Dr. Ignatius Emeka Onyekwere is a Nigerian peacebuilding practitioner and policy adviser with over 25 years of experience advancing peace, security, and inclusive governance across West Africa. He holds a PhD in Peace Studies, a Master of Arts in Conflict Resolution, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Research Methods for Social Sciences from the University of Bradford, as well as a Bachelor of Technology in Chemistry from the Federal University of Technology, Owerri. Nigeria. Dr Onyekwere brings strong leadership in managing cross-functional teams and deep technical expertise in peacebuilding, human security analysis, resilience building, conflict early warning and response systems, security sector reform, governance and conflict sensitivity programming. He has worked with a wide range of international organisations and development partners, including the United Nations Development Programme, the European Union, West Africa Network for Peacebuilding, Economic Community of West African States, United Nations Development Programme, United States Agency for International Development, United States Institute of Peace, the African Development Bank, Fund for Peace, and Greenpeace Africa. He has held several high-level advisory roles, including Senior Consultant with the Fund for Peace under a USIP-funded multilateralism project, consultant to the African Development Bank on the Rwanda Vulnerability and Resilience Assessment, and Senior Consultant with Fragile and Conflict-Affected States (FCS Impact), Netherlands, where he provided technical advisory on counterterrorism and peacebuilding. He also served as Conflict Sensitivity Advisor for the Global Affairs Canada Field Support Services Project in Nigeria.
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Dr. Olajumoke Ganiyat Jenyo is a seasoned development and security professional with over 12 years of progressive experience in peace support operations (PSO), gender mainstreaming, humanitarian affairs, migration, and socio-economic development. Her expertise lies at the intersection of policy, training, and operational delivery, with particular focus on gender in PSO and the civilian dimension of peace support operations, including protection of civilians, gender-responsive programming, and multi-stakeholder coordination in complex mission environments. She is a Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Strategic Research and Studies at the National Defence College (NDC), Nigeria, where she began her career in 2014 as an Assistant Research Fellow in the Department of Conflict, Peacekeeping and Humanitarian Studies (DCPHS) and rose through the ranks to her current position. She served as Head of the Department from September 2022 to December 2025, providing strategic leadership for the design and delivery of academic module 8 (the Peace Support Operations Module) for NDC Course Participant Courses 31, 32 and 33, and coordinating high-level trainings, simulations, and policy-oriented engagements for senior military and civilian participants. In December 2025, she was appointed Training Coordinator at the NDC, with responsibility for overseeing institutional training programmes and strengthening capacity development delivery. Dr. Olajumoke has administered and facilitated several high-level courses and programmes. Notably, she coordinated the Abridged ECOWAS Senior Mission Leaders Course (February 2026) and has led and contributed to multiple regional and institutional trainings on peace support operations, protection of civilians, gender in security operations, and integrated mission planning. She also led the NDC team to facilitate the Peace Support Operations training package at the Naval War College Nigeria for Courses 5, 6, and 7, further strengthening joint operational capacity and inter-institutional collaboration.