Yawa Hansen-Quao

"I believe that if we unlock the leadership potential of African women and girls,we can change them into compassionate change makers who will improve not only their circumstances but the circumstances of others."

"Because of the success of these training programs,I now serve as a leadership consultant to UN women working currently with South Sudan office to design leadership curricula to economically empower women and raise them as leaders in peace Building."

"“First, you must never let laughter stop you… People will always have opinions of what you do and who you are, but you can’t let their opinions and their laughter stop you… Second, don’t let people steal your voice. Your voice is your power.”"

"“You cannot be your best self by yourself. None of us was created to be an island. You need those circles: who’s behind you, who’s with you, who’s ahead of you. You need to seek out mentors, coaches, and counsellors, and don’t be afraid to invest in yourself.”"

"“I saw a platform that I felt I could lead, and I went with everything that I had… I had been on this journey to stop being afraid of the things I was innately attracted to.”"

"“For a lot of women, as we advance in leadership, we become so isolated and there’s no one to bounce anything off… No matter how rough the journey is, if you’re building your relationships with people behind you, with you, and ahead of you, then you’re not isolating yourself and you’ll have enough people around you to give you what you need.”"

"“I’m not sure that any continent feels ready for women that are fearless. I’m not sure that we need people to be ready. I think that you show up. The more fearless women that emerge, the more we normalize ourselves.”"