Workshop Chairs
Richard Boateng, Ph.D.
Richard is the Director of Research and Operations at the International Center for Information Technology and Development (ICITD), Southern University, USA. He holds postgraduate and doctorate degrees from the University of Manchester, UK. His current research interests have New media and gender development; Mobile commerce; Web 2.0 and learning; Open development and Electronic business. His research has been published in conference proceedings, books and journals including Third World Quarterly, Internet Research, and Development and Learning in Organizations. Richard is the founder of Pearl Richards Foundation (www.pearlrichards.org), an initiative that turns research ideas and concepts into sustainable development projects and business enterprises. One of the projects of PRF is www.ewuraba.com, a gender development project which gives African women the opportunity to share their profiles and creative ventures to enhance collaboration and empowerment among African women. Richard’s research work and education has received funding from the National Science Foundation (USA), Dorothy Hodgkin’s Postgraduate Scholarship Scheme (UK) and British Chevening Award (UK). Richard co-chairs the planning committee in organizing the annual International Conference on ICT for Africa (www.ictforafrica.org); chairs the Ghana Graduates Conference (www.ghanagraduatesconference.com) and Ewuraba’s Fashion and Technology workshop (fashTECH 2009).
Phoebe R. Apeayei
Phoebe gained a Bachelor of Arts degree with Honours from The University of Greenwich in London and a Master of Science degree (with distinction) in Clothing Product Development from The Manchester Metropolitan University. She is currently a lecturer in the department of Clothing Design & Technology at the Manchester Metropolitan University, UK, where she supervises postgraduate research and is a board member of their Research Centre Management Group. Her current research interests include Gender, fashion and the Internet, body cathexis, anthropometrics and sizing, virtual fit, new body scanning technology and mass customisation. Phoebe’s research has been published in conference proceedings and journals including Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management and International Journal of Fashion Design, Technology and Education. Phoebe volunteers on the gender development project (www.ewuraba.com) in an advisory role in fashion design and marketing, technology and gender empowerment and as a reviewer of women profiles. Phoebe is the co-workshop chair for Ewuraba’s Fashion and Technology workshop (fashTECH 2009).
Jerome Tabiri
Jerome is a Co-Founder of the Ewuraba.com and the Projects Coordinator of Cirrus Group (a Consortium of Companies that is involved in the Oil, Logistics and Property Sector in Ghana) since 2003. Jerome is also a partner in Neju Limited, a business entity that is involved in commodity trading in Ghana. He holds a Masters Degree in Engineering for Development from University of Southampton in the United Kingdom and a Bachelor degree in Agricultural Engineering from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Ghana. He also holds a certificate in Fundamental Finance for the Technical Executive from the Sloan School of Management of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Jerome has been involved with Richard Boateng in developing ideas and starting projects since 2000. Jerome volunteers on the gender development project (www.ewuraba.com) in an advisory role in business development and as a reviewer of women profiles.
