Agnes Sia Tamba

Agnes Sia Tamba is a 2006 graduate of the Human Rights Advocates Program. After leaving HRAP, Tamba returned to Sierra Leone to continue working at the Network Movement for Justice and Development (NMJD). Presently, Tamba is the Program Manager of the Peace and Security Program at NMJD. She works to address the root causes of conflict in the southern province of Sierra Leone. Tamba manages NMJD’s peace education program and helps communities claim their rights without resorting to violence.

HRAP is a capacity building program that strengthens the skills, knowledge and networks of accomplished human rights defenders. When asked about the impact HRAP has had on her work at NMJD, Tamba writes, “I gained a new perspective of how I can promote peace education as an area of conflict transformation.” She writes that her participation in HRAP has helped her successfully mainstream human rights based approaches within NMJD’s programs.

Advocates attend skill-building courses in a myriad of topics such as developing fundraising and advocacy campaigns. Tamba highlights the benefits of these courses on her work at NMJD. She writes that as a result of these trainings, she successfully developed advocacy strategies as part of NMJD’s chieftaincy reform campaign.

Concluding on her experience at HRAP in 2006, Tamba writes, “The diverse cultural experience of New York City and the hospitality of the HRAP staff and Columbia University community is something I will always remember fondly.”

—Article composed by Allison Tamer, Program Assistant, June 2013