Former President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, a Nobel laureate and the first elected female president on the African continent, declared that among her top priorities after leaving office was to support other women to ascend to the highest level of public leadership.
With backing from Big Win, and in conjunction with 2020 International Women’s Day, President Sirleaf and the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Presidential Center for Women and Development convened the first cohort of Amujae leaders and formally launched the Amujae Initiative to inspire and prepare women to unapologetically take up roles in the highest echelons of public leadership, and to bring other women along.
‘Amujae’ means ‘we are going up’ in Kru, a Liberian language, and the program aims to shift the landscape for women in public leadership in Africa, moving from a culture of tokenism to one that truly values women leaders.
The core of the program revolves around the selection and convening of highly accomplished women from across the continent with demonstrated track records of leadership. These aspiring candidates participate in a series of Amujae forums in which women who have walked in their shoes help prepare them for the rigorous challenge of running for the highest offices in their countries, cities, and regions, as well as in international organizations. The Amujae Initiative also aims to be a thought leader, shifting the landscape around women’s leadership and telling the stories of African women leaders’ success and challenges.
