All speakers
Mr Ben Ainsley
His Majesty's Deputy Trade Commissioner for Africa
UK Department for Business and Trade
At the Forum
to
Official openingRemarks by the UK Government
Biography
Ben Ainsley is His Majesty's Deputy Trade Commissioner for Africa at the UK Department for Business and Trade, based in Johannesburg. Earlier in 2026 he served as Acting HM Trade Commissioner for Africa, before Alastair Long formally took up the Trade Commissioner post in September 2026. He previously spent four and a half years as the department's Chief Operating Officer for Latin America and the Caribbean in São Paulo, and has also served as Chief Operating Officer for the Africa region and as Country Director for Nigeria in Lagos.