Estherine Lisinge Fotabong

Mrs Estherine Lisinge-Fotabong is the Director of Agriculture, Food Systems and Environmental Sustainability at the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), where she helps shape Africa’s response to climate change and its positioning in emerging carbon markets. Her career spans environmental law, climate adaptation, and sustainable development, including roles as UNEP Country Liaison Officer for South Africa and Senior Environment and Tourism Adviser to the NEPAD Secretariat, and as Director of Policy and Strategy at WWF’s Central African Regional Programme Office.
She has co-authored publications on climate change adaptation and environmental law, expertise increasingly vital as African nations develop carbon-credit frameworks to finance green growth and unlock climate finance. Her work advancing women’s empowerment in agriculture policy further links climate resilience to inclusive development. In 2014 and 2016, Mrs Fotabong received Honorary Awards from the Governments of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and Republic of Cameroon respectively, for her passion, dedication, and leadership towards advancing equality and empowerment of African women.
She also received special recognition in 2015 by Top Women in Business & Government (a leading corporate publication in Africa); acknowledging her work as one of the Top women in Agriculture Policy on the continent. In November 2023, Mrs Fotabong received the Africa Sustainability Outliers (ASO) Award in recognition of her outstanding and transformative contributions to the field of sustainability in Africa and her tireless efforts in shaping a more sustainable embodiment of Africa’s potential for environmental resilience, social progress, and economic prosperity for all members of society.