Jessie is a bold and passionate banking sector specialist focused on Gender and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) development. She has developed a passion for taking financial intermediation to rural women and youth SMEs and is considered a turnaround strategist in product development, capacity building and gender role profiling. Her extensive experience has supported the growth of the Zambian financial sector through training bankers in SME Relationship Management and financial education and Business Development Services to SMEs. 

Founder of Knutberry Trees Consultancy Ltd, she is a certified SME trainer and business coach providing Business Development Services and linkage to finance. She noted the mismatch between banking products on the market and SME wants, she therefore took a leap of faith to bridge this gap by offering BDS to SMEs and linking them to financial institutions.

Holder of a Bachelor of Science Degree in Banking & Finance, Jessie has over 15 years’ experience in the banking industry with a bias towards SMEs. She previously served in senior management positions in the banking sector including as Chief Operations Officer at Entrepreneur Financial Centre (EFC); SME Relationship Manager at Cavmont Bank (Access Bank) and Regional Operations Manager at Finance Bank (Atlas Mara). 

Jessie previously consulted on the drafting of the SME Policy in Zambia; digitisation of government school fee payments; digitisation of SACCOS; Savings Groups formation and governance; key stakeholder engagement, linking of government officials with emerging Agro dealers; workshop facilitation. 

She currently sits on the Board of Business Development Services Providers of Zambia (BDSPAZ) and volunteers for the Epilepsy Association of Zambia, International Bureau for Epilepsy. As an Honorary Wildlife Police Officer, Jessie is passionate about wildlife conservation and the preservation of Zambian heritage.