Chris Light
Chief Executive Officer
Chris Light is a seasoned Executive, serial Entrepreneur, Technologist, and Program Manager with 25 years of experience. He has a global reach and a global result set. He has undertaken Information Communication and Technology (ICT) activities worldwide. He is well known in the International Development community. He has worked with major donors with a particular emphasis on USAID. He has worked in support of all USAID Bureaus, including Agency Initiatives, and a variety of thematic areas. He has served as part of the Technology Management group for USAID both for the Dot-Com Alliance and as part of IRM’s (now CIO) CIS (Consulting Information Services) Team. This work has involved 3 years onsite as a Technology Advisor for Agriculture and Environment for the Africa Bureau including for the Presidential Initiative to End Hunger in Africa. His work has been recognized at the White House and Embassy level for the Department of State, together with the Administrator level for USAID. He currently serves as a co-chair for ICT4D for SID-W since 2018 and has been an Innovation Judge for two of their Annual Conferences. Chris Light has a Master’s Degree from Boston University and has a double Major/double Degree from the University of Maryland.
Max Makuvise
Founder
Max Makuvise has been active in the livestock sector for over 22 years. A trained accountant Max entered the Zimbabwean animal health industry in 1997. After six years the decision to add cattle ownership to the mix came when he founded Makera Cattle Company “MCC”. With this newfound passion for cattle, Max stepped back from operational management of the animal health company to focus more on stud breeding, however, he is still to this day a Director and dedicates time to the company. Max is involved in many areas of the cattle industry and has embarked on many projects programs involving rural communities where the future of Africa’s cattle lies. These works revolve around genetic improvement, training, product supply and traceability. This work has involved partnering with the Donor Community, Government as well as other private sector players. The quest to empower rural livestock farmers and helping them commercialise their operations are embodied in the “Conception to Consumption” model. In 2018 recognising the need to take a more global position on cattle Max joined the Southern African Regional Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (current Vice-Chairman), which is part of the Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (GRSB). This has led to Max interacting with cattle players from all over the planet in the adoption of sustainable beef. With a strong interest in Tech, and the need for data to accomplish sustainability the founding of E-Livestock Global with Chris was the next logical step.
Melissa Enge
Founding Board member
Growing up on her family’s farm, Melissa Enge developed a passion for agriculture, empowering farmers, and rural development at an early age. Melissa’s journey took her to live on four different continents – and landed her in the Food Service industry where she has worked for various manufacturers as a Global Key Account executive for over 20 years. The three pillars of her experience are: international business development, global supply chain and new product innovation. E Livestock Global ticks all her driving boxes: innovation, agriculture and Food Service global supply chain. She’s passionate about food safety and using innovative approaches to take food from farm to table – and distributing the fruits of the labor evenly throughout the supply chain.
Melissa was so smitten with Elvis, E Livestock Global’s test bull (that you may have seen on twitter and our website), that she coerced the rest of the team to allow her to launch a pilot test project at her family’s Homestead. She honed these negotiation skills while studying for her Master’s in Business at Boston University, and has a Bachelor in International Relations with Economics from the University of Wisconsin. She currently resides in Switzerland with her husband.
Allister Banks
Chief Technology Office
Allister Banks is the founder of Remote Livestock Marketing System (RLMS) an online livestock marketing platform operating in Zimbabwe with clients both in Zimbabwe and further afield. He has over 30 years of experience in the livestock industry, concentrating on livestock marketing. He has developed cattle auctions countrywide focusing mainly on small scale farmers and has thus has established extensive networks with farmers throughout Zimbabwe. This focus on small scale farmers has allowed him to interact with farmers that make up the majority of cattle ownership on the African Continent. Allister was Chief Technical and Field Officer in the initial phases of livestock traceability in Zimbabwe and sees this as a strength when working on E-Livestock Global projects. Whilst passionate about blockchain and drones in agriculture, Allister also owns other farming enterprises just outside Harare, Zimbabwe, involving livestock and horticulture exports.
