Executive Director of Human Rights Reporters Ghana (HRRG), Dr. Joseph Kobla Wemakor, will lead a high-level dialogue on press freedom and disability inclusion at the RightsCon 2026 Summit scheduled for May 5–8, 2026, in Lusaka, Zambia.
Dr. Wemakor will convene and facilitate the session as part of the global summit organized by Access Now, an international non-profit based in New York and widely recognized for its work in defending and expanding digital rights.
The featured dialogue, titled “Silenced Twice: Press Freedom and Disability Voices Under Threat in Africa,” will take place on Wednesday, May 6, 2026, from 10:15 a.m. to 11:15 a.m. at the Mulungushi International Conference Centre (Kenneth Kaunda Wing).
RightsCon 2026 which happens to be the fourteenth (14) is expected to attract between 2,500 and 4,000 in-person participants and over 3,000 virtual attendees from more than 150 countries, making it one of the world’s leading global convenings on digital rights, civic space, and inclusive development.
The session will examine growing threats to media freedom and the impact of shrinking civic space on marginalized communities, particularly persons with disabilities.
It will also explore how restrictions on press freedom continue to deepen inequalities, with advocates highlighting what they describe as “double marginalization”—systemic exclusion from public life combined with underrepresentation in media and policy discourse.
Dr. Wemakor’s leadership in convening the session reflects his expanding international profile as a human rights advocate, policy voice, and development communicator.
For over a decade, he has led advocacy efforts in human rights, child protection, gender equality, climate justice, and sustainable development, delivering initiatives aimed at empowering vulnerable and marginalised communities in Ghana and beyond.
He currently serves as a Steering Committee Member of the Ghana Civil Society Organisations Platform on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Convener of its Youth Sub-Platform, representing over 500 civil society organizations nationwide.
On the international stage, Dr. Wemakor has represented Ghana at several high-level forums, including the United Nations High-Level Political Forum, the Pan-African Human Rights and Social Justice Conference, the International Seminar on Enhancing Human Rights Activities in North Korea, the Pan-African Conference on National Security and Human Rights in Nairobi, and the High-Level Africa Civil Society AML/CFT Conference in Botswana.
He has also featured as a speaker at major national and international platforms, including the Farmers Care Programme in Yilo Krobo, the 3rd West Africa Civil Society Week in Accra, and the national conference marking the 80th anniversary of the United Nations in Ghana.
His contributions have earned him multiple awards and recognitions. These include the 5th UN Global Entreps Award for Best International Practice on Sustainability, the Africa Peace Advocate Award (2023), and finalist recognition for the African Human Rights Defenders Shield Award (2023).
He also led HRRG to fourth place in the Africans Rising Activism Award – Movement of the Year category (2020), received the Peace, Security and Education Award at the Africa Early Childhood Education Awards (2021), and was listed among Ghana’s 100 Most Impactful Changemakers (2024).
In journalism, he was named Most Influential Student Media Personnel (2016) by the Ghana Institute of Journalism, won the National Migration Media Award (2018), and received recognition for outstanding SDGs reporting during the GIJ 60th Anniversary Media Contest.
Internationally, he was featured in International Business Woman Magazine (Ukraine) in 2020 and recognised by the World Bank for his contribution to the Equality of Opportunity for Sexual and Gender Minorities (EQOSOGI) report. He also holds a Doctorate in Executive Leadership in Humanity from the International Kingdom University, Florida, USA.
The RightsCon 2026 dialogue will feature a panel of global experts including Dalitso Mvula, an environmental justice advocate from Lusaka; Michael Karanicolas, a UK-based expert on freedom of expression and digital governance; Alina Radu, an award-winning investigative journalist from Moldova; Elizabeth Zulu, a public health expert; and Joseph Mwanza, a disability rights advocate and Programs Officer at Disability Rights Watch.
The session is expected to generate practical recommendations aimed at strengthening inclusive media systems, protecting press freedom, and expanding equitable access to digital and civic spaces.
Dr. Wemakor’s participation further underscores HRRG’s growing global engagement and its continued commitment to amplifying marginalized voices, safeguarding civic space, and advancing inclusive development across Africa and beyond.
