Mrs. Gertrude Oforiwa Fefoame

Mrs. Gertrude Oforiwa Fefoame is a respected international advocate for disability and gender rights, and she currently serves as the Chairperson of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD). As the Global Advocacy Manager for Social Inclusion at Sightsavers, her work spans leadership, social development, and capacity building for organizations of persons with disabilities.

Mrs. Fefoame is also the President of the International Council on Education of People with Visual Impairment (ICEVI) in Africa, as well as a member of the Executive Committee of the World Blind Union (WBU). Furthermore, she is the Commissioner World Council of Churches (WCC). Mrs. Fefoame's dedicated work has been recognized with multiple awards, including the Excellence Award - Grand Medal from Ghana. These accolades reflect her unwavering commitment to improving the lives of people with disabilities.

Edmund Asiedu

Edmund Asiedu (Phonetic Pronunciation of Name: Eh-dmehnd Asy-eh-doo) - Bio

Edmund Asiedu is a proud person with disability and a passionate accessibility, disability inclusion, and inclusive mentoring advocate who raises awareness on the needs of persons with disabilities in educational institutions and workplaces. He uses he/him/his pronouns. Born and raised in Ghana, Edmund studied at St. Mary’s Boys High School and the Ghana Institute of Journalism. He relocated to the United States in 2010. Before joining New York City Department of Transportation as a Policy Analyst for Accessibility, he held positions at Columbia University School of Public Health, Berkeley College, Cypress Hills Local Development Corporation, Lehman College, National Disability Rights Network, and Ghana Society of the Physically Disabled. Edmund holds a Bachelor of Social Work from the Lehman College and a Master of Public Administration from Baruch College School of Public and International Affairs. He served on the Disability Access and Accommodations Committee at the Columbia University Medical Center and advised ENABLE student organization at the Columbia University School of Public Health. Edmund currently serves as Co-Chair of the Advisory Council of the National Disability Mentoring Coalition (NDMC) in the U.S.

Farida N. Bedwei

Farida Nana Efua Bedwei is a software engineer, disability-rights activist and writer with a deep passion for using technology to change lives of those in the informal sector and marginalized communities in developing countries. She currently works with Microsoft as a software engineer on their Mixed Reality platform. Prior to joining Microsoft in 2022, she co-founded and worked as the Chief Technology Officer of Logiciel from 2012 - January 2021, during which Logiciel became the leading provider of banking software to the microfinance and non-banking financial intuitions in Ghana, at one point having over 300 companies subscribed to its cloud banking application – Zigloi.

Farida has also worked in the telecom software industry, developing mobile gateways and services for mobile networks and content providers. Farida is also an author and a disability-rights advocate, and has been featured on many media platforms, notable amongst this is CNN African Voices in February 2015.

She has also won a number of local and international awards, and was adjudged the most influential woman in business and governance (finance sector) for her work in computerizing the microfinance industry. She served on the Board of the National Communication Authority – the regulator of the Telecoms and Airwaves from 2014 - 2016 , and has served on the board of Sharecare Ghana (an NGO which raises awareness for persons with autoimmune and neurological conditions) for the past 4 years.

In October 2018, Farida teamed up with Leti Arts to author the first comic book featuring a superheroine with Cerebral Palsy - Karmzah. She also founded and hosts “Demystifying Disabilities”, an online show which aims at educating society about various different disabilities and issues that concern the disability community.