About Us
Delivering access to intellectual, financial, and investment capital for youth and female owned enterprises across Africa, the Caribbean, the U.S., and the African diaspora.
Who We Are
Paul Valdec Foundation is a U.S.-registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to addressing the widening inequality gap and strengthening human capital development in Africa, the Caribbean, and the African diaspora.
Our work focuses on expanding access to:
- Investment capital.
- Business & trade knowledge.
- Technical and intellectual resources.
- Opportunities that accelerate enterprise growth.
We support youth and female-owned micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), helping them transition from survivalist operations to scalable, sustainable businesses.
The Challenge We Address
Africa has the world’s fastest growing youth population—expected to surpass 800 million youth (ages 18–35) by 2050. This reality perpetuates human insecurity, underdevelopment, and inequality.
01.
Only 3 million formal jobs are created each year for 10 million youth entering the workforce.
02.
Over 50% of Africa’s youth work informally.
03.
Female entrepreneurs face major financing barriers—only 37% have bank accounts, and they are 22% less likely to receive equity or venture capital funding.
04.
MSMEs struggle to access capital due to strict financial requirements and mismatched definitions of enterprise size.
Our Mission
Our mission is to deliver the intellectual, financial, and human resources necessary for sustainable trade, investment readiness, and inclusive economic development. Through partnerships with grantees, investors, collaborators, and communities, we work to strengthen the backbone of emerging economies.
Our Vision
To alleviate economic inequality and reduce poverty gaps for youth and female-owned business enterprises in developing nations—particularly across AfCFTA member states and the Caribbean region.
Board of Directors
Val Okaru-Bisant
CEO / Co-Founder
CEO, General Counsel Founder of Paul Val Foundation, USA and Afrocosmo Development Impact, USA. She is also a US and Nigerian attorney, professor, manager, entrepreneur, columnists, author, mentor, coach, philanthropist and former diplomat with over 15 years experience working in academia, law firm, private and multilateral organizations. She is an adjunct business and trade professor ( for over 10 years ) at the Catholic University of America. She also taught at the George Washington University, the Elliott School of International Affairs, Washington DC.
Val has also authored and co authored extensively (scholarly and business publications) in business, investment, risk insurance, trade, international economic development law/ policy, infrastructure, environment, energy, gender, water and sanitation sectors.
ACDI has impactful results in the aforementioned sectors and also provides advisory, transactions and street law form of capacity building services to small & medium enterprises, private and public entities in trade, infrastructure and economic development. They also work in USA, Afro-Caribbean and African diaspora space. ACDI hosts, organizes and executes many high -level large and small meetings & conferences.
During her years as a diplomat at the World Bank, Val was one of the pioneering members of Jean-Roger Mercier’s initial World Bank project environmental and social impact review team that categorized and reviewed project compliance with World Bank operational procedures/ policies. She & her team initiated the process of formulating World Bank operational policies, including OP 7.50 (international waters), OP 4.01 (environmental assessment and OP 4.12 (involuntary resettlement). She & her World Bank team (Pauline Boerma and Mike Garn) also monitored & supervised the $300 multi-donor financed RUSAFIYA water supply ( infrastructure investment) project. Within the framework of the project, they introduced the concept of public/private partnerships and community based participation to World Bank management ( as referenced in Maggi Black, Learning What Works, A Twenty Year View on International Water & Sanitation Cooperation).
She is a graduate of a Stanford law School, California; the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Massachusetts and the London School of Economics, England. She has a certificate in French language from C.A.V.E.L, University of Nice, France. GAD🙏🏽!
Frank Samolis
Frank Samolis is a leading authority in international trade with 44 years of experience advising governments and global corporations across the United States, Africa, Asia, and Latin America. He served as Partner and Co-Chair of the International Trade Practice Group at Squire Patton Boggs in Washington, DC for over a decade, and recently became Emeritus at the firm following a career defined by invaluable legal, policy, and trade advocacy contributions. Frank is widely regarded as an institution in global trade matters.
Throughout his career, he has played a key role in landmark trade initiatives including TPP, NAFTA, multiple U.S. free trade agreements, and efforts to expand market access for developing economies.
His previous public service includes serving as Counsel to the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means, Subcommittee on Trade, as well as appointment to an Industry Trade Advisory Committee under the U.S. Trade Representative and the U.S. Department of Commerce.
He continues to support initiatives that strengthen inclusive global economic development.
ROBERT MADSEN
Robert Madsen is a macroeconomist who advises financial institutions, corporations, and governments on international developments. He recently completed a project on impact investing and corporate governance for a $10 billion institutional investor and two studies on global demographic trends and their implications for, respectively, a $140 billion investment group and a security consultancy. He speaks frequently on international affairs at Stanford University and other fora. From 1997 to 2013, Dr. Madsen wrote the Economist Intelligence Unit’s (EIU) Japan Country Reports and contributed to that company’s analysis of China, broader East Asia,and the world. He also did substantial modeling of national debt sustainability, the future of Chinese GDP growth, and other topics amenable to quantitative analysis. Before joining MIT in 2004, he was a Fellow at Stanford University’s Asia Pacific Research Center, Asia Strategist at Soros Private Funds Management, and a limited partner and advisor to the Robert M. Bass Group on its investments in Japan. Still earlier, as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company he focused on international finance, the EPC industry, and Overseas Chinese business networks in Southeast Asia.
Dr. Carol Baltazar, MD
Dr. Carol Baltazar is an accomplished physician, entrepreneur, and healthcare leader with over two decades of experience in clinical medicine, aesthetics, and business innovation. As Co-Founder of Longevity Medical Spa, she built a thriving non-surgical aesthetics practice specializing in lasers, injectables, and regenerative therapies. As COO of Columbia Direct Primary Care, she leads operational strategy and patient-centered growth. Dr. Baltazar also co-founded TheraPearl, a patented hot/cold therapy product recognized globally. In her consulting role with Post Acute Care MD, she supports expansion strategies and operational optimization. She holds a Doctor of Medicine from De La Salle University and completed her Internal Medicine residency at the University of Washington. She is also deeply engaged in community service through educational and advocacy committees across Maryland. Her passion for equity and empowerment drives her contribution to the Paul Valdec Foundation’s mission of expanding economic opportunity for youth and female entrepreneurs.
Youth Members
Eliot Bisant
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