André Philippe Futa Mudiumbula Tshitumbu Tshipadi

André Philippe Futa Mudiumbula Tshitumbu Tshipadi (b. August 26, 1943), is a member of the royal family of Bena Mbayi and Bakwa Dishi. Born in Miabi, Zaire, he is the only son of Kabongo wa Mfuta wa Kalubi and Tshiambuaya Marie-Madeleine. He is planned to be recognized as traditional chief of the Bakwa Dishi clan. Futa studied agronomical sciences and graduated with honors as an agricultural engineer. Upon graduating, he moved to Kamina, where he became the head of the regional Companie des Grands Elevages de Katongola. In 1972, he became assistant professor at the Université National du Zaïre. In 1976, he attended the University of Florida, where he earned his Master in Food and Resources Economy. In 1979, he obtained his Ph.D. at Oklahoma State University. In 1980, he entered the African Development Bank (ADB) in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire where he remained until 1997, when he was dispatched to the Kenya-based International Center of Insect Physiology and Ecology, which he served as director for two years before relocating to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where he was ABD's East Africa Representative Director until April 2001, when he was recalled to Zaire to serve as minister of agriculture and rural development.