Celestin Hirwandame is the Portfolio Associate for the Lake Kivu and Rusizi River Basin, Restoration Finance. In this role, he oversees the sourcing of projects and the management of TerraFund enterprises in the region. Celestin also supports investor coalition partnerships with blended finance investment funds, impact investors, and financial institutions interested in the Lake Kivu and Rusizi River Basin landscape. Additionally, he manages the region’s business development service providers to ensure effective and timely service delivery.

Prior to joining WRI, Celestin worked for the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) as the Agribusiness Specialist, managing the Rural-Urban Nexus project that provided grants and built the capacity of SMEs involved in processing organic waste into compost. Previously, he also worked for Agriterra as the Business Advisor, supporting the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goal project and Outgrower Service Company model for the maize and soybean value chain. His primary responsibilities were increasing productivity and facilitating finance and market access for SMEs and farmer cooperatives.

Celestin holds a bachelor's degree in crop production from the National University of Rwanda and an MBA in Agribusiness from Symbiosis International University in India. He also has a Data Science for Business certificate from the Harvard Business School.

In his spare time, Celestin watches football matches or basketball games.