Bisila Bokoko, the award-winning entrepreneur, philanthropist, women’s advocate, and global leadership speaker, was born Bisila África Bokoko Toichoa in Valencia, Spain, in 1974. Her international roots trace back to her Equatorial Guinean parents, Bwelalele Bokoko, a lawyer, and María Ángeles, a nurse. This diverse background has shaped her global approach to her profession. The family also includes three sons.
Bokoko, a polylingual speaker, earned her master’s in business administration from La Universidad CEU San Pablo in Madrid in 1998, and a Certificate of British Law from The University of Manchester, Manchester, England. She also has a Law degree specializing in International Corporate Law and Economics from the same university.
In 2000, Bokoko moved to New York City, where she interned at the Valencia Institute of Export (IVEX). Once there, she also enrolled in The City College of New York in 2001 where she earned a Master of Arts degree in International Relations in 2003.
Bokoko’s leadership skills were further honed when she took on the role of director of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in the United States in 2005, a position that allowed her to make significant contributions to the business community. However, her philanthropic activities record began in 2009 during her first trip to the African continent. It was during this trip that she established the Bisila Bokoko African Literacy Project (BBALP), an initiative aimed at providing books and scholarships for children between the ages of 6 and 10. Her work was recognized in Ghana, where she was appointed “Queen Development Mother” by the Chief of Kokofu. Eventually she initiated library and literacy projects in Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.
Since 2010, Bokoko has served as the Chair of The Executive Board of EMPRETEC Women in Business Awards (UNCTAD), an organization founded at the end of World War II that comprises 193 Member States committed to maintaining international peace and security. During this time, she and her brother created a wine business.
Bokoko left the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in 2012 and founded and became the first CEO of Bisila Bokoko Embassy International, Inc. in New York City, a company that represented, facilitated, and marketed brands globally. In 2023, she authored Todos Tenemos Una Historia Que Contar (We all have a story to tell) regarding her life and contributions.
Bisila Bokoko, the mother of one son, Malabo, and is married to Johnny Sfeir, the founder of JSK-MIND & Customer Experience Academy. Sfeir has advised both foreign heads of state and Fortune 500 companies on political and economic questions about Africa. The couple have one son, Malabo. A recipient of numerous awards and accolades, including being featured on magazine covers BBC, Bloomberg, Entrepreneur, Essence, Forbes, Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar, Vanity Fair, and Vogue and other top periodicals, Bokoko is one of the ten most influential Spanish women in Americanbusiness.
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“Bisila Bokoko,” https://globalthinkersmentors.org/bisila-bokoko;
“Bisila Bokoko, la Reina de África que nació en Valencia: “Mi padre me dijo: ‘Tienes dos problemas, eres negra y mujer, y con eso vas a tener que lidiar,”https://www.revistavanityfair.es/sociedad/articulos/bisila-bokoko-entrevista/46259;
Shellie Karabell, “Bisila Bokoko: An Entrepreneur’s Leadership Journey,”https://www.forbes.com/sites/shelliekarabell/2016/03/06/bisila-bokoko-an-entrepreneurs-leadership-journey/
