Westrock Group CEO to Speak About Free Enterprise Initiatives in Rwanda

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Scott T. Ford

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Scott T. Ford, chief executive officer of Westrock Group LLC, will speak to the Logistics of Capitalism class at the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas on Sept. 15.

He will discuss his company’s free enterprise initiatives in Rwanda, where it has invested over $100 million in the African country’s expanding coffee industry. Westrock Group operates Westrock Coffee Company LLC, which has worked to improve coffee prices, yields and quality as a way of making a positive impact on the Rwandan economy.

Ford’s talk will be at 3:30 p.m. in the auditorium of the Donald W. Reynolds Center for Enterprise Development. His talk is free and open to the public.

Ford recently testified about Westrock’s Rwandan investments before the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee on the topic of “Diplomacy, Development, and National Security.” He testified before the committee along with Ben Affleck and Bill Gates.

Ford founded Westrock Group in 2013 after serving a number of years as president and chief executive officer of Alltel. After earning a bachelor of science in business administration in finance from the Walton College in 1984, Ford worked for Merrill Lynch and Stephens Inc. He joined Alltel in 1996 and was named company president in 1997. He added the title of chief operating officer in 1998 and was named chief executive officer in 2002.

Ford also serves on the board of directors of AT&T, Bear State Financial and the Agaciro Development Fund.

Instructors for the course are Wes Kemp, executive in residence, and Jason Arentz of the supply chain management department.

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs. The university contributes new knowledge, economic development, basic and applied research, and creative activity while also providing service to academic and professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the University of Arkansas among only 2 percent of universities in America that have the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the University of Arkansas among its top American public research universities. Founded in 1871, the University of Arkansas comprises 10 colleges and schools and maintains a low student-to-faculty ratio that promotes personal attention and close mentoring.