Balkissa Harouna Brah
As a Program Advisor for the Girls First Fund’s work in Niger, Balkissa has a deep desire to be innovative and support community-driven organizations in their efforts to end child marriage. She participated in the Girls Not Brides convening in June 2018 in Kuala Lumpur, and she is currently writing a brief on the current state of child marriage in Niger.
Most recently, Balkissa worked on the Sarraounia Project, supported by the Belgian Development Agency, to implement a new methodology and relationship-based awareness-raising approach. The project aimed to change social norms, reduce child marriage, and establish importance for girls’ educational success.
Balkissa was one of 27 prize winners of the 2017 session of The Sahel Leadership Program, led by the Oasis Initiative from the Berkeley University.
Balkissa recently graduated from the International Graduate Institute of Geneva with a Certificate of Advanced Studies in Gender and Development. She has an M.S. from Ecole des Hautes Commerciales (HEC), University of Montreal, in International Management, and a B.A. from HEC, University of Montreal, in Business Administration.