Meet the YOWLI 2010 Participants (VI)

Bernadette NGO NGOS-Cameroon-26 years

My name is Bernadette NGO NGOS. I was born February 11th (the feast of youth in Cameroon) 1984 in a small town in Cameroon. I am the last born in a family of 5. I did my entire career (kindergarten, primary school and high school) in the Western Region of Cameroon (Bafoussam). Diligent and brave, I obtained my Bachelor of Science and Mathematics in 2003. I was fascinated by the past two professions: medicine and journalism.

 Driven by destiny, I introduced and passed the entrance examination to the Graduate School of Science and Technology of Information and Communication (ESSTIC). A School located in Yaounde, the capital of Cameroon. It was during an internship in 2004 at a development NGO, when I developed a passion for the development sector in general and the particular genre. 

Then I joined associations campaigning for the same cause where I worked as a volunteer, then as a consultant. I am now a master's degree student in professional communication, with the aim of obtaining a doctorate in development / gender. I am a consultant at ACAFEJ (Cameroonian Association of Women Lawyers) and AJVC (Green Youth Association of Cameroon) where I am in charge of communication.

 I am also an intern at a communications agency that specializes in media monitoring. My greatest wish is to work in the field of development and gender in particular. I dream of a fair and equitable Africa with men and women working together for development.

Omolara Oyelakun Tay-Ghana-25 years 

Omolara Oyelakun Tay is a goal driven person and oriented growing women who understands the troubles of womanhood, the causes and effects of these problems on  the  social,  economic,  and  political  gains  that  could  be  faced  by  women  from  Different cultural  practices  and  society.  Omolara  Tay  is  currently  working  for

Women Peace and Security Network Africa (WIPSEN-Africa) a pan –Africa non- governmental  organization  that  works  to  promote  women’s  strategic  participation and leadership in governances of peace and security as Programmes Assistant.

She  a  practitioner  and  have  experience  in  conflict prevention  and  peace  building especially  in  Gender  and  Security  Sector  Reform,  as  well  as  training  and  capacity building  for  young  girls.  She  is  currently  handling  the  Young  Girl’s  Leadership project in Liberia and the Refugees Girls project in Ghana. Ms. Tay work has been on  promoting  women’s  and  young  girl’s  strategic  participation  and  leadership  in peace and security governance in Africa. She is a Ghanaian and holds a first degree from  Kwame  Nkrumah  University  of  Science  and  Technology  in  Kumasi  and graduated in 2007.  

Umuhoza Karim Sahiya-Rwanda-25 years

My name is Umuhoza Karim Sahiya born on the 16^th November 1985 in Rwanda. I am the first born out of five .I completed my primary education in 1999 from Kigali Parents’ school. I then went to FAWE GIRLS’ SCHOOL where I obtained both my ‘O’ and ‘A’ level certificates. I am currently a mechanical engineering student at KIGALI INSTUTUTE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY.

I have participated in a number of different activities, trainings and workshops   to help improve the wellbeing of the society .I am committed, confident, responsible and work under minimum supervision. I am ready to meet challenges and will be very glad to meet and share constructive ideas and experiences with other participants.


Carolina Contreras-Dominican Republic-24 years

My name is Carolina Contreras and I am 24 years old. I graduated from Ursinus College in Pennsylvania, USA, but spent almost all of my life in Somerville Massachusetts. I am currently living in my native country of the Dominican Republic. I am a photographer, a consultant, an activist, a writer and a lover of life. I love learning different languages because it is very important for me to communicate with others. 

I speak Spanish, English, and French and I am currently learning some Portuguese. I also took a semester of Arabic and hope to continue it in the future. I spent a month in Dubai, UAE embarking on a journey in photography. During this internship I traveled to different parts of this city and photographed all of the beautiful things that are sometimes left in the shadows of the big skyscrapers of Dubai. I love traveling because I love human contact and learning about others cultures and customs. I consider myself a global citizen. I am a fighter for human rights and my hope is that one day this world will be a place where we can all be respected.  

Xaivier Ringer -  United States-25 years

My name is Xaivier Ringer and I was born and raised in the United States and have lived in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic for the last two years. I am currently completing my contract as the Manager of Innovative Initiatives at a sustainable human development consulting firm, ALEPH, S.A (Agency of Latinamerican Experts in Planning H). Before I served as a junior expert on poverty and international development in ALEPH and have helped develop a toolkit for poverty reduction and sustainable development using the MDGs as a framework for the English-speaking Caribbean.

Recently I completed a mural in a low-income community in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The mural is a part of a greater project, the Innovative Initiative for Social Responsibility: Youth Leadership. Visual Art. Sustainable Development. The Initiative is part of ALEPH’s commitment to youth and community development and of my passion for mural art and the understanding that art has transformative power as it reaches the “soul” of a person and allows he/she to grow. Through mural making the youth of Profamilia’s Youth Program, who helped realize the initiative, discovered evidence of sustainable development in their own communities and created a collective vision based on these evidences. Based on the vision I designed a mural and painted it within a two month period to provide an everlasting reminder of the commitment and vision the youth posses and hope to potentiate.

I have shown service to under-served communities through various programming and community mural art. I  served as a muralist-in-residence with the Foundation for the Development and Well-being of Women and Children in San Cristobal in June 2007 to mobilize youth empowerment with low-income school children. In addition to mural arts I  have earned research and analytical skills through her work in Bank of America where I synthesized venture philanthropy opportunities to invest in within the United States. My first language is English and I also speak Spanish.