Francis Ikome (born 4 March 1982) is an Italian-Cameroonian international policy adviser and the founder and president of the Cameroonian American Chamber of Commerce (CAMAM). He is also a retired professional footballer.
Personal life and career
Ikome was born in Assisi, Italy, and raised between his hometown and Limbe, Cameroon. He played as a forward for the Portuguese Liga de Honra team S.C. Beira-Mar. He made his professional debut in March 2006.
After retiring from professional sport, Ikome founded the Cameroonian American Chamber of Commerce (CAMAM) in Washington, D.C. in 2013 to increase diaspora engagement in private sector development in Cameroon and to help facilitate U.S.-Cameroonian economic relations. He is a leading advocate for stronger U.S. economic engagement on the African continent, and has called for boosting U.S.-Cameroonian bilateral trade and forging public-private partnerships to address Africa's capacity-building needs.
Ikome holds a master's degree in international relations and international economics from the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University and a bachelor's degree in business administration from Cumberland University.
He is also a managing partner of the Africa Investment Agency and columnist with China Daily Africa.
References
- "Footballer Profile: Francis Ikome". ForaDeJogo. 1 February 2011. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
- "Chamber Offers Recipe for Private Sector Development in West Africa". New Telegraph. 4 March 2014. Retrieved 1 July 2014.
- "US Competes for Better Ties with Africa". China Daily. 4 August 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014.
- "Debates: U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit". Africa24. 6 August 2014. Archived from the original on 10 August 2014. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
- "'Too little, too late,' US tries to catch up". China Daily. 15 August 2014. Retrieved 15 August 2014.