Our Chairman
Dr. Denis Foretia is the Founder and Chairman of Merckshire LLC, an international holding company with operations in the US and Cameroon. A surgeon by training, Foretia has always been involved in philanthropic activities and issues related to international development. In 2012 he co-founded, along with his wife, the Denis & Lenora Foretia Foundation. The foundation’s goal is to catalyze Africa’s economic transformation by focusing on social entrepreneurship, science and technology, innovation, public health and progressive policies that create economic opportunities for all. It also works in partnership with local governments, policy makers, private enterprises, civil society organizations as well as development partners to expand the resources available to entrepreneurs, farmers, and small business owners in addition to improving individual livelihoods.
Dr. Foretia is also the Co-Founder and pioneer president of the Cameroon Professional Society (CPS) – the premier institution for Cameroonian professionals in the US focused on advancing economic opportunity and leadership development among Cameroonians. He is a visionary leader with an insatiable drive to improve economic opportunities for Cameroonians and Africans in general. He has been instrumental in setting up the Nkafu Policy Institute, a leading Cameroonian think tank based in Yaounde.
Dr. Foretia is a General & Acute Care Surgeon at the Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta. He holds a Bachelor’s degree with honors in Biological Sciences from the University of Maryland Baltimore County, a Doctor of Medicine degree from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. He also holds a Masters in Public Health (MPH) from Bloomberg School of Public Health at the Johns Hopkins University and a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) from the Carey School of Business also at the Johns Hopkins University.
Follow Dr. Foretia on Twitter:@DenisForetia