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Karla Luzette Beteta Brenes

Women in Business

Karla Luzette Beteta Brenes joined the team of the Agency for Business and Economic Development in 2019. From her time in the diplomatic service, most recently in a senior position as ambassador, she brings valuable expertise and a strong network. 

Key Career Positions

  • Ambassador of the Republic of Nicaragua to Germany
  • Ambassador of the Republic of Nicaragua to Luxembourg, Slovakia and Poland
  • Administrative Director at a state-owned company in Managua

Ulrich Boysen 

Agriculture and Food Industry

Before joining the Agency for Business and Economic Development in 2018, Ulrich Boysen worked for ten years in North and West Africa and was responsible for projects that modernise the agricultural and food sector at the African Development Bank and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH.

The economics graduate is familiar with the perspective of small and medium-sized enterprises and the structures of global supply chains from his many years of work in the German agricultural and food industry: as Managing Director of the German Fruit Trade Association, Boysen was involved in the introduction of sustainability standards. "It is important to me to inform about procedures and instruments of development cooperation and to shape effective cooperation between public and private actors in the partner countries of German development cooperation," Boysen notes.

Key Career Positions

  • Programme Coordinator at GIZ, Agricultural Development Programme, in Burkina Faso 
  • Programme Manager at GIZ, Competitive African Rice Initiative, in Nigeria
  • Agribusiness Coordinator at the African Development Bank in Tunisia 
  • Managing Director of the German Fruit Trade Association (DFHV) e.V.

Almuth Dörre 

Director (acting) 

Altmuth Dörre is the acting director of the Agency for Business and Economic Development since February 2022. As an expert at the interface of development cooperation and the private sector, Almuth Dörre has worked in various regions and positions in Germany and abroad: she was responsible for sales in German-speaking Europe for an Indian polyester yarn manufacturer and was seconded as an expert for development cooperation (DC Scout) to the Bavarian Centre for Foreign Trade. She has been involved in various private sector development projects for the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH.  Her professional career has taken her to the Balkans, India, Guatemala and Belgium, among other places. "There is much more to Made in Germany than high-quality products. It also includes compliance with social and environmental standards, the involvement of local workers and, above all, high-quality training. This additional entrepreneurial commitment is a clear competitive advantage for the German economy," Dörre highlights.

Key Career Positions 

  • Senior Consultant at the Agency for Business and Economic Development 
  • Consultant for Development Cooperation (seconded by BMZ) at Bavaria Trade and Invest
  • Project Manager at the Deutschen Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) in Kosovo
  • Marketing/sales German-speaking Europe for an Indian polyester yarn manufacturer

Hans-Joachim Hebgen

Financing, Textile Economy, develoPPP, InfoDesk Ukraine und Östliche Partnerschaft

Hans-Joachim Hebgen has worked for more than 30 years at DEG - Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH in managerial positions, most recently as the Director of the Department for Development Programmes and Advisory Services.

The business economist has advised numerous medium-sized companies, particularly in the development of internationalisation strategies, and accompanied them in structuring and financing their investments in developing countries. "My focal points have included the systematic preparation of foreign investments, assessment of partner, project and country risks, and clarification of financing issues. I am also happy to advise on these topics at AWE," he says. As the person in charge, Hebgen implemented various funding programmes, especially programmes of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). He has published numerous how-tos on the subject of foreign investment.

Key Career Positions 

  • Head of the Department for Development Programmes and Advisory Services at DEG 
  • Employee of DEG, since 1986 as head of department in various functions
  • Lecturer at the Wirtschaftsvereinigung Bergbau e.V. and the Fachvereinigung Auslandsbergbau e.V. in Bonn

Carolin Welzel 

International Organisations, develoPPP, InfoDesk Ukraine und Östliche Partnerschaft

Senior consultant Carolin Welzel joined the Agency for Business and Economic Development in 2018 from the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) Gmbh. She has many years of experience at the interface of business and politics and extensive expertise from working with associations and chambers. Experiences abroad have taken her to Asia and Africa; most recently, she managed the collaborative project with the Federation of German Industries (BDI) in East Africa for GIZ.

At our office, Welzel is the contact for international organisations such as the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank or the EU, which offer German companies interesting business opportunities - but which are still underused. "Many companies shy away from this path in order to place their foreign business on a broad foundation. I am committed to ensuring that more medium-sized companies in particular expand their network and get to know the development banks," says Welzel.

Key Career Positions

  • Contract manager and project manager for the cooperation project between GIZ and BDI in East Africa
  • Development cooperation scout for the GIZ at the Potsdam/Berlin Chamber of Industry and Commerce and at the BDI 
  • Contract manager for a GIZ project in North Africa, topic: cooperation between associations
  • Project manager for e-government and CSR at the Bertelsmann Foundation 

Bastian Geyer

Vocational training, AGYLE - African German Young Leaders in Business

Bastian Geyer joined the Agency for Business and Economic Development in 2018 and works there as a consultant for vocational training. He is head of AGYLE, an African-German Young Leaders program that brings together young leaders from Africa and Germany in a long-term business network.

Previously, Bastian Geyer worked for DATEV eG in Brussels. At the interface between politics and business, he dealt with the topics of digitalisation and artificial intelligence and accompanied legislative procedures at a EU level. During his studies of political science and economics with a focus on development policy in Erlangen, he was particularly interested in the economic policy framework of development cooperation.

Malte Drewes 

Helpdesk on Business and Human Rights

Malte Drewes is a consultant at the Helpdesk on Business and Human Rights at the German Agency for Business and Economic Development. The German government's offer is aimed at companies and associations: they can obtain free, individual and confidential advice on the implementation of the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights (NAP). As part of the team, Drewes supervised the further development of the German-language version of the CSR Risk Check - a tool that can be used to identify potential risks along global supply and value chains.

Mr Drewes' focus is on advising companies. In addition, he raises awareness of the topic in the business community through lectures, panel discussions and the organisation and moderation of workshops. Between 2013 and 2017, Mr Drewes worked at the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Geneva and Berlin, where he most recently coordinated the technical contribution to the German G20 Presidency 2017.

Jenny Ohme 

Helpdesk on Business and Human Rights

Jenny Ohme has been part of the Helpdesk team since 2017. She previously worked abroad for eight years, primarily on the African continent, and gained experience in various areas of German-African cooperation, including at KfW and various political foundations. Ohme studied politics and economics in Pretoria, Cape Town, Paris and Berlin, specialising in international development and human rights.

Sabine Peters-Halfbrodt

Helpdesk on Business and Human Rights for the Food Industry

Sabine Peters-Halfbrodt has been working as a consultant in the food industry for the Helpdesk on Business and Human Rights since 2019. This sector-specific advisory service is a cooperation between the Helpdesk and the Federation of the German Food Industry (BVE).

After more than two decades in the food industry, Sabine Peters-Halfbrodt most recently works as an independent consultant. She has extensive experience and knowledge in marketing, corporate communications and corporate social responsibility, and has been involved with social, environmental and human rights standards in the industry for years. She is experienced in developing integrated commodity strategies and programmes for agricultural commodities, where human rights due diligence is an essential component.

This sector-specific consultancy service is the result of a cooperation between the Helpdesk on Business and Human Rights and the Federation of German Food and Drink Industries (BVE).

Key Career Positions

  • Independent consultant for sustainable business
  • More than 20 years in various functions at Mondelēz International (formerly Kraft Foods) 

Jana Sievers

Helpdesk on Business and Human Rights

Jana Sievers has been part of the Helpdesk team since 2019. As a consultant, she focuses on companies from the food and agricultural sectors. As part of her Master's degree in Economics, she specialized in international economics and sustainable development and completed extended study visits to North and South America. Previously, she gained practical experience in the field of development cooperation and at the intersection of politics and business.

Michaela Streibelt 

Helpdesk Wirtschaft und Menschenrechte 

Michaela is licensed as a lawyer and joined the Helpdesk on Business and Human Rights team in the Agecy for Business and Economic Development as a consultant in 2020. Before, she worked as a lawyer in litigation and in environmental law as well as in a human rights organization in the field of business and human rights. Her legal training included working for a large international law firm and an international human rights organisation. In addition to her work for the Helpdesk Michaela Streibelt works on a PhD project in human rights law.

Corinna Peters

Information and Communications Technology, Digitalization

Corinna Peters joined the AWE team in September 2022 and advises companies on the funding and financing instruments of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). Her focus is on the information and communications technology (ICT) sector as well as the cross-sector topic of digitization. She is especially focused on providing networking opportunities for relevant players and helping to find synergies.

Prior to joining AWE, Ms. Peters worked for the German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ), where she provided policy advice to the BMZ on digital agribusiness topics, helped to further relevant measures and lead interdisciplinary focus groups. Prior to that, she worked for several years in the private sector as a consultant for clients such as the Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft (DEG) mbH, as well as SMEs and foundations engaged in the development context, advising them in the area of international funding. 

Key Career Positions

  • Policy advisor for the BMZ    
  • Head of international focus groups on agribusiness and digitalization within GIZ 
  • DEG-Consultant for the topic "Improvement of project-administration-processes in promotion-related business"
  • Consultant for a medium-sized software company   

Johannes Maximilian van Lingen

Helpdesk on Business and Human Rights 

Johannes Maximilian van Lingen is a consultant at the Helpdesk on Business and Human Rights by the German Federal Government at the German Agency for Business and Economic Development. As part of his law studies in Berlin, Beijing and Tokyo, Johannes specialized in company law, human rights and Chinese law. In the free and confidential consultations for the Helpdesk on Business and Human Rights, Johannes consults German companies in German, English or Chinese on the practical implementation of human rights due diligence processes. Drawing on experiences at the German Federal Foreign Office and corporate law firms in Berlin, Taipei and Tokyo, Johannes is specialized in human rights due diligence for German companies in politically sensitive areas.  
 
Languages: German, English, Chinese, Japanese, Spanish 

Dr. Jana Heinze has been working as an independent consultant for the Helpdesk on Business and Human Rights since 2023. As an expert in business and human rights, Dr. Jana Heinze has more than 12 years of experience at the interface between companies, governments, non-governmental organizations, associations, academia and trade unions. She has also been a lecturer and adjunct professor in Berlin since 2018. She studied sociology, media and communication studies, business administration, and international and European law in Göttingen and Helsinki and holds a PhD in sociology.

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