Interim Governance Body - IGB

Rita NKETIAH

Member of the IGB

She / Her

English

Dr. Rita Nketiah is a queer African feminist who likes to explore critical questions about feminist movement building. She joined ISDAO in May 2017 as a member of the Interim Governing Body. (IGB).

Prior to joining ISDAO, Rita was a PhD student and activist working on women’s rights issues in Ghana and investigating second-generation Ghanaian-Canadian transnationalism and return migration. Dr. Rita Nketiah is currently a Researcher at Human Rights Watch in the Women’s Rights Division. She has a background in community-based and academic research, monitoring and evaluation, grassroots movement-building and creative writing. Dr. Rita Nketiah has a PhD in Geography from York University (Toronto) and a Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees in Women and Gender Studies from the University of Toronto and Western University, respectively.

Dr. Rita Nketiah is co-founder of The Gathering, a feminist collective for LBQ* and non-binary people in Ghana. She has supported key international organizations, including COC Nederland, openDemocracy and AWID to conduct research and evaluations on LGBTI movement-building in Ghana.

When she’s not fighting the patriarchy, Rita enjoys spending time on the beach with cocktails and friends.

Rita’s favourite historical character is bell hooks. May she rest in power.

Wendmalda Patrick KABORE

Member of the IGB

He/Him

French - Mooré

Patrick is pro-feminist and committed to the promotion of human rights and social justice for an equitable and inclusive world, with more than 15 years of professional experience in supporting the structuring of civil society organisations in French-speaking Africa, including 12 years with Sidaction where he was in charge of management and finance. Patrick joined the Interim Governance Body of ISDAO in 2017 with expertise in various fields, including capacity building of associations and NGOs, resource mobilisation, partnership building and grant management and monitoring. Patrick has supported the creation and structuring of several LGBTQI and feminist organisations. He has also facilitated the creation of partnerships and resource mobilisation in several organisations.

He holds a Master's degree in Accounting, Audit and Control and a Master's degree in Innovations, Development and Societies.

He holds a Master's degree in Accounting, Audit and Control and a Master's degree in Innovations, Development and Societies. Patrick is passionate about working to support the structuring of organisations. He works to identify potential partners (resource providers) for feminist and LGBTQI organisations and to guide these partners in allocating resources for greater impact.

He is enthusiastic about feminist debates and in his spare time spends a lot of time researching and reflecting on the integration of feminist principles and values in organisations.

Jake Okechukwu EFFODUH

Member of the IGB

He/Him

Igbo, Haousa, Creole, English

Jake is a lawyer with a demonstrated history of working in human rights advocacy, policy development and regulatory compliance. He has gained 15+ years in human rights and legal advocacy across domestic, sub-regional, regional, and international human rights systems. He joined ISDAO’s Interim Governing Body in 2017. Prior to legal advocacy, Jake’s activism involved anchoring two human rights weekly radio programmes in Nigeria, which aired on over 150 radio stations for 12 years. He featured interviews and discussions on health and law reform, and education on women’s rights, LGBTQI inclusion, and the rights of persons living with disabilities. He currently practices as a human rights attorney within Nigeria and across West Africa’s ECOWAS system.

Jake holds two Masters degrees in law from the University of Oxford in the UK, and from the Osgoode Hall Law School respectively. He is currently carrying out doctorate research on the impact of AI on human rights activists across anglophone Africa. He has published over 15 peer-reviewed works on issues of law, activism, and human rights, and has co-edited 2 books. Jake founded the Lawyers League for Minorities (LLMN) in 2012, which has since provided pro bono legal services to indigent LGBTQI Nigerians, women living with disabilities, and other vulnerable communities. He is also a World Economic Forum expert on human rights.

Jake likens himself to the African social weaverbird. The weaver birds are unique for their ability to tie knots and the male weavers tend to be the nest builders. Jake strives to foster diversity, equity, and inclusion, and to build community in the various spaces he engages in. He loves playing the Igba (local drum) and enjoys horticulture.

Nataka GMAKAGNI

Member of the IGB

Nataka

Ewe, Mina and French

Originally from Togo, Nataka holds a degree in Insurance, but quickly discovered her passion for social justice issues. From peer educator at Espoir Vie Togo to Co-coordinator of QAYN, via the management of several projects and programs in Cote d'Ivoire and Burkina Faso, Nataka has accumulated 11 years of experience in the fight for equity and inclusion in West Africa and Cameroon. Her experience with ISDAO began in 2018.

A non-binary, feminist and pan-African person, Nataka has been instrumental in the creation and technical support of queer women's groups in Africa. Nataka believes in transformational leadership, structuring, developing and strengthening African queer movements. One of her favourite phrases is " Using privilege to share power ".

Her feminist commitment is based on non-negotiable principles such as transparency, accountability, equity and inclusion. Having worked with Mariam Armisen, she remains her source of inspiration and reference in strategic and political decision making

When Nataka is not involved in activism, she relaxes in front of a cartoon or dedicates herself to another of her passions: snakes.

Mangus Jamal VENANCE

Member of the IGB

He/Him

English

Jamal is a Ghanaian Trans man, a feminist and a human rights activist. Jamal has volunteered and worked in local or in-country LGBT+ spaces for 7 years and regional spaces for 4 years amidst up and downs but still pushing to be better and to see all LGBT+ persons, especially Trans persons, happy.

Prior to joining ISDAO, Jamal was a Program Coordinator at African Equality Centre (AEC), where he worked with the project team to coordinate and mobilize LGBT+ persons for empowerment activities. He later co-founded a Trans specific organization to highlight the issues of the trans community in Ghana and also worked with other key activists to bring change to the LBQT movements. Jamal joined the ISDAO IGB on 30th January 2018. He holds an HND in Hardware and Networking Engineering. Currently, Jamal is the Director of ADI, a trans-specific organisation in Ghana, the chairperson of the West African Trans Forum, an IGB member of African Trans Network, and a member of ITF's Advisory Committee of the Africa Regional Capacity Building and Networking workshop.

Jamal is known to be a helper and a fighter for visibility due to his fearless fights to see LBQ women and Trans persons become visible, stand up for their rights and speak to issues that affect them. He has been working with the LBQT Consortium to mobilize resources to support vulnerable women and other diverse identities when needed. Since Jamal accepted his identity, his place of living has always been a temporary safe space for community members in need of shelter. It has never stopped, despite all the challenges faced because he knows what it takes to be broke, queer and homeless.

When Jamal is not working, he spends his time in bed watching films with feminist ideologies and also enjoys listening to music.

Franck-Arnaud Kouadio AMANI

Member of the IGB

He/Him

French

He is an Ivorian, activist campaigning for the rights of access to quality care and equitable social justice for LGBTIQ people. In order to give a boost to the LGBTIQ movement in West Africa, he joined ISDAO's Interim Governance Body in July 2017. Franck worked at Alternative CI as a project manager where he was in charge of project development, planning, monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of the organisation's support and sustainment strategies. It should be noted that he worked within Alliance Cote d'Ivoire as a programme officer on the theme of stigmatised people (sex workers, drug users and LGBTI people) for the monitoring and implementation of strategies, the implementation of national and international policies in the framework of prevention, care of HIV infection and human rights.

He was also in charge of advocacy and human rights at the NGO Espace Confiance.
He was a national consultant for the national advocacy campaign for an enabling environment for key populations in the context of the HIV/AIDS and TB response. He contributed to the elaboration of the legal mapping of the situation of LGBTQ people in Francophone West Africa funded by QAYN, Burkina Faso.

He holds a Master 1 in Private Judicial Law from the University of Félix Houphouët d'Abidjan-Cocody in Cote d'Ivoire. With 12 years of experience in the humanitarian field, he brings his contribution to a more just world for LGBTIQ people through political positioning on legal issues, social justice and welfare.

He is passionate about discovery, adventure, cinema and reading. He is easy to talk to and adaptable to the situations he is faced with.

Eli Rosalie NÉZIEN

Member of the IGB

She/Her

French, English, Dioula, Gouroussi and Mooré Basic

Rosalie is a passionate advocate for human rights, gender justice and Black feminists in all their diversity. She has extensive experience working in philanthropy and international development. She has been engaged in resource mobilization, philanthropic advocacy and the support of feminist groups and movements in Africa for over ten years.

Rosalie is currently the Program Officer for Francophone Africa at Foundation for a Just Society - FJS.

Rosalie has many historical figures that inspire her. But at the time, she thought of Aline Sitoé Diatta, a queen, priestess and anti-colonial Casamance resistance fighter.

Lamé OLÉBILÉ

Member of the IGB

She/They

Setswana, English, Zulu, and basic French

Lame Olebile is an African queer feminist with roots in Botswana, with over ten years of experience in queer feminist organizing, movement building, local and international advocacy, and feminist philanthropy. She is currently a senior program officer at the Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice, where she supports African queer feminist groups through grantmaking, capacity building, and philanthropic advocacy. Prior to joining the Astraea Foundation, Lame was a human rights project officer with the Ngamiland Council of NGOs.

She led a human rights education project on LGBT, disability and children's rights in the North West District, helping civil society organizations build their capacity to advance human rights. As coordinator of Pan-Africa ILGA, she supported LGBTQI member organizations in Africa. Lame has also worked in several capacities with Lesbians, Gays and Bisexuals of Botswana, one of the positions including an organizational coordinator role.

Prior to this position, she supported the Durban Lesbian and Gay Community and Health Centre as Research and Integration Officer, where she worked on sexual health priorities for queer women. She spent five years as an advisor to FRIDA, the Fund for Young Feminists, where she also served as co-facilitator of the Sub-Saharan Africa Advisory Committee.

Octavia Butler is the person who inspires Lame, whom she considers her mentor.