Mirriam Nthenge holds an LLM in International and Comparative Disability Law and Policy. She has vast experience in research, advocacy, legislative and policy analysis, and is a strong advocate of human rights monitoring mechanisms as key agents of change. She has served in various capacities working with national human rights institutions, INGOs and the UN Special Procedures, specifically the former Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Catalina Devandas. Mirriam is keen on evidence-based advocacy and has authored scholarly papers in the areas of accessibility, right to education, right to employment, legal capacity, sexual and reproductive health and rights, and the role of national human rights institutions as independent monitoring mechanisms. She is currently a Senior Human Rights officer (treaty bodies) at International Disability Alliance.

Faith Njahîra Wangarî is a feminist scholar-activist, researcher and disability inclusion expert with muscular dystrophy committed to research and community work guided by disability justice, feminism and anti-ableism. Njahira is a graduate of Syracuse University’s Disability rights and Inclusive education Master’s program with additional training and research in inclusive education, disability law and inclusion in Kenya, Japan and South Africa. Her experience spans across international non-profit, community organising, consulting and academia. She’s an independent consultant who supports global and national organisations in their inclusion of persons with disabilities in programming, grant-making. She has published book chapters and guest lectured in university classrooms in the US and Ireland on disability.

Mildred Ngesa is a self-proclaimed VOICE for Pan-African Emancipation and an undeniable believer in the power of effective communication. Mildred who is a seven-time award winning journalist from Kenya with over  24  years experience as a human-interest, social-development journalist, columnist as well as media & communications expert now presents as a Pan African Media & Communications Specialist, a  Transformational Life Coach, Inspirational  Speaker,  Women’s Peace Convener, a  Writer and  a  Poet.

Journalism drove Mildred into working for major media houses in Kenya including the Nation Media Group, The Standard Group, the now defunct Kenya Times and on the international spectrum, the Deutsche Welle News Service in Bonn, Germany.

It is in Communications however that Mildred curves an undeniable niche as an expert in the trade.  She has headed communications teams on Pan-African platforms including Amnesty International (East African Regional Office) and The African women’s Development & Communications Network, FEMNET – managing Media & Communications across 47 African Countries.

Nationally, Mildred’s streak has been evident in the three Constitutional Commissions where she headed the media and communications teams; Commission of Inquiry into Post-elections Violence (CIPEV), the Kenya Truth Justice & Reconciliation Commission (TJRC) and the Commission for the Implementation of the Constitution (CIC).

Mildred Ngesa is an expert orator with a specific bias on speaking truth to power on issues transcending relationships, gender, race, identity, age, leadership, all with a message of HOPE pegged at the core!  There is no doubt that Mildred is a champion for Transformational Change through messages grounded on hope.

Mildred is the founder/director of media-based organization Peace Pen Communication (PPC) and co-founder of the regional women’s peace initiative UDADA Sisterhood for Peace.

She also authored the published anthology Black Tipped Nipples a misty collection of poetry that serenades the strength and resilience of women through reflective prose.

Mildred Ngesa’s  life calling is crowned by her two daughters Neema & Nuru – Her GRACE and LIGHT in every sense of their names.

Website: www.mildredngesa.org  

Email: ngesamildred@gmail.com

Skype: mildred.ngesa

Twitter: @mildredngesa

Aserait Agnes is a Woman with a lived Disability (Deaf) experience and Ugandan by Nationality. She is a passionate disability diversity justice advocate, feminist, and bold women human rights defender. Agnes is a social worker by profession with an MSc in Organizational Psychology and a BA in Social Work and Community Development from Kyambogo University. Masters Holder in Organizational Psychology from Unicaf University Malawi.

She is also the founder of Reach A Voice Uganda for children, adolescent girls, and young women with disabilities empowerment. She has worked with women and girls with Disabilities as the Program Incharge of GBV prevention against Girls and Women with Disability from 2013 till April 2023 with the National Union of Women with Disabilities of Uganda. She says she just loves what she does!

Agnes served on the board of the National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda and the board of directors of Uganda National Association of the Deaf for 10 years and served in the Alliance for Women Advocating for Change (AWAC) for 3 years.

Her hobbies include influencing change where there are disability and women discriminatory practices for positive disability inclusion, traveling, reading and learning discoveries.

Marayika is an award winning poet, a grant writer, and a feminist doing disruptive political work centering women’s liberation. She has worked for feminist organizations like Rwanda Women’s Network, Choose Yourself, & My Period Is Awesome. In 2019, she worked for the British Council’s program (New Narrative) as a Research Contributor – her work in the program centered around using HCD in making social movements accessible. Currently, Marayika does free consultancy work around generating funding for small feminist initiatives and facilitates conversations centering feminism, sexuality, and disabilities. She also works as a Grant Manager at EarthEnable. Marayika is a woman with disability pursuing liberation and pleasure as a political resistance.

Elizabeth is a disability rights activist based in Nairobi, Kenya. She identifies as a woman with a psychosocial disability, having experienced mental distress in her life as well as resultant barriers. She acknowledges the important role that being in a peer support group played in supporting her to live a meaningful life in her community.

Her advocacy for disability rights began in the year 2009. As one with a lived experience of a mental health condition, and having studied print journalism, it almost came naturally that she used her talent in writing to express what she was going through, which slowly had her going into advocacy.

Most of Elizabeth’s work has been within the realm of awareness raising and putting focus on the rights of persons with disabilities. She has not only been involved in running community projects but has also extensively used local media to raise awareness on disability inclusion. She has a special focus on highlighting experiences of people with psychosocial disabilities who are also underrepresented within the disability context. Through her own lived experiences, those of her peers, and through the expertise she has accumulated over the years, Elizabeth is a strong believer in self-advocacy. She is glad that she has benefitted from many capacity building programs that make her a strong disability activist, and she hopes that through her work in disability activism, our communities can be less exclusionary, more inclusive, and more accessible to all persons with disabilities in their diversities.

Elizabeth blogs at: https://elizabethombati.wordpress.com/

Winnie Tumwine is the Co-founder and Executive Director of Hope for Single Mothers, a women-led NGO in Rwanda representing single mothers with disabilities. Hope for Single Mothers actively promotes inclusion and diversity, focussing on the rights and needs of young single mothers and girls with disabilities, social inclusion, Disability mainstreaming, partnership management, Gender analysis & frameworks, Gender responsive pedagogy. Winnie is a dedicated advocate and co-founder of Hope for Single Mothers with Disabilities, a grassroots organization committed to empowering and uplifting single mothers with disabilities. With a deep-rooted passion for social justice and equality, Winnie has dedicated her career to championing the rights and well-being of marginalized communities, particularly women with disabilities. As a feminist advocate, Winnie is deeply engaged in advancing the rights of persons with disabilities, striving to dismantle barriers and challenge societal norms that perpetuate discrimination and exclusion. Through her tireless efforts, she amplifies the voices of those often overlooked and marginalized, working towards a more inclusive and equitable society for all.

In addition to her work with Single Mothers with Disabilities, Winnie is a fervent advocate for sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and gender-based violence (GBV) prevention. She understands the intersecting challenges faced by women with disabilities, including heightened vulnerability to gender-based violence and limited access to essential healthcare services. Through education, advocacy, and community outreach, Winnie seeks to break down stigmas, promote access to comprehensive healthcare, and empower women to lead healthy, fulfilling lives free from violence and discrimination.

Winnie is a powerful force for change, inspiring others to join her in the fight for equality, justice, and dignity for all. Her unwavering commitment to social activism and her compassionate approach to advocacy have made her a respected leader in the disability rights and feminist movements.

Phyllis Mbeke is the Executive Director of Women Spaces Africa an organization working with girls and women with disabilities on Reproductive Health and rights. She has over ten years’ experience working with women organizations on issues of safe abortion and SHRH, advocacy and lobbying for CSE and contributed to the production of the first abortion hotline in Kenya.

Dative Mukashema is a 2021 DSROI alumni, Executive Director, and deputy legal representative of Rwanda National Association of Deaf Women (RNADW “Umucyo”), a feminist deaf women organization since 2020 that advocates and promotes the rights of deaf women and girls in Rwanda. She came in at a time when the OPD was experiencing acute management gaps and has since turned around its fortunes. Before joining RNADW Dative worked as a special needs education facilitator for the learners who are deaf in the refugee camps with ADRA International- She has a passion for deaf refugees and internally displaced deaf because she was born in a refugee camp in Uganda. Astute, focused, and determined to tackle the challenges facing deaf women and girls, she is profoundly deaf and became deaf at the age of 2 years due to a disease called meningitis. Dativa is a graduate of Development Studies. Growing up in a large family with boys as well as girls, she learned to fight for her rights. Her supportive parents made this easy as they stood by her in every sense, enabling her to complete her studies even when facilities were few.

Perpetua Senkoro is a young disability rights advocate with over nine years’ experience working in the NGO sector. Over the years' she has been engaging in advocacy initiatives promoting inclusion and non-discrimination of persons with disabilities, as well as pushing for reforms promoting their rights and welfare. She also engages with research initiatives entailing at creating better understanding on disability from an intersectional lens. Currently, she works for the Tanzania Human Rights Defenders Coalition coordinating a new initiative for empowering human rights defenders with disabilities.

Perpetua has a Masters of Law from McGill University, and a Bachelor of laws from the University of Dar-es-salaam.