Forest Whitaker has joined global economist and author Dr. Dambisa Moyo to become the latest among a group of African business leaders and ex-basketball players to invest in NBA Africa.
They are strategic investors who bring money, brainpower and activism to the body. Whitaker’s Oscar came from The Last King of Scotland, playing the tyrannical former Ugandan leader Idi Amin.
“The game of basketball is incredibly inspirational, and my decade working in Africa has shown me how sports can be a transformative method of helping to foster peace, as well as an economic engine for socioeconomic development in areas of conflict,” Whitaker said.
“I too deeply believe in the league’s commitment to youth empowerment and am so excited to work alongside the NBA Africa family.”
Last July, former President Barack Obama joined NBA Africa as a strategic partner. Strategic investors in NBA Africa also include a consortium led by Babatunde “Tunde” Folawiyo, Chairman and CEO of Yinka Folawiyo Group, and Helios Fairfax Partners Corporation (HFP), led by Co-CEO Tope Lawani.
Additional investors in NBA Africa include former NBA players Junior Bridgeman, Luol Deng (South Sudan), Grant Hill, Ian Mahinmi (France; ties to Benin), Dikembe Mutombo (Democratic Republic of the Congo) and Joakim Noah (ties to Cameroon).
Credit: Deadline
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