Hamdiya Ismaila is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Savannah Impact Advisory, bringing over 23 years of experience in finance and investment, including extensive fund of funds experience with Ghanaian catalytic capital vehicles supporting emerging managers across West Africa.
Hamdiya has deep expertise in private markets fund structuring, fund investing, and fund management. She has been a strong champion of private markets ecosystem development in Ghana and across Africa, influencing policy, regulatory outcomes, and industry education.
As an angel investor, she was instrumental in designing the Ghana Angel Investor Network (GAIN) and serves as a Director of the Ghana Angel Fund. She is also the Founder of the Lady Angel Network, an angel network focused on investing in women-owned and women-led businesses.
Hamdiya is a committed impact investor and has led several landmark initiatives in the space, including chairing the taskforce that established Impact Investing Ghana (the Ghana National Advisory Board affiliated with the Global Steering Group (GSG) for Impact Investing), and serving as a GSG Trustee from 2020 to 2022.
She sits on several boards and councils, including the Ghana Alternative Exchange (GAX) and the Investment Committee of the USD $200 million Mastercard Africa Growth Fund. She is a frequent speaker at leading conferences including Super Return Africa and the Africa Private Equity and Venture Capital Association Annual Conference.
Hamdiya holds an Executive Certificate in Private Equity and Venture Capital from Harvard Business School, a Master of Public Administration from Columbia University, a BBA (Honours) from Monroe College, and an LLB from GIMPA Law School. She is a Finance Leaders Fellow and member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.