women-from-sierra-leone

"These were just displaced kids as a result of the war in the neighborhood, and all I wanted to do was to get these boys off the streets at night, get them at home where they should be, get them off the streets in the morning and during the day, put them in school where they should be."

"David Beckham’s coming to Sierra Leone and these boys meeting him wearing the FC Johansen shirt with a number seven, Beckham, all of that was just an amazing time for us. The kids were amazing and then I realized that, you know what? This is so powerful, we could actually change our story in a big way, in a bigger way."

"For me, it was very obvious that they lived and dreamed for their football, so that was my focus, and this was all I was about."

"It became a big reality,.and I think that was the time it dawned on me that, you know, I think I can actually do something really big for my country through football."

"Everything I have done in the past three and a half decades has been driven and motivated by a humanitarian vision. In the late 90s, I published the first in-flight magazine called Kabo, which promoted the beautiful side of Sierra Leone and was used by the National Tourist Board for promotion. I also initiated the first Women of Excellence Awards to recognize and celebrate women from all walks of life, especially in the aftermath of a bitter civil war which impacted women and children the most."

"I founded the Pink Charity Fund, a breast cancer awareness program providing screening facilities to women with low income."

"Besides,And then came football. Football has always been a part of my background, but projects like the Women of Excellence Awards and the Pink Charity Fund were more visible."

"The FC Johansen story is one of the most powerful and inspirational stories, especially in using football as a tool for change. It involved underprivileged kids from the streets having trials in famous football clubs. This is just a natural progression for me as these initiatives are aligned with my humanitarian vision."

"Football for Change and Reform is no different from all the other projects that I have embarked on. It uses football to empower the girls; it is about rehabilitation, transforming their lives to get them back into society. Through football, we all come together. This is the power of our beautiful game."

"I didn’t know about the political structures.I didn’t know what it was to build a career as a football administrator to becoming an FA president or anything like that, let alone FIFA."

"When the pandemic first started, I was hosting two COVID-focused shows on Facebook and Instagram. I worked around the clock, and whenever I finally stopped for the day, I binge-watched and read more news for hours. During that time, decompressing was really difficult. Once we wrapped the shows at the end of June, I made the decision to be more intentional about maintaining a better balance between work and rest. So now I try to limit how much news I consume. I also decompress by watching other things that don’t weigh as heavily on the heart and mind."

"I’ve been blessed to build the career of my dreams over decades as a journalist — 13 years on air for CNN International, travelling the world to cover global events and interviewing presidents, movie stars and world leaders."

"A brief marriage to a kind man didn’t result in children, and then the year I turned 40, my mum had a catastrophic stroke, leaving me no emotional space to contemplate anything other than caring for her. Six years went by and a few months ago I found myself in a subpar relationship with a man who took about 12 hours to reply to all my texts, among other red flags."

"So, I decided to take control of my life and settle on the bravest and scariest decision I have ever made: to have a baby on my own. I had many long conversations with myself and tried to get to grips with questions about what it would mean to not have the support of a partner, both emotionally and financially. How would I handle society’s questions?"

"If you’d told the 16-year-old me that at 46, I’d be divorced, single and having a baby on my own — by choice! — I’d have shuddered and firmly said “no!"

"My parents are both one of eight children, which tells you how many aunts and uncles and cousins I have, and who, by virtue of their link to me through family, have a "right" over me!"

"I studied engineering because my father and I agreed that my aim to be a singer/dancer/actress could come after I had one degree under my belt."

"Suffice to say, I finished my engineering degree and started working as an engineer in London in 1989, and have done so ever since."

"Fast forward to 2011 and I moved back to Sierra Leone to build the first five-star hotel in the country, with funding raised by Sierra Leoneans and a company, IDEA UK, owned by Sierra Leoneans."

"As a believer in hard hats and lipstick, I hope that everyone will realise that from an early age, we should allow our children (boys and girls) to be the best they can be and not put anyone, especially our girls, in a box."

"Working with young girls from all walks of life, I try to use their own environment to show them how they can start to identify problems and find solutions in their homes, communities and ultimately our country, through engineering."

"Yes, we are mothers, wives, nurses and teachers, but we're also engineers, rocket scientists and neurophysicists."

"I am drawing inspiration from so many different sources right now—from the multiracial crowds that filled the streets after George Floyd’s killing, and the writings of Ta-Nehisi Coates, to the doctors and nurses who are working around the clock to help the sick during this pandemic. To be honest, having spent most of 2020 at home, anyone who is still smiling and maintaining a positive outlook on life is a source of inspiration to me!"

"Nearly 300 schoolgirls were taken by Boko Haram in April 2014. Fifty seven of them escaped in the immediate hours that followed, but 219 disappeared into the forest. Although 107 of those girls are back, 112 still remain unaccounted for. I’m still holding out hope that once this pandemic is behind us, the Nigerian government can be encouraged to resume efforts to track down the missing girls, and do whatever is necessary to bring them home. I hope my book brought to life the resilience of African girls and how determined they are to gain an education, and with that knowledge, I hope it strengthened the resolve of donors to invest in girls’ education—not just in Nigeria, or Africa, but across the entire developing world, where too many girls are still not in school."

"[d]espite these immigrant-specific headlines, many saw the incidents as racially motivated."

"Red is the color of sanctity. It’s the color pure girls will bleed when Elder Durkas tests them."

"They enrich themselves by your suffering—parasites, quite literally draining the blood from you."

"Infinite Wisdoms caution against talking to unmasked women, against even looking at them. They may be demons in disguise."