2025 OWL Soiree

Prof Flavia Senkubuge

Professor Senkubuge is the Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria in South Africa and the first woman to be appointed to this position. She is a Specialist and Professor of Public Health Medicine with a PhD in Public Health and an MBA from the Edinburgh Business School. She is a Past President of the Colleges of Medicine South Africa (CMSA). She is the first black woman and only the third woman in the CMSA’s history to hold the position. The CMSA is the apex body of medicine in South Africa and one of the most prestigious bodies of medicine on the African continent.

She is the current chair of the WHO/Afro region African Advisory Council on Research and Development (AACHRD), President of Women in Global Health (WGH) South Africa and Vice-President of the East Central and Southern African (ECSA) College of Public Health Medicine.

She was recognised as one of 50 Powerful Women in South Africa by the Mail & Guardian’s Power of Women in 2021 and is a Fellow of the Kofi Annan Global Health Leadership Program. In 2022 she was recognised by Harvard Public Health as one of the 25 standout voices in African Public Health.  

Natasha Fenech

Natasha Fenech took over the role of Group CEO & Managing Director of Avant Mutual in September 2020. Prior to that she was the CEO of Medical Indemnity and Deputy Group CEO since February 2019.

Before joining Avant, she was the CEO of SuperConcepts (a self-managed managed superannuation administration and software business which she grew over a five-year period from a start-up position to the market leader. Prior to that, she held several senior roles within Suncorp in both the personal and commercial insurance businesses, including as the Executive General Manager of Customer, Product and Pricing within Personal Insurance where she led the portfolio management of the Home and Motor books across 13 brands including AAMI, APIA, GIO and Suncorp Insurance.

She has held various positions within the financial services industry over the last 25 years including at companies such as Citigroup, A.T. Kearney, Royal SunAlliance, Zurich, Legal & General and SGIC.

She holds a Masters of Business Administration from the Australian Graduate School of Management, a Bachelor of Economics and a Bachelor of Mathematical Science from the University of Adelaide. She is also an Associate member of the Institute of Actuaries of Australia and a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.