Board of Directors
AYA Collective is guided by a board of people who have spent their careers at the front lines of public health across Africa and beyond. They have led national programs, shaped reproductive health policy, built institutions, and managed the kind of complex, multi-country work that AYA takes on. They bring that experience to bear on every decision, and they are deeply invested in seeing this organization succeed.
Lydia Saloucou Zoungrana
Lydia Saloucou Zoungrana is the Board Chair of AYA Collective and a senior African public health leader with nearly 25 years of experience in sexual and reproductive health and rights, maternal health, women’s empowerment, organizational leadership, and health systems strengthening. She previously served as President, Africa at Pathfinder International, where she led strategy, impact, operations, and expansion across 14 sub-Saharan African countries. Her career includes leadership roles with Pathfinder, the International Planned Parenthood Federation, Population Council, and the HIV/AIDS Alliance, giving her broad experience in program design, institutional capacity building, donor engagement, and partnership development. Lydia is recognized for advancing African-led development and supporting practical, community-driven approaches that improve the lives of women, girls, families, and communities. As Board Chair, she provides strategic leadership and governance oversight to AYA Collective, helping guide the organization’s mission to strengthen African health systems and expand access to quality health information, services, and products. Her leadership brings a continental perspective to AYA’s work in reproductive, maternal, newborn, adolescent, and community health across Ghana and the wider region.
Prof. Ayaga A. Bawah
Professor Ayaga A. Bawah is the Board Vice Chair of AYA Collective and a distinguished demographer, population health scholar, and senior academic leader with extensive experience in population, reproductive, maternal, and child health research in Africa. He is Professor of Demography and Population Health at the Regional Institute for Population Studies, University of Ghana, where he has also served as Director, and is a Research Affiliate of the Population Studies Center at the University of Pennsylvania. His work focuses on research methodology, longitudinal data analysis, demographic modelling, and the evaluation of health interventions, including maternal and child health programs. Before joining the University of Ghana, he served as Assistant Professor at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health and held research roles with the INDEPTH Network and Navrongo Health Research Centre. Professor Bawah has also been affiliated with Population Council as a Berelson Fellow and contributor to influential work on the Navrongo initiative and community-based reproductive and child health programming in Ghana. As Board Vice Chair, he brings AYA strong technical guidance in population science, health systems research, evidence generation, and program evaluation.
Vincent Aniwanou
Vincent Aniwanou is the Board Treasurer of AYA Collective and a finance, tax, and business management professional with extensive experience supporting organizations, entrepreneurs, and professionals in financial management, accounting, tax planning, and administrative advisory services. He is the Managing Partner of Entertainment Managers, LLC, a California-based business management firm that provides financial, accounting, tax, and administrative services to professionals in the entertainment industry, including directors, actors, writers, producers, and stunt professionals. Through his work, Vincent has developed strong expertise in business administration, financial oversight, tax compliance, and strategic advisory support for clients operating in complex professional and business environments. His firm also has recognized experience in international taxation, including matters involving U.S. nationals doing business abroad and foreign nationals doing business in the United States. As Board Treasurer, Vincent brings to AYA Collective strong technical guidance in financial stewardship, governance, compliance, tax planning, and cross-border financial management. He contributes strategic insight to support organizational sustainability, accountability, resource management, and long-term institutional growth.
Albert Owusu Nyame
Albert Owusu Nyame is the Board Secretary of AYA Collective and serves as the organization’s Director of Finance and Administration. He brings more than 19 years of experience in financial management, grants administration, compliance, and organizational operations across local and international development organizations in Ghana. His professional background includes work with organizations such as the Willows Foundation, where he contributed to financial and administrative systems supporting health and development programming. At AYA Collective, Albert provides leadership in financial planning, budgeting, internal controls, procurement, statutory compliance, human resource administration, and operational management. He plays a central role in strengthening AYA’s institutional systems and ensuring that resources are managed responsibly, transparently, and in line with donor, regulatory, and organizational requirements. As Board Secretary, Albert supports effective governance by helping ensure proper documentation, board coordination, compliance follow-up, and institutional accountability. He brings to the Board strong attention to detail, sound financial judgment, and a commitment to systems that promote sustainability, accountability, and long-term organizational growth.
Dr. Koma Steem Jehu-Appiah
Dr. Koma Steem Jehu-Appiah is Vice President & Country Strategy Lead of AYA Collective and a member of its Board. He is a public health physician and medical doctor with 28 years of experience in programme design, management, policy, advocacy, and technical leadership across maternal and child health, sexual and reproductive health and rights, family planning, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. At AYA, he provides strategic and technical leadership for programmes in Ghana and the wider West Africa region, supports fundraising and donor engagement, oversees research quality and ethics, and represents the organization in national, regional, and international policy and technical spaces. Before joining AYA, Dr. Jehu-Appiah served as Country Director of Ipas Ghana for 14 years, where he led major growth in funding, regional coverage, partnerships, and national advocacy for comprehensive abortion care and reproductive rights. He previously worked as Health Policy Advisor for HIV/AIDS, maternal and child health at the Royal Netherlands Embassy and DFID in Ghana, and as Senior Medical Officer at Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital. He has also chaired national and regional health networks and contributed to Ghana’s reproductive health policy, COVID-19 response, and CAC standards. He holds an MPH from the University of Ghana and an MD.
Dr. Lassane Placide Tapsoba
Dr. Lassane Placide Tapsoba is Vice President & Strategic Advisor of AYA Collective and a member of its Board. He is a physician, public health, and global development leader with more than three decades of experience in health policy, programming, research, and strategic advisory work across Africa. His expertise spans maternal, newborn and child health, sexual and reproductive health and rights, adolescent girls’ and women’s empowerment, nutrition, malaria, HIV/AIDS, infectious diseases, and access to essential medicines. Dr. Tapsoba has held senior leadership roles with major global health institutions, including the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, where he served as Regional Advisor for Francophone and West Africa, and Population Council, where he served as Country Director and Senior Associate in Ghana, Deputy Director for sub-Saharan Africa, and regional programme leader. He led and supported large, multi-country programs funded by USAID, UN agencies, philanthropic foundations, and other development partners, including major reproductive health and maternal mortality reduction initiatives. As Strategic Advisor, Dr. Tapsoba brings AYA deep regional insight, donor and government engagement experience, and technical leadership in evidence-based programming, policy change, consortium management, and African-led health systems strengthening. He holds an MD, an MPH from UCLA, and an MA in African Studies.
Emmanuel O. Kuffour
Emmanuel O. Kuffour is Vice President & Technical Lead of AYA Collective and a member of its Board. He is a health economist, demographer, and applied econometrics specialist with more than two decades of experience advancing public health programs, with a strong focus on reproductive health, family planning, comprehensive abortion care, health informatics, monitoring and evaluation, and operations research. At AYA, Emmanuel leads technical strategy, program monitoring, impact evaluation, and evidence generation, while supporting the institutionalization of comprehensive abortion care and broader reproductive health systems strengthening in Ghana and West Africa. He led the conceptualization and rollout of rsLog, a transactional health management information system used across public sector facilities in Ghana to improve service recording, reporting, provider performance monitoring, and data-driven decision-making. Before AYA, Emmanuel held several technical and leadership roles with Population Council, including Associate I and Staff Associate, supporting R3M programming, HMIS strengthening, research, and monitoring and evaluation across Ghana, Burkina Faso, and Côte d’Ivoire. His research includes studies on medication abortion, Sino-implant introduction, contraceptive implant removal, and pericoital LNG 1.5mg. He holds a BA in Economics and PhD-level training in Economics from Stony Brook University.
Dr. Henry Affum Bruce
Dr. Henry Affum Bruce is Director, AYA Health at AYA Collective and a member of its Board. He is a pharmacist, public health professional, Project Management Professional, and reproductive health social marketing expert with more than 15 years of leadership experience in reproductive health, market-based health solutions, supply chain management, regulatory compliance, and multi-regional project management. At AYA Health, Dr. Bruce provides strategic and operational leadership for revenue-generating health programs, including reproductive health commodities, self-test kits, national distribution systems, regulatory compliance, and impact tracking. His work supports AYA’s goal of expanding access to quality, affordable health products while strengthening sustainable systems for service delivery. Before joining AYA, he served as Head of Social Marketing at MSI Reproductive Choices Ghana, where he expanded the reproductive health product portfolio, led nationwide product launches, strengthened distribution networks, and supported training for 1,500 midwives in collaboration with Ghana Health Service. He previously held senior marketing and supply chain roles with DKT International Ghana, Ipas, and Mepha Ltd. of Switzerland. Dr. Bruce holds a PharmD, MPH in Population, Family and Reproductive Health, MBA in Marketing Management, B.Pharm, and PMP certification.
