Memuna Williams

INTRODUCTION
Dr. Memuna Williams is a strategic executive and award-winning leader with a 30+ year international career that includes advancing entrepreneurship, education, and social innovation. She has helped build inclusive ecosystems and scale youth and leadership development programs.
CAREER
She is the Founder and Executive Director of Empowering Sustainable Change (ESC), a mission-driven company focused on SME advisory, executive education, and thought leadership.
Dr. Williams also serves as Co-Founder and Operations Lead of Champs for Change (C4C), a pan-African social enterprise reframing sports as a pathway for youth empowerment and industry transformation. She co-produced the Amazon #1 bestselling book, Champs for Change and We Will Lead Africa: A Sports Volume, spotlighting 40 African sports professionals. Launched at the Basketball Africa League Finals, the initiative convened leaders from NBA Africa, McKinsey, and FIFA, and reached global audiences.
Previously, she led the Social Equity Project at Junior Achievement Africa, the organization’s largest-ever youth initiative, directly impacting more than 60,000 underserved youth across seven countries and contributing to JA Africa’s expansion to reach over one million young people continent-wide during her tenure. Earlier roles included Head of Selection at African Leadership Academy, where she identified and enrolled over 350 of Africa’s most promising future leaders, and Chief Operating Officer at AIMP Network (Nigeria), where she strengthened values-based leadership programs and organizational sustainability.
EDUCATION
Dr. Williams holds a Doctor of Business Administration from the University of Liverpool, with research on corporate social responsibility in SMEs, an MBA from Queens University of Charlotte, and translation degrees from Université de Montréal and Concordia University.
COMMUNITY
Dr. Williams is a member of the Academy of Management, USASBE, IABS, and the International Leadership Association. She serves as a keynote speaker and lecturer and mentors entrepreneurs globally through SCORE and other networks.
FAMILY
Dr. Williams is married to Victor Williams. They have three sons, Victor, Alex, and Arthur. She lives in Johannesburg, South Africa and Washington, D.C.. She has also previously lived across Europe, Canada, and other parts of the United States. She is fluent in French and Krio.