Alphonsus B. M. Gbanie

Alphonsus B. M. Gbanie’s career in human rights and advocacy spans over 42 years, with a background in grassroots peacebuilding, human rights initiatives, peace education, and leadership training programs in Sierra Leone and overseas. He is currently the Executive Secretary of Human Rights Defenders Network-Sierra Leone and Sub-Regional Coordinator of West Africa Human Rights Defenders Network Anglophone Chapter.

He is also a founding member of the Amnesty International Sierra Leone Section and Co-founder of the Sierra Leone Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) Working Group and the Justice and the Peace Commission of the Diocese of Makeni. Alphonsus has worked as a training consultant for Save the Children on child protection for UN Missions in Sierra Leone, Cote d’Ivoire and Lebanon. He has advocated for vulnerable and marginalized groups and continues to fight for human rights defenders at risk, the LGBTQI community, and victims of human rights violations worldwide.