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Professional Fellows - Spring 2023 Cohort

Meet our Spring 2023 Cohort of Professional Fellows! This group of six accomplished disability rights leaders from Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and Ethiopia will travel to the US in May 2023 to participate in an intensive five-week Fellowship Program where they will exchange and discuss best practices for inclusive civic engagement with their US colleagues.

Learn more about our Fellows and their current civic engagement work in their home countries and communities! Our Fellows also share how they plan to use this Fellowship opportunity to advance and multiply their work and impact.

  • Bakar O Hamad

    Photo of Fellow Bakar Omar Hamad

    Acting Executive Director, Women with Disabilities in Zanzibar (JUWAUZA)

    Bakar serves as the acting executive director of Women with Disabilities in Zanzibar (JUWAUZA), a nonprofit organization that advocates for the rights of women and girls with disabilities through awareness raising, training, and capacity building.

    Bakar’s follow-on project, titled Haki Yangu or My Right, aims to increase participation of people with disabilities, particularly women with disabilities, in political decision-making and monitoring. Bakar will complete a four-week Fellowship placement training with the University of Iowa’s Center for Disabilities and Development (CDD) in Iowa City, Iowa.

  • Clara S Muchunguzi

    Photo of Fellow Clara Sima Muchunguzi

    Program Coordinator, Restless Development

    Clara works as a program coordinator for Restless Development, a nonprofit organization that supports the collective power of young leaders to bring about positive change in their communities. For the past six years, Clara has been leading the implementation of various youth development programs.

    Clara’s follow-on project aims to create more opportunities for youth to actively participate in decision-making that may affect their lives. Clara will complete a four-week Fellowship placement training with the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Center for Human Development (CHD) in Anchorage, Alaska.

  • Erick S Oduor

    Photo of Fellow Erick Sande Oduor

    Program Officer, United Disabled Persons of Kenya (UDPK)

    Erick currently works as a program officer for United Disabled Persons of Kenya (UDPK). UDPK is the national federation of organizations of persons with disabilities (OPDs) in Kenya, advocating for inclusion and active participation of persons with disabilities in development processes and in all spheres of life.

    Erick’s follow-on project aims to promote a culture of meaningful and inclusive participation of people with disabilities and their organizations in budgetary processes. Erick will complete a four-week Fellowship placement training with the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Center for Human Development (CHD) in Anchorage, Alaska.

  • Rashid Kalule

    Photo of Fellow Rashid Kalule

    Disability Inclusion Facilitator, Jinja District Union of Persons with Disabilities (JIDU)

    Rashid serves as the disability inclusion facilitator for the Jinja District Union of Persons with Disabilities (JIDU), a non-governmental organization that advocates for rehabilitative services and assistive devices for people with disabilities.

    In his current role, Rashid is focused on employability of persons with disabilities. Rashid’s follow-on project seeks to increase the number of persons with cerebral palsy engaged in disability advocacy and lobbying activities. He will complete a four-week Fellowship placement training with the University of Massachusetts Boston’s Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) in partnership with Work Inc. located in Dorchester, Massachusetts. 

  • Teopista Nannyanzi

    Photo of Fellow Teopista Nannyanzi

    Project Coordinator,
    Pan African Network of People with Psychosocial Disabilities (PANPPD)

    Teopista works as a project coordinator for the Pan African Network for People with Psychosocial Disabilities (PANPPD), which represents and advocates for the rights of persons living with psychosocial disabilities in Africa. Her current work focuses on identifying challenges that persons with psychosocial disabilities have faced because of COVID-19.

    Teopista’s follow-on project aims to advocate for political participation and representation for persons with psychosocial disabilities in Uganda. Teopista will complete a four-week Fellowship placement training with the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) in Arlington, Virginia

  • Nina H Mago

    Nina Halima Mago, a Ugandan woman wearing a collared shirt and small hoop earrings, smiling.

    Founder and Chief Executive Officer,
    Purple Bench Initiative (PBI) Uganda

    Nina is the founder and chief executive officer of Purple Bench Initiative (PBI) Uganda, a patient-led, trailblazing organization creating epilepsy awareness in Uganda.

    Nina’s Fellowship project will create advocacy and awareness about epilepsy at various levels of society to foster active participation and inclusion of people with epilepsy in education. Specific activities include public awareness campaigns, public meetings and workshops, and public education through community and grassroots training. Nina will complete a 4-week Fellowship placement training with the University of Oklahoma’s Health Sciences Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.