Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf to speak at leadership conference in Lagos

Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, former president of Liberia, will deliver the keynote speech at Women in Successful Careers, (WISCAR) 2018 annual leadership and mentoring conference.

Themed “Enriching Lives by Telling Our Own Stories”, the conference is scheduled to hold on November 24 at the MUSON Center, Onikan, Lagos state.

WISCAR is a non-profit 12-month structured mentoring programme focused on empowering and developing professional women in diverse careers in the formal & informal economy to contribute to nation-building in Nigeria.

Speaking about the conference, Amina Oyagboka, founder of WISCAR said: “This year, we have carefully selected a theme that builds on our core focus on mentorship.

“The mentor is a storyteller, one who draws on her own life experience as tools and signposts to provide guidance on what to do, what to avoid doing, and ways to do it successfully.

“We have invited President Johnson to share her wealth of experience in governance, mentorship, empowerment and nation building.

“In many parts of West Africa, the Griot is an oral historian, a repository of oral traditions and communal achievements. President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf’s role as Keynote Speaker is to be the “Griot” of our political advancement.

“We expect the conference to spur change in women and for women, to improve the level of participation and contribution of 50% of our population to the extent required for our nation to become a first world country.

Fabia Ogunmekan, WISCAR’s executive secretary, said: “Recommendations from the conference will be published in a communiqué to drive the required legal, cultural, and policy changes for growth and national development”

The conference will feature a range of additional speakers and panelists to include Nozipho Bardill , international diplomat, Hadiza Bala-Usman, corporate relations specialist; Polly Alakija, managing director of Nigerian Ports Authority; Kofo Akinkugbe, chair, Lagos state council of arts & culture; Aisha Ahmad, chief executive officer of Secure ID Group; Tunji Lardner, deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria.

Ifeoma Fafunwa, Nigerian playwright, will also present thought-provoking interludes in the course of the programme.