AIZON Partners/Founders

Fitsum Assefa is a nutritionist with a Masters Degree from University of Aberdeen in Human Nutrition and Metabolism. In her professional carrier over the past 15 years she has undertaken extensive fieldwork and has made significant contributions toward positive changes made in both complex humanitarian crisis and rehabilitation/development contexts in Africa and South Asia (Afghanistan, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Liberia, Cambodia, Indonesia, East Timor, Tanzania (for refugees from Congo and Burundi), Mozambique, Kenya, Bangladesh) and Indonesia. She has also worked at the headquarters level for various agencies. Over the past 15 years, she has gained extensive experience in Food and Nutrition situation assessment/analysis, designing and management of national and local programs/projects, evidence based advocacy, research and teaching/training. Currently, she is heading UNICEF's nutrition department in Indonesia. In Ethiopia, beside being a founding partner of AIZON, she has applied her professional skills on nutritional emergencies to a number of contexts, particularly in the Somali region in 1992-03 and 2000-01 and in Wolayta in 1994/95.

Raphy Favre is a horticulturist and agro-economist with a post-graduate degree in development studies from the Development Studies Institute of the University of Geneva (Switzerland). He has conducted extensive fieldwork and has been part of changes made in Afghanistan, Sudan, Somalia, North Korea and Ethiopia over the last 13 years as international consultant for various organizations such as the World Bank, UNFAO, the Swiss Agency for Development Cooperation (SDC), the ICRC, International NGO's and private consulting firms. He has conducted a formal agriculture survey, market research for horticulture products in Afghanistan and water & natural resources sector census and mapping in that country. He has also conducted soil studies as a marketing tool for vine producers in Switzerland. He also served as Chief of Staff for an American organization (CNFA) implementing a grant program supporting private agri-business and recently developed a horticulture project for the World Bank in Afghanistan. In Ethiopia, beside being a founding partner of AIZON, he designed and managed a large FFW program on flood water management in the Somali region and an ox-plough training initiative with the ICRC.

Ewket Assefa is a Graduate in computer information systems from the Metropolitan State College of Denver specializing End User Support/Database/Web Development. She has practical work experience in analysis and designing computer systems and technical assistance work in computer labs. She is hard working, has a strong sense of responsibility, is a quick learner and has proven ability to relate and manage people of diverse cultural backgrounds. Ewket has extensive travel experience in Africa, Caribbean and Europe. She has studied African music (drumming and dance in Mali and Ghana), she is also an excellent photographer. Ewket previously worked as a general manager for AIZON, actively advocated on cultural and environmental conservation and provided the single most significant contribution to the progress made by AIZON to date.