Jakkie Cilliers is the founder and former Executive Director of the Institute for Security Studies (ISS). He currently serves as chair of the ISS Board of Trustees and head of the African Futures and Innovation Programme at the ISS. His 2017 best-seller, Fate of the Nation, addresses South Africa’s futures from political, economic and social perspectives. His two most recent books, Africa First! Igniting a Growth Revolution (March 2020) and The future of Africa: Challenges and Opportunities (April 2021) takes a rigorous look at the continent as a whole. He has a B. Mil (B.A.) from the University of Stellenbosch and a Hons. B.A., M.A. (cum laude) and DLitt et Phil from the University of South Africa (UNISA). Awards include the Bronze Medal from the South African Society for the Advancement of Science and the H Bradlow Research Bursary. He was born in Stellenbosch, South Africa on 16th April 1956. Dr Cilliers co-founded the Institute for Defence Policy in 1990 and played an important role in the transformation of the South African armed forces and the institution of civilian control over the military in the period 1990 to 1996. The IDP changed its name to the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) in 1996. At present most of Dr Cilliers` interests relate to issues around African futures. Dr Cilliers has presented numerous papers at conferences and seminars and published a number of books on various matters relating to peace and security in Africa and serves on the editorial boards of the African Security Review and the South African Journal of International Affairs. He is a regular commentator on local and international radio and television and has attended a large number of international conferences. He is an Extraordinary Professor in the Centre of Human Rights and the Department of Political Sciences, Faculty Humanities at the University of Pretoria.