“Women have more concern for human life, empathy and the ability to work better with other people than men – they are also equal in every way when it comes to professionalism and performance.”
It was during the Clinton Global Initiative’s 2025 conference that I had the privilege of hearing these words first-hand from Ellen Johnson Sirleaf – the world’s first elected Black female president, former leader of Liberia, and Africa’s first elected female head of state.
I was deeply honoured to sit down with Madam Johnson Sirleaf in person after the conference. At 87, she remains radiant with purpose and energy. In our humbling conversation, she spoke with conviction about her beloved Liberia and her lifelong mission to build a generation of African women leaders who will stand tall and lead with strength, empathy and integrity.
The Value of Equality
Mandeep Rai
Though the glass ceiling for women remains a global reality, Madam Sirleaf’s words resonate powerfully across the developing world, where generations of women have struggled for freedom, recognition, and equal opportunity. She stands uniquely positioned as a trailblazer who shattered barriers and continues to use her platform to advocate for gender equity and leadership grounded in values.
Through the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Presidential Center for Women and Development, she is now working tirelessly to nurture a pipeline of African women in public leadership – those who have already made their mark and are ready to rise even higher. “I help them stand on my shoulders just as I stood on the shoulders of women leaders who came before me,” she tells the conference audience.
Later, when I ask how we can create an equal platform for women, her answer is both practical and profound.
“Create a place where women can convene to exchange ideas, re-energise strategies, learn from one another, become educated – to show the lifestyles of women in African countries who have made a difference by what they do, what they have done,” she told me.
“This will be a learning place, an interactive one – where when they leave they are ready to take leadership at higher levels and for transformation.”
