Quick Facts
Biography
Efe Ukala (born 1983) is a Nigerian US based investment lawyer, philanthropist and the founder of ImpactHER; an organization that works to bridge the $42 billion entrepreneurship funding gap experienced by African female entrepreneurs. She connects lots African female entrepreneurs to sources of funding for their businesses. She has provided free entrepreneurship training to over 4,500 African women entrepreneurs across 28 African countries.
Education
Efe Ukala studied at the University of Chicago in Chicago, Illinois, where she was a Jeff Metcalf Fellow. She holds a bachelor's degree in Law, Letters and Society. While at the university, Efe was appointed a member of the Maroon Key Society where she served as an advisor to the college and a student representative. Thereafter, she pursued her legal education and obtained a Juris Doctor from Washington and Lee University School of Law in Lexington, Virginia, USA.
Efe is a Board member of the University of Chicago Black Alumni Association.
Career
Efe deals in private equity and public investments arising out of frontier markets, inclusive of Kenya, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe and Rwanda.She has advised on investments into Sub Saharan Africa and previously served as Vice-President and Chief Compliance Officer at Kuramo Capital Management, a private equity company based in New York City. She is theVice President and Assistant General Counsel at JP Morgan Chase New York, advising institutional investors.
Philanthropy
Efe founded the non-profit organization ImpactHER to help African women build scalable businesses. She has assisted African female entrepreneurs in various African countries, especially Ghana, Madagascar, Kenya, Nigeria, Mozambique and Zimbabwe to gain access to institutional capitals. She facilitates activities that tackle entrepreneurial challenges facing women in Africa.Efe exposes African women in business to digital opportunities that can help transform their businesses. She also offers free mentorship to female entrepreneurs across Africa.
In 2017 and 2018, Efe was chair of the Association of Black Women Attorneys’ 22nd and 23rd Ruth Whitehead Whaley Scholarship Annual Luncheon, an event that raises funds and awards scholarships to students who have demonstrated a financial need, exhibited an interest in the public sector or civil rights law, and are active participants in community service initiatives.
Awards, honors and recognition
Efe was the recipient of the Howell Murray Alumni Award as a recognition for her outstanding contributions to the University of Chicago through co-curricular activities. She has also been recognized as a leading voice for financial inclusion for African women. Efe was elected the 41st Vice President of the Association of Black Women New York City.In 2019, Efe was appointed to serve on the African Union Diaspora Health Initiative Committee; a board that serves as a catalyst for rebuilding the global African family in the service of the development and integration agenda of the continent.