Our Team of Experts

President and Founder, CENGAIN

ASMAU BENZIES LEO

Asmau Benzies Leo holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Anthropology, Master’s degree in Conflict Management and Peace Studies, with speciality in Gender, Conflict and Development and a Certificate in Global Executive Leadership from Howard University in the United States of America and another from Harvard University.
She had been honoured Globally with several Ambassadorial titles for her leadership roles and humanitarian activities among which are Global Goodwill Ambassador for Peace and Humanity, an Ambassador for Female Wave of Change, a Global Youth Ambassador from the National Youth Network of Nigeria. She is a Vital Voices Fellow, a Gender and Social Inclusion Advocate and the President and Founder of the Centre for Nonviolence and Gender Advocacy in Nigeria (CENGAIN), a non-profit NGO that works towards the Achievement of Peace, Gender Equality and Sustainable Development.
She was among a group of young persons who struggled for the return of Democracy in Nigeria after several years of Military Dictatorship. She was selected among 50 emerging youth leaders in 2002 to serve as the first set of Legislative Interns at the National Assembly (Parliament).
She has worked with the Academia, and have consulted for the World Bank, UN Agencies and Development Partners. 
She was also the Head, Gender and Vulnerable Group Care Unit, with the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) where she worked with Internally Displaced Persons specifically women and Children affected by conflict and disasters. (She is an Advocate for Refugees and Displaced Women).
An International Conference Speaker, a Transformational Leader and a Mentor to many young Nigerians. She is the convener of Peace Hub-Nigeria’ a global campaign on the engagement of young people in building a culture of peace and nonviolence in Nigeria and Women in Public Service Initiatives (WIPSI).
She is Currently a member of the Technical Working Group on the Draft of the Nigerian National Development Plan 2021-2025 and Agenda 2030. Her talk show "Quality Life" is set to break the Airwaves soon.
She is a recipient of many international awards including the GLOBAL PEACE AWARD 2020 for Creative Nonviolence from the Federation for International Gender and Human Rights, USA