Cohort Year: 2024 Cohort

Nancy Akello Ongom, is a Humanitarian and youth activist from Northern Uganda. She currently works as the Protection Network Coordinator with ActionAid International (IHART) coordinating the ActionAid Regional Protection Networks in Africa with 16 countries and Asia with 12 countries. She is holds Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from Uganda Christian University, Mukono. Nancy is deeply committed to Human Rights and advocating for meaningful youth participation and engagement. Nancy loves to write about issues affecting young people and is passionate about menstrual health. Nancy has previously volunteered with youth-led organizations like Restless Development and served as a global youth Compact champion with the Compact. She is an Alumna of the YALI RLC Regional Leadership Program and also served in the Teach for Uganda fellowship, where she worked in an underserved rural school in Mayuge. She was also one of the 6 youth contributors who contributed to the development of the Young Humanitarian Handbook which has just been launched this October 2024.

• Usisi Amandla Compendium, Nancy Ongom Akello

Victoria Babirye is an Agri-food systems specialist dedicated to championing policies that enhance the well-being of small-holder farmers. Currently serving as a Program Manager with Fairtrade Africa, she supports a team across Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, and Rwanda and leads resource mobilization efforts for the East and Central African Network. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Mechanization and Irrigation Engineering and is pursuing a master’s degree in development studies.

Victoria’s career spans both the humanitarian and development sectors, where she has led impactful programs focused on improving the livelihoods of refugees and host communities. Her diverse experience includes roles across various sectors with agencies such as Alight (formerly American Refugee Committee), Dan Church Aid, CARE International in Uganda, the Centre for Governance and Economic Development, and the Appropriate Technology Centre under the Ministry of Water and Environment. Her expertise in developing and strengthening export market systems has enabled her to lead teams successfully in project implementation and contribute to the strategic development of organizations and sectors. Her career ambition is to become a knowledge expert in international trade, advocating for equitable practices across agricultural value chains.

• Usisi Amandla Compendium, Victoria Babirye

Uwera Juliet is a dedicated academic specializing in regional integration, focusing on the intersection of law and public policy. She holds a Bachelor of Laws degree from Uganda Christian University, a Post Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice from Law Development Centre and a Master of Laws (LL.M) in Regional Integration and East African Community Law from the University of Dar es Salaam. As a law lecturer, she has dedicated her career to educating the next generation of leaders on the complexities of public policy and its role in fostering regional stability and development. This experience has deepened her appreciation for the importance of effective public policy in addressing societal challenges and promoting collective well-being. In the classroom, she emphasizes the critical relationship between law and public policy, encouraging students to think critically about how legal principles can be applied to real-world issues. Through research and teaching, she aims to inspire students and communities to recognize the power of public policy in shaping equitable and sustainable futures, reinforcing their belief that informed citizens are essential for effective governance and social progress.

• Usisi Amandla Compendium, Uwera Juliet

Sophie Brenda Namonye is a Climate Change Officer at the Ministry of Water and Environment of Uganda, specializing in carbon markets, mitigation, and adaptation strategies. She holds a Bachelors in Environmental Science, Technology, and Management, Kyambogo University. She has a deep-seated passion for addressing climate related issues, inspired by firsthand experiences with the impacts of climate change.  Throughout her career, Sophie has contributed to climate action initiatives, beginning with volunteer work in Green Futures Initiative, a youth group where she advocated for climate action and carried out climate education in schools and communities across Central Uganda, enlightening over 20,000 individuals in diverse communities on climate change. Sophie is committed to enabling the ordinary people to adapt to climate change and to have climate resilient communities and she believes that this can be achieved by them understanding the crisis first. Sophie believes that transformative achievements are attainable through a shift in mindset and is engaged in the Careers Network to help young people achieve their God given potential by helping them develop a growth mindset.

• Usisi-Amandla-Compendium-Sophie-Brenda-Namonye

Shirley Kansabe is a public health practitioner with interest and experience in research, advocacy, and implementation of interventions in nutrition and Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs).  She currently works at Kyambogo University as a Nutrition Research, Learning, and Linkage Officer (Responsible for five districts in South Western Uganda). Through her involvement in several local and international collaborative interventions, she has acquired numerous skills including design thinking, strategy development, critical analysis, and evaluation. She has a keen interest in policy, design, and implementation questions that probe failure to achieve change from interventions. She is dedicated to understanding, promoting, and supporting the role of Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) in attaining public health goals, especially for collaborative interventions. She does this by investigating change processes and promoting the use of evidence in intervention design and implementation. In her work, she has won several grants, published peer-reviewed articles, and mentored students, among others. She has also led advocacy campaigns that have yielded national results on nutrition and NCDs.

• Usisi Amandla Compendium, Shirley Kansabe

Ruth is a Lawyer by profession with an LLB Degree from the School of Law, Makerere University and a Diploma in Legal Practice from the Law Development Centre, Kampala, and is an Advocate of the High Court of Uganda. She currently works as a legal officer at Evidence and Methods Lab, a civic tech organization that collates public information on human rights, transparency and accountability.

Ruth is a committed, hardworking, self-driven, result- oriented and problem solving team player. An all-round person with team spirit, good organizational, communication and interpersonal skills.

Ruth was part of the Rule of Law Champions initiative organized by Center for Public interest law(CEPIL) in 2019 and was a program mentor in 2021. She is also a member of the Network of Public Interest Lawyers (NETPIL). Ruth is committed to promoting civic awareness and participation through the work she does.

• Usisi Amandla Compendium, Ruth Aber

Ritah Nakato Nayiga is a statistician with training in economics and is passionate about data analysis. She currently works as a graduate trainee in data analytics with Enermech Uganda Limited. She holds a Bachelors Degree in Economics and Statistics from Kyambogo University and is currently pursuing a certification in Foundation and Advanced data and business analytics from Regenesys Business School. She has ably managed and led a data collection team, has interest in working with both the private and governments sectors to grow her career, strengthen her skill set and have an impact in these spaces. She strongly values integrity, authenticity and hard work. Her goal is to make a significant, transformative impact on the economy and careers of numerous individuals, through strategic leadership and collaborative effort.

• Usisi Amandla Compendium, Ritah Nakato Nayiga

Twikirize Peninah is a dedicated Social Worker with experience in community development. Currently, she serves as the Team Leader at Solidlinks Initiative for Development, a community-based organization in Kasese District of Uganda. She holds a Bachelors of Social Works and Social Administration from Makerere University Kampala and currently pursuing a Postgraduate Diploma in Project Management. She has previously worked as a Community Development Officer at Rubirizi District Local Government and also worked as Project Manager with Center for Justice Studies and Innovations. She is passionate about engaging with marginalized groups, including youth and women, to create opportunities for skill development, economic empowerment, and climate resilience. She is committed to fostering a culture of learning where success and failure are seen as opportunities for growth and innovation, and aims to continue driving positive change within communities while contributing to broader development objectives.

• Usisi Amandla Compendium, Twikirize Peninah

Patricia Ikuret is an experienced procurement and supply chain professional with experience in strategic sourcing, contract management and logistics optimization. She currently works as a Senior Officer Performance Monitoring at the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Authority (PPDA).

Her role involves ensuring effective regulation of the public procurement and disposal function through monitoring performance and compliance in accordance with the set law, regulations and guidelines.

She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Procurement and Supply Chain Management from Makerere University and is a member of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply. She has a proven track record of delivering cost savings, improving supply chain efficiency and ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements.

Patricia is committed to using the platform that PPDA has given her to create awareness among the local communities to increase participation of Youth, Registered Associations of Women and People with Disabilities (PWDs) in public procurement through encouraging and sensitizing these groups to take advantage of the reservation schemes provided for under the PPDA (Guideline No. 11 of 2024).

• Usisi Amandla Compendium, Patricia Ikuret

Atuhaire Baseka Patience is a dedicated SDG advocate passionate about sustainable development, community empowerment, and strong leadership.  She currently serving as Head of Finance and Resource Mobilization, Bricks Environment and Climate Hub Initiative (a youth-led, gender-balanced advocacy group focused on community-driven environmental sustainability and socio-economic transformation). She also serves as a Programs Officer of the Guild Presidents Leadership Academy (leadership development program nurturing current and outgoing university guild leaders into strategic national leadership positions). She holds BA in Public Administration and Resource Governance, Kyambogo University. She has actively participated in various SDG and sustainability forums and collaborated with local and international organizations. She generally aims at driving transformative change through sustainable development, community empowerment, and strategic strong leadership.

• Usisi Amandla Compendium, Atuhaire Baseka Patience