Programs Youth
Dale Nikke Tokpah
Country of Origin: Liberia
Current Country of Residence: Liberia
Dale Nikke Tokpah holds an Associate’s degree in Accounting from the Morning Star Commercial Institute and has a Bachelor’s degree in General Agriculture from the University of Liberia, where he obtained national and international certificates in general human rights. He currently works as a Program Officer for the Liberian Youth and Adolescent Network on Population and Development, a chapter of the African Youth and Adolescent Network on Population and Development based in Burkina Faso, West Africa.
Godson Daniel Gayflor
Country of Origin: Liberia
Current Country of Residence: Liberia
Godson Daniel Gayflor is from Liberia and lives in the capital, Monrovia. He is a junior at the University of Liberia, studying Mass Communication and Sociology. He is a student activist and currently works as a training officer and HIV/AIDS Counselor for the Children Assistance Program Inc., a local Child Protection Network Agency. He is also a member of the Adolescent Girls Working Group (AGWG)- Liberia, a consortium of international and local NGOs working towards the promotion or rights and improving the livelihoods of adolescents, particularly the girl child.
Hawa Desseh Zoker
Country of Origin: Sierra Leone
Current Country of Residence: Sierra Leone
Hawa Desseh Zoker, known as Desseh, is from Sierra Leone. She is a trained and qualified medical nurse, and is an active First Aid Trainer and volunteer with the Sierra Leone Red Cross Society (SLRCS). She previously worked as a registrar during the flash flood in Pujehun District in 2005, and was among the 60 Volunteer Peer Educators who implemented the Student Partnership Worldwide (SPW) - Youth Programme in Sierra Leone in 2005-2006. She is a member of the SPW-Sierra Leone Ex-Volunteer Network, and is one of the founders of the Pujehun Youth Development Organization (PYDO) in Pejuhun Town.
Kadie Sandy
Country of Origin: Sierra Leone
Current Country of Residence: Sierra Leone
Kadie Sandy, known as KD, is from Freetown, Sierra Leone. She has successfully completed the Basic Education Certification Examination, as well as the West African Certification Examination. KD is an experienced community development worker through various positions with the Student Partnership Worldwide (SPW) and has implemented projects on health issues like HIV/AIDS, STI’s, Malaria prevention and environmental sanitation in rural and urban communities of Sierra Leone.
Kanyago Kalagala Caroline
Country of Origin: Uganda
Current Country of Residence: Uganda
Kanyago Kalagala Caroline, known as Carol, is a fourth year law student at Makerere University in Uganda. Carol is a passionate advocate for human rights and is currently conducting a research on the right to adequate housing for internally displaced persons in the Gulu district. She volunteers with the Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWEU) as a peer mentor and peer educator in secondary schools, and the Human Rights Network (HURINET-U), where she has been involved in activities related to advocating for the rights of women and children and in peacebuilding in Northern Uganda. She is also a committee member of the Former Forum for Women in Democracy (FOWODE), Young Leaders Alumni, a coordinator for the Former FAWEU Beneficiaries Association (FFBA) and is the Speaker on the Leader’s Committee of Mary Stuart Hall at Makerere University.
Philip Davis
Country of Origin: Liberia
Current Country of Residence: Liberia
Philip Davis, known as Fayia, is from Liberia and lives in Monrovia. He is a trained Peer Educator, HIV & AIDS Youth Counselor and a Youth volunteer for the Family Planning Association of Liberia (FPAL). For the past two years, he has been involved with Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights (SRH&R) related issues and youth advocacy, where the voices of young people, especially disabled and marginalized youths, are heard through SRH&R decision and policymaking. He is also a Youth Representative of the FPAL-Youth Action Movement at the Regional council, Africa Region, and works with vulnerable and underprivileged kids through the School of Peace with the Community of Sant’Egidio in Monrovia. In 2009, he also became a member of the Reproductive Health Advocacy Network (RHANA), an organization committed to sexual reproductive health. Fayia is a graduate of the University of Liberia and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics and Demography.
Stephen Gichohi
Country of Origin: Kenya
Current Country of Residence: Kenya
Stephen Gichohi is from Kenya and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Public Administration from the University of Nairobi. Stephen is currently the Programme Officer for Democracy and Governance at Youth Alive! Kenya. Part of his role at the organization includes designing and implementing project activities under the Democracy and Governance programme. Stephen is an alumnus of various initiatives including the Debate to Action Kenya Team, InterAction, Belongings Exchange Programme, the East African Uongozi Leadership School and Tackling Poverty Together. He loves working towards community development especially in the spheres of leadership and peace building and hopes in the future to participate in critical policy development all over the world.
Zainab Muminatu Bah
Country of Origin: Sierra Leone
Current Country of Residence: Sierra Leone
Zainab, known as Zain, is from Sierra Leone and lives in the capital, Freetown. An advocate for gender equality and women’s reproductive rights, Zaina has previously worked as a volunteer for Student Partnership Worldwide’s (SPW) Youth Reproductive Health Programme. She currently works as a drama intern with SPW, where she applies drama, dance and music in providing information on issues like teen-age pregnancy, HIV/AIDS, drug abuse, early marriage and child rights to marginalized communities.
Bhuwan K.C.
Country of Origin: Nepal
Current Country of Residence: Nepal
Bhuwan is a development studies graduate from Kathmandu University in Nepal. A development practitioner, youth advocate and climate activist, Bhuwan is a member of the United Nations Population Fund’s (UNFPA) global youth advisory panel and executive member of the Association of Youth Organizations Nepal (AYON). He has participated as a young speaker in conferences held in various parts of the world and also trained in climate advocacy by 350.org, an international climate campaign organization. Passionate about combining organizing and entrepreneurship to drive change, Bhuwan hopes to generate opportunities for young leaders to proactively and positively impact their world, spur innovation and become better people in the process. He is currently leading projects on climate change, entrepreneurship and youth empowerment at the Nepal Development Foundation, and strongly believes that “every young person has the capacity to make their mark by harnessing enterprising ideas, skills and talents”.
Carvarinho Bento
Country of Origin: Timor Leste
Current Country of Residence: Timor Leste
Carvarinho Magalheas Jeronimo Bento, known as Bento, is from Timor Leste, where he still lives. Bento is studying Engineering at the Dili Institute of Technology and working with the Education Development Center where he has conducted youth focus groups on education and job creation. He is also an active member of a youth group, Singles for Christ, where he directly works with young people through theater, conference, and peer groups. He previously coached the Bebonuk Children for Peace Football Club for which he obtained funding from UNICEF, and has also worked with the Ministry of Education on HIV/AIDS awareness.
Helen Samuels
Country of Origin: Thailand
Current Country of Residence: USA (Brooklyn, NY)
Helen Samuels is from Thailand and lives in New York, where she is a sophomore at the Brooklyn International High School. She is a youth volunteer with the International Rescue Committee’s (IRC) Youth Program and an active member of the IRC’s Leader in Training. A passionate speaker, Helen has previously delivered a speech on Burmese refugees through Amnesty International, and was invited by Adelphi University-Long Island to speak on youth and education in April 2009.
Narges Nemat
Country of Origin: Afghanistan
Current Country of Residence: Afghanistan
Narges Nemat is from Afghanistan where she is an undergraduate student at the Faculty of Science at Kabul University majoring in Biology. When war broke out in Afghanistan, Narges and her family fled to a refugee camp in Peshawar, Pakistan. She lived in Germany for a while and later returned to Kabul, where she volunteered for local NGOs supporting women and children. She has worked as a reporter, translator and guide for the New York Times and the Associated Press covering women’s issues. In 2009, she was part of the UNFPA Special Youth Fellowship Programming for adolescent and young people and has worked with UNFPA New York and UNFPA country office in Kabul. She is also a member of the Regional Model on South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) representing her country, Afghanistan.
Sradda Thapa
Country of Origin: Nepal
Current Country of Residence: Nepal
Sradda Thapa is from Nepal, where she is currently conducting research on the social meanings of bandas in Kathmandu with the Feinstein International Center. She was previously the midwest region’s National Observer at the Carter Center Nepal observing the constitution drafting and peace process. Prior to that, she was the International Development Program Associate at Search for Common Ground, the world’s largest peace-building organization. Sradda co-founded the “Washington Nepal Forum,” a group that meets on a monthly basis to discuss issues pertaining to political developments in Nepal. She also has experience working with a Nepal-based NGO, Human Development and Community Services, the Nepali Embassy in Washington DC and the Winterline Foundation. She has a BA in International Affairs from Gordon College in Massachusetts and is thrilled to be back at home after spending the past 15+ years in Hong Kong, India, Australia and the USA- and hopes the next decade to be less turbulent for her country.
