Joannie Marlene Bewa

Joannie Marlene Bewa is a physician, researcher, and sexual and reproductive health advocate. She was recently named a United Nations Young Leader for the SDGs by the UN Secretary General’s Envoy on Youth to support the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. She founded in Benin Republic, the Young Beninese Leaders Association (YBLA), a youth and women-led organization, which among other achievements empowered and trained more than 10,000 youth, girls, and women through capacity-building, mentoring on sexuality education, reproductive health, leadership, and entrepreneurship and was awarded the First Lady Michelle Obama Young African Women Leaders Grant. Joannie is also a public health researcher at the College of Public Health, University of South Florida and is advancing scientific research for women’s health.

Joannie works to advance women’s rights and health through her many roles and affiliations: board member for Merck for Mothers, Women Deliver Young Leader (Class of 2016), founding member of the UNFPA Youth Panel Benin, and member of the Adolescent and Youth Constituency of the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn, Children’s Health (PMNCH) hosted by the World Health Organization.

Joannie was featured by Melinda Gates’ on her list of six influential women on the topic of global access to contraception in 2016, recently recognized as a Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Goalkeeper and a ONE Campaign Woman of the Year. She supported global advocacy alongside Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on International Women’s Day for a commitment of 650 million dollars for women’s health globally and is one the spokesperson of the ONE Campaign Open Letter for women’s right which reached over 150,000 signatures in few days.