contributes actively to the executive bodies of other social and scientific organizations. He earned his Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Cotton Cropping Systems in 2013.

Dr. Tabib has participated in numerous international programs, conferences, and study visits related to cotton across countries including the USA, Türkiye, Uzbekistan, India, Egypt, the Philippines, South Korea, and Malaysia. He has published 12 scientific papers and several articles on cotton in reputed national and international journals and magazines. He is also an active member of multiple professional associations and networks worldwide.

Dr. Elsie Sia Kanza is the current Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United Republic of Tanzania to the United States of America and Mexico. Prior to that role, Ambassador Kanza served as Special Advisor to the President of the World Economic Forum, and, before that, Head of Africa and Member of Executive Committee for 10 years championing growth and development in Africa leveraging public private collaboration. In 2015, She was awarded a Doctorate in Business Administration (honoris causa) by the University of Strathclyde for the transformative impact achieved in Africa.

Ambassador Kanza also served in the government for a decade and a half as economic advisor to the President of the United Republic of Tanzania, as well as in various capacities with the Ministry of Finance and Central Bank of Tanzania.

In 2008, Ambassador Kanza became an Archbishop Tutu Leadership Fellow, and in 2011 a WEF Young Global Leader. She was also nominated as a Richard von Weizsacker Fellow and highlighted as one of Africa’s 50 most powerful women by Forbes in 2020. Additionally, she has served on various boards, including those of the African Leadership Institute - South Africa, Mercy Corps Europe, The Nature Conservancy Africa Council, and the Uongozi Institute.

Ambassador Kanza obtained a Bachelor’s degree from the United States International University – Africa in Business Administration and later graduated with a Master's degree in finance from the University of Strathclyde, United Kingdom and an MA in Development Economics, Center for Development Economics, Williams College, USA.

Alison Ward has over 30 years of international experience in sustainability and corporate affairs. Alison is the CEO of CottonConnect, where she leads a team of over 100 employees, impacting the lives of over 800,000 cotton farmers in India, China, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt and Bangladesh.  Under Alison’s leadership the organization: drives supply chain transparency connecting sustainable fibres from farm to store; focuses on the rights and skills of women in supply chains through pioneering gender programmes; and continues to develop innovations at a farm level. She leads cotton strategies and programmes for global brands and retailers.

Previously Alison worked with Mondelez International and Kraft Foods and was the Global Head of Corporate Responsibility at Cadbury.

With a mission to drive scalable change, Alison served as a Member of the Sustainable Cotton Steering Committee for Textile Exchange.  She sat on the Sustainability Advisory Committee for the London Olympic Games and has been a Coach and Mentor to commercial teams at WWF and the Ethical Trade Initiative. Alison is also a Life fellow of the RSA- Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.

Alison has completed the Senior Executive Programme at Ashridge Business School and the Business & Sustainability Programme at the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership. She holds a BA Hons in English from the University of Birmingham.

 

 

With more than 43 years of experience in textiles and fibre processing, Marinus has extensive commercial knowledge of all facets of the cotton production pipeline from field to fabric, specialising in yarn manufacturing and quality. Amongst others, he is a certified quality expert and is the current chair of ICAC’s Task Force for the Commercial Standardisation of Instrument Testing of Cotton. He is also an executive member of the Australian Cotton Ginners Association and the ITMF International Committee on Cotton Testing Methods. Marinus is also a member of the ITMF Spinners Committee and the Cotton Classing Association of Australia, and is the Australian fibre quality technical expert.
He has authored many articles and technical reports and has been invited to present at numerous domestic and international conferences. He has managed to secure a large and diverse number of projects, service agreements, and commission cotton textile processing work. He has won many awards, including the prestigious Australian Cotton Researcher of the Year Award.

Navdeep Singh Sodhi began his career at India’s largest cotton-textile company and has 35+ years of international experience in mill operations and management consulting. His expertise includes strategic policy, technology and international trade and investment. With experience in over 50 countries, he advises an international clientele and has conducted multiple international studies on the cotton-textile value chain. These include the global benchmarking study to evaluate the competitiveness of India’s textile industry for the Cotton Textile Export Promotion Council (TEXPROCIL). He contributed to the formulation of the perspective plan for the Indian textile engineering industry (TEI). Mr Sodhi has been supporting the campaign for transformation of cotton in C-4 Countries + Côte d’Ivoire in West Africa and led the flagship study in West Africa commissioned by IFC (World Bank Group) that was recently presented at the World Cotton Day 2023 commemorated under the auspices of UNIDO in Vienna. Mr Sodhi is a partner with Gherzi Textil Organisation, Switzerland, and a Chartered Fellow (C.Text FTI) of the Textile Institute in Manchester, England.

Experienced professional with over 42 years of expertise in textile plant management, business establishment, plant turnaround, managing turnkey projects and overseeing large textile operations across three continents. Successfully initiated new factories in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and North America. Has been business head responsible for P&L of large textile operation in Canada and USA.

Holds a Bachelor’s degree in Textile Technology from PSG College of Technology, India.

Key areas of expertise include:

  • Turnkey project management
  • Turnaround of large textile plants in diverse geographical locations
  • Establishment and management of businesses in various regions
  • Strategic, financial, and marketing planning and execution for textile plants
  • Product development
  • Customer relationship management

Name: Mary Concilia Anchang
Company: Onambele Anchang & Associates
Country: Cameroon
Position: Managing Partner
Website: www.oaalawfirm.com

Executive Chair

The African Chamber of Trade and Commerce ACC

Email: oaalawpartners2@gmail.com, africanchambernetwork@gmail.com

Websites www.africanchamber-abo.org  www.ficota.org

Called to the Cameroon Bar in 1993, Barrister Mary Concilia Anchang epse Onambele, is the managing partner at Onambele Anchang & Associates (OAALAW). She demonstrates consistency and dedication in 32 years of National and international legal work and advocacy. Renown for her legal prowess, her ability to delve into unconventional and controversial topics, has earned her access to several platforms at all levels, in the society. In her persuasive urge to address stubborn societal problems in the continent, she has created several tools to express her opinion and drive policy in a wide range of business sectors. She addresses legal, social and economic problems, with the perspective to contribute in crafting novel schemes, policies and practices to oblige relevance and impact for the welfare and livelihood of communities.

Her law practice, a full-service corporate law firm, serves a broad range of businesses in various industry sectors. Client satisfaction is pivotal at OAALA. Her firm is one of the most sought-after contemporary lawyers in the continent of Africa. Passionate, engaging and focus driven, her peers revere her resolve to address challenging matters in a friendly and dialogue mode. Her brilliance, and keen eye for detail earns great recognition from her clients.

She is the pioneer African IP lawyer, accredited with the African organization of Intellectual & Industrial property (OAPI) with jurisdiction in 17 countries since 1994.

In 1998, curious and concerned about Africa`s significant dependence on foreign intellectual property assets and imports of goods and services into the continent, she founded; “The Foundation for the Promotion of Inventions, Innovations, and Artistic Designs” (FPI) to promote research and development for African discoveries, talents, traditional Knowledge and know-how for validation of discoveries for local use and exports to global markets.

Retained in 1998, to advise the Cameroon Association of Inventors and Innovators, she represented a medicinal cure for hepatitis, known under the trademark ''HEPASOR,” at d the International Exhibition Fair (INPEX) in 1999 in Pittsburgh, where FPI met with Dr. Nakammatz, the renown Japanese inventor of Viagra.

Then followed, the BBC Tomorrow’s World London Exhibition Fair in 1999, where FPI received an award from Mr. John Trevors, the renowned British inventor of the “Touch lamp” for her exhibitions.

From 2001 -2006, she accompanied one of Africa`s most revolutionary, controversial and nonconventional research initiatives in HIV /AIDS for therapeutic vaccines. This discovery, led by one of Africa`s most renown Professors, a Surgeon and international award price winner for research in the treatment of retrovirus for Burkitt’s Cancer, Sickle cell and HIV /AIDS. At a time when HIV/AIDs was ravaging lives in the Continent of Africa, she played a very compelling advocacy role at all fronts, while advising on the patentability, design and trademark ownership of the Vaccine process across the globe.

As Cofounder of the Cameroon National Committee of the International Chamber of Trade & Commerce (ICC Cameroon) in 2021, she stunned the continent, in 2006, with her nomination by the World Business Council, of The International Chamber of Trade & Commerce (ICC) Paris, as the pioneer, African, female country, court member, at the ICC International Court of Arbitration, since its creation in 2023. A mandate she held 4 years..

From 2004 -2014, as a member of the ICC Paris Intellectual property (IP) and the Arbitration commissions, she contributed with experts from governments, Civil society, multinationals, intra governmental organizations, institutions and businesses, through successive annual COP Conferences, to address policy reviews on the global climate change Agenda, that lead to the signing of, the Paris convention in 2015 on climate change.

Coupled with her legal practice, she founded & Chairs “The African Chamber of Trade & Commerce” (ACC), a non-profit and non-governmental, private sector chamber, aimed at using Public, Private Partnerships (PPPs) as a strategic tool to build sustainable and resilient infrastructures. The aim is to avoid duplication and stagnation for gainful entrepreneurial business practices.

Focal on the ACC agenda, is her advocacy for Tripartite Partnerships, that would engage expertise in, North/South, South/South and North/North business ventures. This should invariably contribute towards impactful and traceable development in local African communities. Through this initiative, she pledges to bring her expertise and knowledge into a project, she is deeply passionate about, and believes could shift paradigms in the  continent.. That is; “Institutional Advocacy for 'Africa's Socio-Economic Development."

Convinced of the need to promote IP asset ownership in Africa for improved wealth for entrepreneurial self-reliant opportunities, she believes validating African inventions and innovations, would pave the way for IP ownership and knowledge transfer for capital markets.

She has since 2018 created “The International Forum for cotton, textiles, accessories & Fashion (FICOTA) to address the African Cotton value chain and supply chains, as pivotal for talents to create wealth and job opportunities in Africa.

In prelude to the 4th edition of FICOTA, coming up in November 2026, in Cairo, Egypt, she will be Speaking at the ICAC 83rd plenary conference coming up in Tanzania in November 2025, on the role of National policies for African textiles.

Transforming Cotton into Textile and things in Africa is a vision, FICOTA promotes for optimization and industrialization of African cotton and Textiles. The game changer for. (www.africanchamber-abo.org) FICOTA is created to facilitate sustainability and optimization in the African cotton value and supply chains from “Seed to Fashion” or from “Farm to Market” through value addition. (www.ficota.org ) The focus is on adapting ecosystems for Africa`s industrialization in the textiles industry.

The plurality, multi-culturalism and multidimensionality of ACC, provides a structure with the unique capacity for institutions and stakeholders to create adaptive business models, based on sector needs of partners. The purpose is to facilitate harmonious growth with efficient ecosystems, to implement attainable goals, through value addition, in local value and supply chains.

Accolades and Publications:

2016, OAALAW won the “AI African Award of Excellence.

2018, Recognized amongst 100 of the finest professional Women in a book titled “Women Pioneer In Dispute Resolutions” by Arbitral Women.

2019 Published an article on IP Funding: A Key to Entrepreneurial Development Through IP Asset Ownership in Africa in the London based “Women's IP Magazine

2020/21, Profiled in the Magazine “Rising Women”.

2023, Appointed Member of the International Cotton Advisory Committee/Private Sector Advisory Committee (PSAC)

2023, she was nominated as Executive member of the African Private Sector Summit. (APSS)

2024 she organized the 3rd Edition of the International Forum for Cotton, Textiles, Accessories & Fashion (FICOTA) in the sea site Ocean city, of Kribi, Cameroon.

2025, she published an article on “The Mystery, Power, Purpose and Ownership of Talent & Knowledge” in the London based “Women's IP Magazine”

She was nominated and ranked as the No. 6 in the Policy and Advocacy category for the Top 100 Influential Women Leaders in IP Law.

She is a current member of several association International Trademark Association (INTA), American Bar Association, Arbitral Women, Association of OAPI IP Agents, (AMOAPI), Foundation for the Promotion of Inventors ,Innovators  (FPI), Maman Eucharist du Mont Febe (MEMO) African Private Summit (APPSS), Africa US international Chamber of Commerce and Industry (AfUSA)  ACC and other

She enjoys travelling, music, sports, praying, and supporting charities.

 

Besim Özek

Strategy & Business Development Director

Following his graduation from Tarsus American College and Cukurova University Mechanical Engineering, he has taken a large and vital business role in Logistics and Purchasing Departments for over 20 years.

He is now Strategy and Business Development  Director in BOSSA which is one of the largest Denim Producers is Turkey. He has been very involved in Sustainable Textile Production.

He had been active presenting the company in;

  • Turkish Exporters Assembly, ITHIB (Member of Board)
  • Turkish Cotton Textile Manufacturer ‘s Union (Member of Board)
  • Turkish National Cotton Council (Member of Board)
  • The Union of Chambers and Commodity, Turkish Textile Industry Assembly

Twitter Besim Ozek:      @besimozek

Linkedin Besim Ozek:    besim-ozek

SIDDHARTHA RAJAGOPAL, Executive Director – TEXPROCIL

Dr. Siddhartha Rajagopal is the Executive Director of the Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council (TEXPROCIL). He holds a PhD in Management Studies and has nearly four decades of experience in international trade in textiles and clothing.

Over his career, he has worked across the entire textile value chain—from fibre to fashion—and has been part of several Government of India delegations and negotiating groups, including bilateral engagements with the USA, the European Union, and consultations at the WTO.

Dr. Rajagopal has played a key role in developing export promotion schemes, market development strategies, and organizing India’s participation in international textile exhibitions and trade delegations. He is currently involved in the implementation of the “Kasturi Cotton India” project in collaboration with the Cotton Corporation of India and the Ministry of Textiles.

Padmini Singla, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, Government of India

Padmini Singla is a career civil servant from India with over two decades of leadership roles in public administration. Currently serving as the Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Textiles, she spearheads the strategic development and policy framework for Natural Fibres, including Cotton.

An alumna of Delhi School of Economics, she holds an Executive Master’s from EPFL, Switzerland.