Our Team

Emmanuel Osayande Iyamu is an educator, social and political economist, and community builder committed to strengthening local capacity and supporting community-led development.

His commitment to community building began through his involvement in AYO Belgium, the first African student organisation in Flanders, which he co-founded in 2017. As its General Chairman, he helped support the academic, personal and professional development of Afro-Belgian students and contributed to community initiatives such as Black History Month Belgium.

His experience was further shaped through his work with Kilalo, a Belgian youth organisation active in education, culture and leisure. As a board member and head of its Education Department, he supported migrant pupils, with a particular focus on young people of African background, while contributing to broader cultural and youth-development initiatives.

Emmanuel has professional experience in education, finance and community engagement. He previously advised entrepreneurs and small businesses at BNP Paribas Fortis and currently lectures at Thomas More University of Applied Sciences, where he teaches world economics and related social-science subjects.

At IFORA, he contributes to the organisation's strategic direction, partnerships and long-term development. His work focuses on helping communities and local institutions strengthen their knowledge, capacity and ability to create sustainable economic opportunities.

Lucie Kwizera is a physician and public health professional whose work bridges clinical medicine, epidemiology, and health policy. A Co-Founder of IFORA, she brings a practitioner's understanding of how strong institutions and resilient community health systems shape lasting development across Africa.

A graduate in medicine from the Escuela Latinoamericana de Medicina in Cuba, Lucie is currently completing a Master of Epidemiology at the University of Antwerp, building on postgraduate and master's studies in Preventative Cardiovascular Medicine at the University of South Wales. Her focus has grown to include EU healthcare policy, monitoring and evaluation, and evidence-based public health.

Her professional experience spans frontline care and health systems. As a Global Health Research Intern with the KIT Royal Tropical Institute in Amsterdam, she examined how climate-related disasters affect access to tuberculosis care in vulnerable populations, combining evidence synthesis, qualitative research, and geospatial approaches to inform disaster-resilient health planning. Earlier, as a Medical Physician at the Embassy of the United States in Burundi and as Occupational Health Physician and Public Health Program Coordinator with the Mauritanian Consulting Group, she delivered primary and preventive care, helped shape workplace health policy, and translated technical health data into actionable recommendations.

A Research Affiliate at the Karolinska Institute, Lucie works across English, French, Spanish, and Swahili, reflecting the multilingual, intercultural spirit at the heart of IFORA's mission. As Secretary-Treasurer, she safeguards the organisation's operational and financial integrity while championing inclusive community participation.

Barbara Nasto, an Independent Writer and Editor, and expert in strategic engagement and partnership across research-driven organisations in the public and private sector.

Barbara began her career as a science journalist and editor with Nature Publishing in New York City. After managing an oncology journal and routinely contributing news and features for Nature Biotechnology and Nature Medicine, Barbara managed international clinical trial publication strategies for emerging oncology therapeutic classes (on behalf of Bayer). Using her editorial and strategic publication expertise, Barbara cultivated a publication, Biopharma Dealmakers, now part of the Nature Portfolio, that showcases partnership opportunities in the biopharmaceutical sector and analyses associated investment trends.

On the heels of collaborating with C-Suite executives from across the biopharmaceutical industry, Barbara shifted her focus toward the global health sector by teaming up with Medecins Sans Frontieres' Research Community. As Research Uptake Analyst and Advisor, Barbara cultivated a wide-range of reports (research, advocacy, policy) and digital media to advance the humanitarian organisation's clinical, infectious disease, and noncommunicable disease research, and advocacy programmes. Additionally, as Senior Research Marketing and Communications Manager, Barbara established the first comprehensive communications and marketing strategy to foster partnerships and raise the profile of Cancer Research Horizons, Cancer Research UK's innovation arm.

Currently, Barbara is conducting research on public private publication partnerships undertaking drug development to address global health burdens and continues to occasionally contribute news and analysis to Nature-portfolio publications.

Cyril is a researcher, policy evaluator, and social entrepreneur with over a decade of experience in designing, coordinating, and scaling youth-led initiatives. His work spans various sectors, including climate change, entrepreneurship, health outreach, and community development.

He is a member of the UK Research & Innovation International Development Peer Review College and has contributed to high-impact projects and policy evaluations with bilateral and multilateral organizations. Notably, he provided key insights for UNESCO's policy evaluation on culture and sustainable development.

Cyril is currently pursuing a PhD in Evaluation and Applied Research Methods and holds an M.Sc. in Development Evaluation and Management, as well as a BA in Development Management.