Practitioner Advisory Group

How will you ensure that your research is relevant?

Our Practitioner Advisory Group (PAG)

Our PAG brings together experienced professionals from across sectors to shape and strengthen our research and impact activities. Representing diverse fields and real-world contexts, they play an integral role in bridging the gap between research and practice.
Through grounded insight and practical expertise, the group ensures our work remains relevant and aligned with real-world application. Their contributions help make MCCRA’s outputs not only rigorous, but also meaningful and actionable for the communities and sectors we serve.

Alice Castillejo

Programme Development Manager, CLEAR Global

Alice Castillejo has been working in the voluntary sector for more than two decades, including nine years overseas and four years as a country director in Cambodia and South Sudan. Her background in community development and good governance has given her a strong commitment to local activism and helping people shape the future of their communities and societies. Alice is now Programme Manager Director at CLEAR Global and has written on the importance of material in different formats and languages in humanitarian contexts.

Armindo Ngunga

President, Agência de Desenvolvimento Integrado do Norte (ADIN)

Armindo Saúl Atelela Ngunga, President of the Northern Integrated Development Agency, is a Professor of Linguistics at the Eduardo Mondlane University (UEM) in Mozambique. He served as Secretary of State in Cabo Delgado Province (2020-2021), Vice-Minister of Education and Human Development (2015-2020), the Director of the Centre of African Studies (2007-2015) and the Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at the UEM (1999-2007). He has published many journal articles and book chapters, edited and written books on Grammar and Lexicography of Mozambican languages He has edited a Collection (“As nossas línguas ‘Our languages’) which has published 12 titles since 2009.

Christine Fricke

Global Research Lead, CLEAR Global

Christine leads research at CLEAR Global for designing, coordinating, and delivering research related to language and communication challenges in contexts of humanitarian crisis.

Devota Nuwe

Head of Programs at Refugee Law Project

Devota Nuwe is also a Councillor at the World Refugee Council (WRC). Previously she worked as a consultant with Mindleaps and was the Country Director for HIAS Refugee Trust, Uganda, for seven years, working with urban refugees in Kampala. In addition, she has worked with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights on forced migration issues. She has worked closely with South Sudanese refugees and has also assisted internally displaced persons in Northern Uganda.

Dieng Abdourahmane, PhD

Head of Regional Security Division, ECOWAS Commission

Dieng Abdourahmane, PhD, serves as the Head of the Regional Security Division at the ECOWAS Commission and has been in this position since October 2005, also holding the title of Permanent Secretary of the West African Police Chiefs Committee. His responsibilities include overseeing maritime security, counterterrorism, security sector and defence reform, and combating transnational organized crime, in addition to coordinating the ECOWAS Committee of Chiefs of Security/Intelligence Services.

Jaco du Toit

Chief of the Universal Access to Information Section at the Communication and Information Sector of UNESCO

Jaco du Toit is Chief of the Universal Access to Information Section at the Communication and Information Sector of UNESCO. He previously held the position of Programme Specialist, providing support to the UNESCO Information for All Programme and serving as regional adviser for UNESCO’s Communication and Information Sector in Eastern Africa, Southern Africa and North Africa. He has an academic background in information sciences, political sciences, information for development, communication and telecommunication, media and international relations. He has worked on projects related to knowledge society development, Right to Information laws, disabilities and Information and Communication Technologies and Information and Communication Technologies in Education.

Jacqueline O’Connor

Electoral Advisor (Field Coordination) with the UN in Somalia

Jacqueline is an accomplished senior manager with 30+ years of experience serving in international development roles in Africa, Asia, and North America. She has led conflict prevention, stabilization and democratic governance efforts, emergency responses, and other critical initiatives, managing project portfolios of up to $60M. Jacqueline specializes in peacebuilding and stabilization, having worked in fragile states such as East Timor, Burundi, Haiti, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. She was formerly Head of Office for the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), she is currently Electoral Advisor (Field Coordination) for the UN Transitional Assistance Mission in Somalia.

James Tai Munyagara

Chief Executive Officer at Coalition pour la Paix – C4Peace

James is Chief Executive Officer at the Coalition des Volontaires pour la Paix et le Développement (CVPD), which tackles persistent community and inter-ethnic conflicts in North Kivu, DR Congo. Previously James was based at the United Nations Mission for the Stabilisation of Congo. He has over 10 years of progressive experience augmented by a strong University background in Economics, Human Resources, Financial Management, and Business Administration.

Julia Stanyard

Senior Analyst, Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime

Julia Stanyard is a Senior Analyst working on the Global Initiative’s Organised Crime Observatory for East and Southern Africa. She works on editing the Risk Bulletin of Illicit Economies in East and Southern Africa, a monthly publication monitoring emerging organised crime trends in the region and is currently researching drug trafficking and maritime trafficking through the Indian Ocean Island states. Her previous research has focussed on trafficking in cultural property, with a particular focus on West Africa, as well as research projects focussing on drug trafficking and the UN response to organised crime. Julia has also contributed to writing about the importance of tackling inequality in Mozambique’s peace efforts.

Lucy Daxbacher

Head of Mission to the Republic of Uganda, Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD)

A diplomat with 18 years’ experience working on Governance, Migration, Peace, Security and Stability (PSS), Human Rights Protection and Development in fragile, conflict and post conflict societies in West Africa, East Africa and the Horn of Africa. She has experience of working with CSOs, governments, inter-governmental bodies and bilateral donors.

Mark Bowden CMG

United Nations, Senior Research Associate, ODI Global

Mark has worked in the humanitarian sector for over 30 years in a career spanning work with INGOs, the UK Government and the United Nations. In the UN he served as the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary General for Afghanistan and as the UN Resident Coordinator, Humanitarian Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in charge of coordination of the UN System activities, humanitarian disaster management and development coordination. He served in Afghanistan between 2012 and 2017. From April 2008 to November 2012, Mark was the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, Designated Official and UNDP Resident Representative for Somalia, and was previously assigned as the Director of Civil Affairs in the UN Mission in Sudan. From 2001 to 2005 he was extensively involved in the design of humanitarian reforms as the Chief of the Policy Development and Studies Branch in the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Mark van Dorp

Associate at LSE IDEAS, ODI Global Research Associate, founder of Bureau Van Dorp

Mark has worked worldwide in many fragile settings, including Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Sudan, Sudan, Colombia, Iraq, Lebanon and Pakistan. Over the last 15 years, Mark has focused on action-oriented research and consultancy work on how to strengthen investors and companies’ strategies and operational capacity to work in a responsible way in fragile settings, as well as to improve value chains and support SMEs, with the ultimate goal to contribute to equitable development and peacebuilding.

Sonia Whitehead

Head of Research, BBC Media Action

Sonia Whitehead leads research for BBC Media Action, working in 30 countries and reaching more than 100 million people each year with media and communication for stronger democracies, a safer, more habitable planet and inclusive societies. Sonia oversees BBC research across Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

Professor Ukoha Ukiwo

Team Leader, Strengthening Peace and Resilience in Nigeria (SPRING) Programme

Ukoha Ukiwo is the Team Leader of the Strengthening Peace and Resilience in Nigeria (SPRING) programme- an initiative of the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). He was technical lead and conflict analyst of the Managing Conflict in Nigeria (MCN) programme, which is funded by the European Union Emergency Trust Fund for Africa between 2017 and 2023. He also served as Programme Manager of the Nigeria Stability and Reconciliation Programme (NSRP) funded by the United Kingdom Department for International Development (DFID) from 2013-2017. Before engagement in peacebuilding programmes, Ukiwo was with the Department of Political and Administrative Studies, University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria.

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