Meet the People
Behind WEN-AfricaWEN-Africa

Fowzia Hassan is a Program Manager at the World Bank Group with more than 28 years of international experience in infrastructure, energy access and development. She currently leads Mission 300, the World Bank Group and African Development Bank initiative to expand electricity access across Sub-Saharan Africa. A strong advocate for women’s economic empowerment, Fowzia led the establishment of WEN-Africa in 2024. Her work brings together governments, utilities, development institutions and the private sector to advance women’s participation, employment and leadership, while ensuring Africa’s energy transformation creates more inclusive opportunities for women and communities.

Meskerem Mulatu Legesse helps build and strengthen the partnerships that connect WEN-Africa’s vision with action across the continent. She has more than 13 years of experience designing and leading gender-responsive programmes, particularly within energy projects in Eastern and Southern Africa.

Her work focuses on practical solutions that expand women’s employment, strengthen their participation in STEM, and embed gender considerations within energy-sector programmes. Before joining the World Bank, Meskerem worked across international NGOs, research institutions, and the private sector, leading gender-equality initiatives in agriculture, education, water and sanitation, business, and entrepreneurship.

She holds a master’s degree in Gender and Development Studies and is a certified business and entrepreneurship training facilitator. The World Bank biography also records her postgraduate study in International Business Management at the University of East London.

Marie-Paule Ngaleu brings more than 15 years of World Bank experience across operations, research, analytical programmes, and knowledge sharing. Her work supports the preparation and implementation of initiatives that create sustainable employment opportunities for women in STEM and strengthen women’s economic empowerment.

Within the African energy sector, Marie-Paule has helped advance gender-sensitive approaches and improve the monitoring of gender-related results. Before joining the World Bank, she served as a Commercial Specialist with the United States Department of Commerce at the US Embassy in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.

She holds master’s degrees in Project Management and Biblioteconomy, as well as graduate certificates in Social Impact Partnership Design from Georgetown University and Social Norms, Social Change from the University of Pennsylvania.

Osman Masood is an energy efficiency, sustainability and communications professional with more than 20 years of international experience across the energy, built environment and development sectors. His work with the World Bank spans energy efficiency, energy access, gender and energy, policy development, stakeholder engagement and capacity building. Within WEN-Africa, Osman supports communications, knowledge sharing, partner engagement and visibility, alongside work on gender data and energy-sector inclusion. He combines technical expertise with practical communication skills, helping translate complex energy, policy and development issues into accessible knowledge, stronger partnerships and meaningful engagement across WEN-Africa’s growing network.

Yukari Otsuka Shibuya brings extensive experience in building regional networks that create meaningful opportunities for women in the energy sector. A Senior Youth and Gender Specialist with the World Bank, she has helped coordinate WePOWER, the professional network advancing women’s employment and leadership across South Asia’s power sector.

Before joining the World Bank, Yukari founded and led a youth empowerment social enterprise in Japan for more than a decade. Its innovative model was subsequently expanded nationwide by the Japanese government. She later served as Executive Director of a JICA-supported women’s economic independence programme in Costa Rica, working to strengthen opportunities for vulnerable women and single mothers.

Her work connects policy with the practical realities women encounter throughout their careers—from accessing STEM education and meaningful internships to returning after maternity leave and progressing into leadership. At WEN-Africa, Yukari contributes valuable experience in partnership building, institutional change, regional knowledge exchange, and the development of professional networks that enable women to grow together.

She holds degrees in Engineering and Computer Science and Media and Governance and is a licensed teacher of engineering.