Governance for AFLI's Pakati Project is provided by a Youth Advisory Board. As stated in the Board terms of reference, the position of co-chair is valid for a period of six months only. Thereafter, the board co-chairs together with the secretariat (AFLI) are required to vote in a new set of co-chairs. This rotational arrangement has been put in place to allow the young leaders of the youth advisory board to be exposed to the experience of chairing a board and to leverage the experience for their growth and development. The co-chairs will support each other to achieve the objectives of the project and it is up to them to decide how they will collaborate and delegate tasks between themselves.
The newly elected board co-chairs, Maudo Jallow and Wadi Ben-Hirki, commenced their term in February 2019 replacing Raphael Obonyo and Rumbi Gunduza.
Maudo Jallow
Maudo Jallow The Gambia Maudo Jallow is the founder of New Nation – a youth-driven initiative that seeks to advocate for the prioritisation of youth development and structural transformation in The Gambia.
He currently works with the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) as an International Development Expert. Before that, Maudo worked with the United Nations Research Institute as part of the Social Policy & Development research team, between September and December 2017. He is also a contributor and writer for Future Africa Forum, which is an organization that exists to increase the voice and participation of young African people in policymaking, dialogue and implementation, as well as a platform for coming up with policies and agendas that advance the development of the African continent.
In the recent past, Maudo worked for the LSE Africa Summit as a Co-Director, and Press TV UK as a Contributor. He holds a bachelor’s degree in International Business with French and Economics and a Master's degree in African Development from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Wadi Ben-Hirki
Wadi Ben-Hirki is a development worker, writer, and public speaker. She is the Founder of Wadi Ben-Hirki Foundation, a registered non- profit organization in Nigeria. She is a strong believer of equity and justice. She believes everyone deserves a fighting chance and we are humans first before anything else so, we should treat one another with love and care.
Wadi holds a bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Covenant University, Nigeria. She has been trained by the Satyagraha Institute on non-violence, peace building and conflict resolution, Youth Organizing School on policy advocacy & civic engagement. She currently sits on the African Leadership Institute Youth Advisory Board and serves as a Country Representative for the Chatham House Common Futures Conversations. Wadi is a ONE Champion and an Ashoka change maker. In 2017, she was the focal point for Canada High Commission’s #SheCANLead campaign in Nigeria. In 2016, she participated in the Africa Union’s Regional Consultation on Human Rights with a major focus on Women’s Rights. Wadi was a Youth Delegate at the Global Partnership for Education Financing Conference 2018 and served as a Special Guest on education & skills for the 21st century at the Y20 Summit 2018. She also participated in the 2018 United States Institute of Peace (USIP) Youth Leaders’ Exchange with His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
Wadi was one of the recipients of the World Youth Forum Award 2018 which was presented by H.E President AbdelFattah El-Sisi (President of Egypt). She was enlisted as one of the 100 Most Influential Young Africans in 2018. Some of her awards include Her Network Woman of the Future Award 2017, The Ebony Life TV Sisterhood Advocate and People’s Choice of the Year Awards 2017, Top 10 young people in Africa working towards achieving Gender Justice and Reconciliation Award and Civil Society Award 2017.
Wadi has been nominated on several occasions and has volunteered for a couple of organizations that focus on education, gender equality and peace. Her voice has been heard on Aljazeera, BBC, Agence-France Presse and La Nacion Etc.
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