Lyra in Africa Boards
The governance structure overseeing Lyra in Africa are made up of three different boards: Tanzania Board, UK Board, and Finland Board.
Whilst each board has its own set of governance responsibilities, the three boards work jointly to ensure seamless strategic direction and oversight. Here is a snapshot of each of our current board members across the three boards.
Maria Spink - UK, Tanzania & Finland Boards
After 17 years in senior positions in international banking, Maria joined the Executive Board of Green Resources - a tree planting and renewables company, active in East Africa. Working with local labourers and village elders in the Iringa Region, Maria learnt about the acute vulnerability of girls attending schools without safe accommodation. Maria founded Lyra in 2011 in recognition of the huge potential for impact, especially when investing in girls' and young women's education and entrepreneurship. Maria holds an MSc in Economics and MSc in African Politics. Maria is also Lyra’s Founder and Executive Director.
Fares Tarimo - Tanzania Board Chair
Architect Fares Tarimo has been working as a Public servant for over 33 years. He retired as TBA Regional Manager for Iringa in 2019. A graduate of Architecture at Liverpool University, he has an MBA in Eastern and Southern African Management Institute (ESAMI). He has travelled extensively across the country and abroad. Currently practicing partner at NTM Architects & Planners, he is also the founder of Elite Realtors, Eribeat Blocks Manufacturing and Noble Furnishers Companies. He strongly believes that we were brought into this world so as to leave it a better place for others.
Tulibako Minga - Tanzania Board
Tulibako U. Minga is a governance and anti-corruption expert with over a decade of experience in public policy, strategic communication, and institutional reform.
As a newly elected board member , Tulibako brings strategic insight and a deep understanding of the Tanzanian governance landscape. Her leadership will support Lyra’s mission to empower girls and transform rural communities through education, mentorship, and skills development.
Henry Kulaya - Tanzania Board
Henry Kulaya is a Senior Consultant specializing in education reform, working closely with development partners and the Ministries of Education in Tanzania and Zanzibar. He has supported various major national initiatives, including the Education Sector Analysis and the Education Sector Development Plan. Henry is also the Co-founder and Executive Director of The Launchpad Tz, promoting skills development and inclusive education through technology and innovation. With over 22 years of experience in the UK and Tanzania, he is a recognized leader in education strategy, leadership development, and research on effective school practices.
Dayani Mbowe - Tanzania Board
Dayani Mbowe is an IT expert with a strong background in technology adoption, technical support and IT projects implementation. Currently, he is the country manager for Camara Education Tanzania, an NGO working to improve education outcomes using technology.
Over the past five years, Dayani has been working to design, test and implement the social enterprise model for Camara to ensure sustainable delivery of Camara’s EduTech programmes. Dayani also servers as a board member for Tanzania Education Network (TENMET) among other NGOs that he works with as an advisor or board member.
Yusuf Ssessanga - Tanzania Board
Yusuf is a social entrepreneur and co-founder of Legacy Academy, a growing brand of schools currently with five centers in Iringa and Dodoma. He co-founded RLabs Tanzania, where he was team leader for 9 years. He has worked as a consultant for Lyra in Africa, IDEO.ORG/ Population Services International, Private Forestry Program, and Human Capital Development Consult (HCDC). He is one of the founders of Team Academy, a Finnish-inspired, innovative learning-by-doing program at the University of Iringa. He is a VC4A mentor. He holds a Masters degree in Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Development from the University of Dar es Salaam and a Bachelor of Science degree in Horticulture from Sokoine University. He served on several boards for NGOs.
UK Board
Lisa Marie Rowland - UK Board Chair
Lisa Marie Rowland has a broad range of international asset management experience, extending over 40 years; working in the USA, Japan, Spain and the UK. Former Managing Director/Hedge Fund Manager, Robertson Stephens Fund Management. Board member, Managing Director/Hedge Fund Manager at JO Hambro Capital Management. CEO of Pinnacle Towers UK Limited.
Presently, Lisa Marie is CEO and Fund Manager of Bowdon Capital, a family office, and Vice Chair of a UK investment advisory board to a UK family office. Lisa Marie also serves as a Board Director for Ticket for Troops, a UK charity providing free tickets to members of the Armed Forces for a variety of sporting, musical and cultural events.
Joy Aladekomo - UK Board
Joy Aladekomo is a Chartered Accountant with over 20 years combined experience in Investment Funds Management Operations, Accounting and Auditing. She has expertise in operational oversight of Investment Funds, implementation of regulatory changes, strategic management of outsourced functions, project management, and auditing, including financial statements reviews.
Currently, Joy works in Investment Management in the United Kingdom, responsible for the oversight of Investment Funds in different jurisdictions. She is passionate about issues concerning poverty alleviation, accessibility to quality education and youth empowerment especially in underserved communities.
Caroline Armstrong-Jones - UK Board
Caroline has worked in the events industry for 40 years running Bentleys Entertainments Ltd with her husband, managing private events both in the United Kingdom and worldwide. She has also been involved in charity work and fundraising as a trustee of Fitzroy and Order of Malta Volunteers and an ambassador for QEST (Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust). Recently she has assisted UWS (United World Schools) with their annual fundraising dinner .
Caroline has a daughter who has Down Syndrome so has been involved with raising funds for DS Society as well as Team Domenica (a cafe training initiative for individuals with special needs in Brighton). Currently chairs a local trust called Culham Chapel Trust which she has chaired for ten years.
Finland Board
Chrystal Holt - UK Board
Chrystal Holt is an Education Technical Expert with over 20 years’ experience in development and humanitarian settings, offering both global and country-specific expertise. She specialises in addressing the educational needs of children most affected by inequality and discrimination, including refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs).
Chrystal's approach is informed by the intersectionality of various characteristics and identities influencing a child's learning experience, such as language, gender, disability, and their in-school or out-of-school status. Her strategic focus ensures that educational interventions are inclusive and effective, catering to diverse needs of children at the highest risk of being excluded from education.
Dana Freling - Finland Board Chair
Dana Freling is a social entrepreneur with a broad range of both international experience and local engagement. With degrees from Smith College and Stanford University in Social Anthropology, she has held diverse leadership roles in environment and sustainability, community development, and education.
Dana has worked across countries in East and South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Europe.
She is also the founding Chair of Democrats Abroad Finland.
Humphrey Kalanje - Finland Board
Humphrey Kalanje is a Tanzanian architect who currently lives in Finland. He worked for over 30 years for the Tanzania Ministry of Works until his retirement in 2017. Humphrey has studied in Tanzania, India, Norway, Sweden and Finland and is now pursuing his Doctorate at the Aalto University in Finland. He has also taught and lectured at Aalto University.
He is passionate about the potential of architecture and planning in improving the lives of those who are socially and economically vulnerable in our societies. He is a Board Member of the Suomi Tansania Seura.
Helena Nahi - Finland Board
Helena is an experienced and passionate advocate for children’s rights, child protection, equality in education and global health. She has been working as a philanthropist for more than 15 years and joined Scope Impact, as a Co-Founder and Board Member in 2022.
Helena is also a co-founder of the Eva Ahlström Foundation where she was a board member for 13 years. She is also a board member of Kauppias K.P. She has lived in 4 different countries, speaks 6 languages and has majored in Japanese Studies. Additionally she has studied in international Marketing and English Philology.
Katarina Kranck - Finland Board
Katarina has a master’s degree in economics from Hanken School of Economics in Helsinki. She worked for 15 years with accounting and finance at industrial companies. Thereafter, she began her entrepreneurship journey within yoga – her hobby and passion. She worked both as a yoga retreat manager and yoga teacher and hosted many retreats in the South of France for over 10 years.
After spending a winter in Tanzania visiting her daughter’s family, she fell in love with the country. She saw its opportunities, but also the lack of many of the most basic needs. Katarina will continue to spend the winter months in Iringa and is eager to make a difference for local girls and women in the area.
Wende Luvinga - Finland Board
Wende is an international development and sustainability professional with years of experience leading projects and developing business for donors including the World Bank, European Commission, Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, USAID, Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC), as well as private sector and national ministries. Her other area of key competence includes Business and Human Rights, Environmental Social and Governance(ESG).
As an author of children's books, Wende promotes reading culture and diverse literature for children. As a founder of the Swahili for Kids group in Finland, she promotes the Kiswahili language through stories. She is a Chairperson of the Finnish- Tanzania Friendship Association. She holds several degrees, including in Development Cooperation, International Relations and in Law.
Honorary Board Members
Maria Kamm - Honorary Board Member on the Tanzania Board
As a mother, teacher, politician, businesswoman and philanthropist, Mama Maria Kamm is an icon in the education sector in Tanzania and beyond. She started teaching in 1965 at a number of Secondary Schools and later at Weruweru Girls (Tanzania's top school for girls under her 22-year leadership) where she inspired and motivated thousands of girls who have later become very successful women in different fields. Mama Kamm has a record of breaking down barriers so that girls, especially those less-privileged, get a useful education. Mama Kamm is the founder of the Mwalimu Nyerere Foundation, and a beneficiary to many awards both in and outside the borders of Tanzania.iption goes here
Peter Msoffe - Honorary Member