Founders

Lordy Emmen | Founder & CEO of TGR Africa
Lordy Emmenis a diaspora entrepreneur, a diaspora engagement and investment activist, a self-proclaimed African Development Ambassador and author of the book `The Great Return`.
She is of Ghanian decent, born and bred in Ghana where she lived up until she completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Ghana, Legon, with a BA in Economics and Resource Study. She moved to join her husband in the UK where she has lived with her family and worked for over 24 years. She has had a successful career in the finance and accountancy field in the UK for well over 20 years.

She studied and become a chartered certified accountant with ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants England & Wales) and later gained fellowship status (FCCA).
Her work experience spans some of the largest organisations in both the public and private sectors such as the NHS as well as small companies such as a firm of chartered accountants. Prominent roles have included Financial Controller and Finance Business Partner for UK’s leading ports group ABP, where, for sections of the group, she led the delivery of FP&A including budgets, 5-year plans and financial controls.

Since 2019, along with her husband, she has made investments in the poultry sector in Ghana recognising the dependency a country like Ghana has on foreign food imports which can easily be produced locally.
Her experience in joining the great return, doing business in Africa and being passionate about African development served as the inspiration for the creation of TGR Africa. Lordy is a strong advocate for the diaspora’s involvement in and diaspora mobilization for African development and believes that we in the diaspora can play a significant role in the economic transformation of Africa.
When it comes to doing business in Africa, her guiding philosophy is to find innovative ways to make profit through the fulfilment of purpose. She believes that we in the diaspora have a great opportunity to reap significant economic rewards if we are willing to take up the challenge of investing in African development.

Agyegewe Chanayireh | Co-Founder & COO

Agyegewe Chanayireh is the Co-Founder and Chief Operations Officer of TGR Africa. He also helped co-write ‘The Great Return’ alongside his business partner Lordy Emmen. Agyegewe`s interest in joining the great return begun in his students days at the University of Manchester where he studied Modern Middle Eastern History. The course was intended to prepare him to work as a foreign diplomat in the Middle East on behalf of the British Government and it was through his studies that he was awakened to colonialism and imperialism and the long term consequences it’s had on the developing world.
Being of Ghanian descent, he realised that the same exposure to Colonialism and Imperialism that the Middle East faced was evident in Africa and this led to him coming to the conclusion that he either be a part of the solution or continue to be a part of the problem. In his professional life, he has worked as a Business Development Executive for Financial institutions, training providers and marketing agencies.
His primary role at TGR Africa is the management of all business advisory services and to help develop investment products that can effectively channel diaspora capital into highly productive areas that will facilitate further development of African economies.