Mediators

Claudia Maffettone is the Track II Mediation Program Manager at Search for Common Ground. She has led over 35 dialogue initiatives in support of US-Iran and US-Russian relations, the Syrian peace process, demining in Libya, and of broader inclusion in peace processes. She is an advocate for the advancement of the practice of mediation and leads an international consortium to support African insider mediators and their engagement in high-level processes. She is an experienced mediator, trained at the US Institute of Peace, PATRIR, Harvard Law School, and the New York City Bar. Previously, Claudia worked at Soliya, a pioneering organization in the field of virtual exchange and intercultural dialogue, advancing partnerships with educational institutions, NGOs and CSOs in the MENA Region, Asia, Europe, and North America. Claudia holds a BA in International Relations and Diplomacy from the Universita’ degli Studi di Napoli ‘L’Orientale’, in Italy, and a MA Conflict Resolution from the University of Bradford in the UK, where is studied as a Rotary Peace Fellow. Through her work, Claudia has had the opportunity to learn that while only a small number of women are mediators, signatories or negotiators in peace processes, the engagement of women in mediation makes peace agreements all the more likely to succeed.  Thus she is eager to ensure those numbers increase and that the women at the table may be equipped with the best tools to make a meaningful difference and increase the sustainability of peace agreements.

Esraa Saied is a peace and development consultant with extensive experience working with several international and regional organisations. Prior to that, she was a program manager for Peacemaking, Peacebuilding and Women Peace and Security (WPS) at the Cairo International Center for Conflict Resolution, Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding (CCCPA). She is also the former Secretariat of the International Association of Peacekeeping Centers (IAPTC).

Prior to joining CCCPA, she was a training manager at Sutherland Global Services for five years. She served in different duty stations including New York, Louisiana, Manila and Cairo.

She worked at CCCPA from 2014 to 2020, and her responsibilities included managing all capacity building and research activities in the areas of peacemaking, peacebuilding and WPS. She took part in developing many of CCCPA’s training manuals, including (Conflict Analysis, Dialogue, Negotiation and Mediation, Women Empowerment in Peace Processes, Preventing Sexual Exploitation and Abuse). She was also in charge of implementing all pre-deployment trainings conducted to the Egyptian peacekeepers. She has coordinated several high-level workshops in partnership with the African Union and United Nations (in NY, Addis and Cairo).

Prior to joining CCCPA, she was a training manager at Sutherland Global Services for five years. She served in different duty stations including New York, Louisiana, Manila and Cairo.

She holds a Master’s degree in Peace and Conflict Studies from the University of St. Andrews (UK, 2018). Her thesis focused on Methodologies of Evaluating UN Peace Operations. She holds a BA in Political Science from the Cairo University, 2009.

She joined the network because of her belief in the significant importance of women empowerment and the dire need for their inclusion in peace and development processes.

Hafida Benchehida, Senator of Algeria, is an active member of several networks. She is a founding member of the Arab Women Parliamentarian for Parity and Equality for which she is in charge of international relations; and of the Mediterranean Women Mediators Network. She is also a member of the International Civil Action Network for women rights, peace and security (ICAN) and of the Women Alliance for Security Leadership (WASL). As a Parliamentarian, she was deputy chair of the Legal Affairs and Human Rights Committee of the Senate, and also member of the Foreign Affairs Committee and of the political Committee of the Parliamentarian Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean, in charge of Human Rights and security issues. Additionally, during her career as an international interpreter she attended major international conferences including the Non Aligned Summit, G77 or G8 summits, OPEC or AU, IMF or UNEP/UNIDO focusing on numerous international issues. Her engagement in mediation stems from her participation in the UNWomen mission in Libya to meet local women parliamentarians; where she further acknowledged the need for dialogue and acceptance of a different position, opinions, approaches. She has also attended 2 mediation trainings with CITPAX Toledo Center in Spain for which she is now also an advisor. Her main interest is the role of women in preventing violent extremism and de-radicalization, especially in the Maghreb and Sahel and women Morchidates with special religious training to offer a counter narrative to potential radicalized youth.

Karima Megtef is a doctoral student, teacher, researcher, and gender and radicalization expert. Her commitment to the Mediterranean Women Mediators Network is to raise her voice to promote peace and women’s empowerment. As a victim of Terrorism (the Black Decade when 10 members of her family were killed) it is a question of honouring the memory of her 6 sisters kidnapped by terrorists and those of all the victims by bringing their stories to life and share her experience of reconstruction and mourning.

She is a founding member of the OAF (Algerian Observatory for Women) and a member of the ONVT (national organization of victims of terrorism).  Former executive in charge of study and synthesis, she held the position of central director in charge of the status of women. As a member of ANMJA (National Association of Algerian Judicial Mediators) she is in charge of communication and cooperation. Ms. Megtef is an active member of many networks and commissions on peace promotion, fight against violence, extremism, and radicalisation at both national and regional level. She provides consultancy for the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development). As a gender equality and women’s rights activist, she has attended the Seminar of Panafrican Network of the Wise in Algeria on the occasion of the establishment of the African Network of Women Mediators FemWise-Africa.