Women’s Month 2018 – African Women in Leadership Organisation

Extraordinary Voices; Fatoumata Ba, Entrepreneur and the Brain behind Jumia Ivory Coast

Fatoumata Ba is an entrepreneur from Senegal who at the young age of 30 has achieved quite a lot. She is one of AWLO’s extraordinary voices and we gain insightful news about Fatoumata and what impact she has made in Africa.

HER STORY

Fatoumata Ba is the brain behind Jumia Ivory Coast an online retail platform supported by Africa Internet Group. She served as founder and CEO of Jumia Ivory Coast then served as the Managing Director, Jumia Nigeria. But before that, Fatoumata worked at Orange for a year in France and later worked as a Senior Consultant in strategy and innovation in Atos. Fatoumata has from a young age shown a creative and innovative mind. At the age of 9, she hacked her father’s computer, created her first email at 11 and built her first website at 16.

She has a master’s degree in Management, Strategy, Marketing and Finance. She was able to not only start Jumia Ivory Coast but also turn it into a successful venture which started with 13 employees in 2013 to more than 300 in 2015. She was able to turn it into the fastest growing e-commerce site with over 500,000 monthly site visitors and selling over 50,000 products.

Fatoumata was able to partner with over 30,000 vendors like Apple, L’Oréal and New Look. She is a member of Jumia Executive Committee. She not only founded Jumia Ivory Coast but is also the brain behind the Rocket Internet. The Rocket internet is the largest, fastest and most successful online venture builder. Rocket internet has built over 100 companies in about 43 countries.

Fatoumata’s successful career hasn’t gone unnoticed. She has been featured by CNN and listed by Forbes in Forbes Africa 30 entrepreneurs Under 30. She has also been awarded Choiseul 100 Africa Economic Leaders of Tomorrow. She is passionate about women’s entrepreneurship & empowerment, as well as tackling health and education issues through technology in Africa.

Fatoumata is an inspiration to young women to realize that you can make global impact even at a young age if only you put your mind and hard work into it.

She is one of the 30 Extraordinary Voices featured in the Women’s Month Series by AWLO. Click on your favorite social media button below to share if you have been inspired by Fatoumata Ba.

Extraordinary Voices, Leadership Blog

Extraordinary Voices: Jacqueline Ntuyabaliwe;The Queen of Furniture

Jacqueline Ntuyabaliwe, born 6^th of December, 1978 is a Tanzanian entrepreneur who is paving the way for herself in the furniture industry. She is one of AWLO’s extraordinary voices and we look at how she has been able to create a name for herself in an industry that is thought to be dominated by only men.

HER STORY

Jacqueline Ntuyabaliwe is an interior designer and the founder and principal designer of Molocaho by Amorette, a furniture company that designs and manufactures quality made furniture. Jacqueline highlights how she has always loved designing and creating. She cites how even at a young age, she was always drawing and sketching things;

“I’m a creative at heart. For as long as I can remember, I have had a passion for interior and furniture design, fine art and fashion – and I have been an ardent student of design trends and history. As a kid, I was always drawing and sketching things. It’s one of the things I enjoyed doing the most.”

But of course, she wasn’t always into furniture design and manufacturing. She had a musical career and was also one-time Miss Tanzania. She highlights how when her musical career was at a standstill she decided to move forward and take a step towards her passion. She then eventually went to school in the UK to hone her creative skill.

Jacqueline has always loved furniture and could always been seen sketching furniture. She explains how she believes that an individual’s choice of furniture tells a lot about who that person is;

“I love furniture, maybe it’s because of my work in interior design, but also because I believe a person’s furniture tells a lot about who they are… “

She also talks about how she used to only sketch furniture just for the sake of it and also highlights her husband as her biggest supporter who pushed her to take her creativity more seriously and make something out of it;

“…At first, I would just sketch furniture ideas for the sake of it, but quite often, my husband would see some of my sketches and complement me. He’d say I was wasting a gift. He always asked me to take my artistry more seriously and create a company out of it.”

Her company has been able to make use of traditional craft techniques with a contemporary twist to create innovative and challenging pieces of furniture which are usually simple yet beautiful and profound. Her hopes for Molocaho is to make it a globally known company;

“Our plan is to build a globally-recognizable furniture brand right from Tanzania. It’ll definitely take some time to get there, but we are resolute”

EMPOWERING LOCAL ARTISTS

While she is designing and making furniture, Jacqueline recognizes the need to give back to the society and in this effect, she set up a mentorship program for the artisan community in Tanzania through her interior design company- Amorette. The mentorship program involves exposing the local artists to international workmanship by putting the trainees under the supervision of internationally recognized crafts persons. Its objective is to transfer technology and knowledge to the artists.

ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL CAUSE

Her company is also geared towards protecting and conserving the environment. Hence, Molocaho’s processes are geared towards reducing consumption and avoiding waste. The company reuses wood from various sources, recycles, and actively supports tree planting initiatives across Tanzania;

[Tweet “At the end of the day, businesses must not only be commercially viable, they must also be socially responsible to the communities in which they do business @JNtuyabaliwe”]

” At the end of the day, businesses must not only be commercially viable, they must also be socially responsible to the communities in which they do business”

Jacqueline isn’t just invested in the go green initiative, she is also the founder of the Dr Ntuyabaliwe foundation which is a charity organization that provides books and set up libraries for local primary schools. Jacqueline is a model of inspiration as she shows you can create and make a name for yourself in an industry that undermines women. As to her company and her future plans for it she says humorously in an interview;

“We’ve only just begun, but we’re going to build this baby into an empire someday. Just watch”

She is one of the 30 Extraordinary Voices featured in the Women’s Month Series by AWLO. Click on your favorite social media button below to share if you have been inspired by Jacqueline Ntuyabaliwe.

Extraordinary Voices, Leadership Blog

Extraordinary Voices: Selassie Atadika; Africa’s Innovative Chef

Selassie Atakida is a Ghanaian culinary chef who has made waves in the world of fine cuisine. She is one of our extraordinary voices in this month. One thing that is very noticeable in our extraordinary series is how these women have been able to make impact in their various professions and create a niche for themselves. We explore how Selassie has made a name for herself by mastering the art of cooking.

HER STORY

Selassie Atadika has always been interested in cooking since she was about four or five years old and it is pretty much not a surprise to anyone that she is invested in the art of food. But it’s quite shocking to know that she wasn’t always a chef. Selassie dreamt of going to culinary school but alas, due to objections from her father, she ended up in a successful career with the United Nations. Even at that, she never stopped cooking. She never forgot her passion. She says;

“But I still kept cooking,”

Selassie’s career in the United Nations first started with her working as a civilian in UN peace keeping missions in Angola and Kosovo before she eventually started work with the UNICEF on humanitarian projects all over Africa. She cites how her career with the UN gave her the opportunity to experience the different traditional foods in different countries in Africa;

“I would explore the local cuisine and then try to figure out how those ingredients could be played around with,” she says.

Selassie eventually resigned from the UN to focus on her cooking. She and two of her friends started a pop-up restaurant in Dakar, Senegal where they served food once a month at different locations in the city.

She founded the Midunu- a company with its name derived from the Ewe language which means “let us eat.” The company is centered on catering for private parties and corporate events, but the company also throws monthly nomadic dinners in different locations in Accra. She speaks on how she wants the world to see African food and for the world to take notice of the beauty that is African cuisine. She highlights how with globalization; a lot of African cuisine is being forgotten;

“With globalization and urbanization, a lot of things are getting lost”

[Tweet ““Beyond celebrating Africa’s culinary heritage, I want to look at preserving Africa’s culinary heritage””]

She uses ingredients from different places in Africa to celebrate our diverse culinary heritage and also to preserve it;

“Beyond celebrating Africa’s culinary heritage, I want to look at preserving Africa’s culinary heritage”

She not only cooks but uses the different spices in Africa to produce chocolate. She says it’s like telling the story in a simple way when people taste chocolate and taste a spice or flavor that is African. A connection of people and culture;

“It’s telling the African story through chocolate”

She is one of the 30 Extraordinary Voices featured in the Women’s Month Series by AWLO. Click on your favorite social media button below to share if you have been inspired by Selassie Atadika.

Extraordinary Voices, Leadership Blog

Extraordinary Voices: Meet Angelique Kidjo; Voice of Africa’s music

One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain
-Bob Marley

Today in our series of Extraordinary Voices, AWLO celebrates Angélique Kidjo; an amazing amazon whose music and blends of African style speaks volume in Africa and the world.

QUEEN OF AFRICAN MUSIC

Angelique Kidjo is a powerful, African singer and tireless performer, Angelique Kidjo has been one of the most successful performers to emerge on world music stages in the 1990s and 2000s. Her music not only draws from African traditions but also interprets the ways those traditions developed after Africans were seized and taken to the New World. Thus elements of American soul, funk, rap, and jazz, Brazilian samba, Jamaican reggae, and Cuban and Puerto Rican salsa all show up on her recordings, along with various African styles. She evolved into one of the international music scene’s most popular concert attractions, she accumulated a large fan base that happily came on stage and danced with her.

[Tweet “Voodoo is seen as something negative, but it’s not. It’s based on anima and on respect for a human being’s life.””]

EARLY LIFE AND CAREER

Angelique Kidjo is a native of Benin, on Africa’s Atlantic coast adjacent to Nigeria. She was born in the coastal city of Ouidah on July 14th, 1960, to government postal official Franck Kidjo (an enthusiastic photographer and banjo player on the side) and his choreographer wife Yvonne. Her parents were her first influence in music with whom she enjoyed great support in her musical career.

Among her eight siblings were several brothers who started a band when she was young, inspired by James Brown and other American stars who flooded Benin’s airwaves. Kidjo was musically eclectic from the start, listening avidly to juju sounds from neighboring Nigeria, to pop music from other African countries, to Cuban salsa music.

FROM AFRICA TO THE WORLD

Kidjo made her stage debut at age six with her mother’s dance troupe, and in the late 1970s she formed a band of her own and recorded an album that featured a cover version of a song by one ofher idols, South African singer Miriam Makeba. In 1980, however, Kidjo found her musical activities restricted by a New Leftist regime that took power in Benin and tried to force her to record political anthems. Kidjo fled to Paris in 1983 with the intent of studying law there and becoming a human rights lawyer. But of course her passion has always been music and she made the decision to touch people with her music.

Her partner in this enterprise was French bassist and composer Jean Hebrail, whom Kidjo married and with whom she has written much of her music; the pair has a daughter, Naima Laura, born in 1993. For several years Kidjo played in a French African jazz band called Pili Pili, led by pianist Jasper van t’Hof, but in 1989 she struck out on her own, forming a band and releasing the album Parakou. That debut had its intended effect: it attracted the attention of the biggest name in world music at the time, Chris Blackwell of Britain’s Island Records. He signed Kidjo to the label’s Mango subdivision, and her second album, Logozo, was released in 1991.

That album gained Kidjo a faithful core of fans that could be counted on to attend her highly participatory live shows. Her unusual image contributed to her success; in place of the expansive look of other African female vocalists, Kidjo sported a lean dancer’s body clad in denim pants, and she cut her hair very close to her head.

HIGHLIGHTS ON KIDJO

Angelique Kidjo is a Grammy Award winning singer, songwriter, human rights and gender activist.

She is a powerful singer and tireless performer. Time magazine has called her “Africa’s premier diva”

Angelique Kidjo has been one of the most successful performers to emerge on world music stages in the 1990s and 2000s. She draws her musical inspiration from African traditions but not only that, she also interprets them to emphasize on the development of Africa after the years of slavery.

Kidjo is fluent in Fon, French, Yorùbá and English, and sings in all four languages.

Kidjo has been a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador since 2002. She is the recipient of the 2015 Crystal Award given by the World Economic Forum of Davos in Switzerland and has received the Ambassador of Conscience Award from Amnesty International in 2016.

Kidjo founded The Batonga Foundation, which gives support to girls in secondary school and higher education so that they can take the lead in changing Africa.

She is one of the 30 Extraordinary Voices featured in the Women’s Month Series by AWLO. Click on your favorite social media button below to share if you have been inspired by Angelique Kidjo.

Extraordinary Voices

Extraordinary Voices: Liya Kebede; Advocating for Maternal health and African Designs

Liya Kebede was born on the 1^st of March, 1978 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She is a model, maternal health advocate, clothing designer and actress. Liya has used her fame from modeling and acting to make progress and bring about awareness to her cause. AWLO recognizes her as one of our extraordinary voices in our women’s month series. Here is why we think she’s outstanding

HER FIGHT FOR MATERNAL HEALTH CARE

Liya Kebede is at the forefront of advancing maternal health care in her country; Ethiopia and also in most African countries. She says her passion began when she became a mother and realized that most women in her country and some underdeveloped parts of Africa die during child birth and this is because they do not have access to basic health care amenities

“One of the number one killers of women still today is pregnancy and childbirth complications…These are all things that are ninety percent preventable and treatable because really they are dying from things that are very simple, and they are dying because they don’t have access to any kind of basic medical care or trained nurse or caregiver, really…”

In 2005 she was appointed as WHO’s ambassador for maternal newborn and child birth. To further advance her cause, she started the Liya Kebede Foundation now known as the LemLem foundation that same year.

THE LEMLEM FOUNDATION

The Lemlem foundation founded by Liya kebede is aimed at creating awareness and helping the fight to combat maternal mortality. Liya sights in an interview how the issue of maternal health isn’t receiving enough attention, hence the need for the foundation;

“We wanted to focus on raising awareness of the issue because it was an issue that had been going on for so long, but not really getting the attention it deserved…”

The foundation works to promote access to health care and economic opportunities and also supports leading organizations working to reduce maternal and new born deaths in Africa. She has been able to through her foundation train midwives and has set goals to still train midwives across several African countries including Ethiopia, Tanzania, Senegal, South Sudan and Uganda.

SUPPORT FOR AFRICAN DESIGNS

Liya is not only an advocate and model, but she is also a designer with a clothing company. She has used her company to work in collaboration with her foundation to empower women and African artist. All the products which the company offers are hand-made by African artists. She explains in an interview how she was able to create a solution to help women and artists;

“I was walking around the city in Ethiopia and visited all of these incredible weavers who were really struggling to find work or a market for their goods because of Westernization and fast fashion. I just thought this was a feel-good way of creating a market for them, improving their skill, and bringing a new product to the marketplace for the consumer that has a story and more of a 360 product that is also changing the lives of people…”

She not only uses these means to further her cause but also writes for the Huffington Post and others to bring about more exposure on the need for good maternal health care. She continues fighting this cause hoping that one day, African maternal health care will be up to standard

“My aim, during that time and since then, has been to inspire others to feel as passionate about this cause as I do and to lend their support to reach more mums and save more lives.”

She is one of the 30 Extraordinary Voices featured in the Women’s Month Series by AWLO. Click on your favorite social media button below to share if you have been inspired by Liya Kebede.

Extraordinary Voices

Extraordinary Voices: Bukola Elemide a.k.a Asa Found her Voice and Soured

Bukola Elemide was born was born on the 17^th of September, 1982 in Paris. She is a Nigerian French singer, songwriter and recording artiste. Her music is known worldwide and she is one of AWLO’s extraordinary voices and as such, we explore her outstanding journey into the music industry.

THE STORY OF BUKOLA ELEMIDE

Bukola Elemide aka Asa which means ‘Hawk’ in Yoruba was born to Nigerian parents in Paris. When she was two years old they moved back to Nigeria. The only girl out of four children, she was often left alone at home with her brothers, when her parents traveled and that was how she found music. It’s very ironical to think that the very talented Asa was once rejected by choirs because of her low-pitched voice which set her apart;

[Tweet “…People didn’t understand my low-pitched deep voice, the choirs didn’t want anything to do with me. @Asa_official“]

“…People didn’t understand my low-pitched deep voice, the choirs didn’t want anything to do with me. I had to get to church first if I was to have any chance of getting near the mic”

It is often known that when people are made for greatness, they are often set apart because of how different they are from others. Asa went through a stage where she was bullied and often left alone because of how differently she did things;

“I was a tomboy and when I was a teenager I became very shy because people made fun of me … in my own way, I was already attracting attention! I got in the habit of never doing anything like everyone else…”

She cites how her father had a collection of music records with artists like Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklyn, Marvin Gaye, Angelique Kidjo which she grew up listening to and later influenced her musical career;

“My dad had the records of my earliest musical influences. He used them for his work and I loved the way they looked on the album covers. Michael Jackson was a hit as far I was concerned! He danced so well and I loved to dance”

Asa has her style of music going in a different direction from the norm of what Nigerian music is known to be. While she says she doesn’t term her music as it is too limiting. She says that she writes based on how she feels and at the end wants people to be touched by her music and that is exactly what her music does. Nobody can deny the vibes you get when you hear Jailer or Dead again;

“I am not sure I can describe my sound and music. When I write and sing, I just want the music to touch you…”

Asa’s music is timeless and ethereal. Her lyrics are based on her life experiences, her country and life in general. She has a way of drawing people into her music which makes her phenomenal. Asa has shown perseverance in her journey. She inspires people to follow their dreams no matter the struggles and obstacles we face;

[Tweet “Always start a journey with your own self. Forget about the noise and what’s happening – @Asa_official“]

“I went through a lot but I can’t start telling you everything but what I learnt is that you should believe in yourself. Always start a journey with your own self. Forget about the noise and what’s happening, it’s you. And that is the basic truth.”

Bukola Elemide is one of the 30 Extraordinary Voices featured in the Women’s Month Series by AWLO. Click on your favorite social media button below to share if you have been inspired by Bukola Elemide.

Extraordinary Voices

Extraordinary Voices: Esther Mahlangu; Taking African Arts to the World

“….African art like Picasso’s art, is not about describing things but about conveying the idea of things and people…”
-Marilyn Martin

Esther Mahlangu was born on the 11^th of November, 1935 in Middleburg, Mpumalanga, South Africa. She is a painter whose works are recognized internationally and has won several awards. At the age of 83 and settled in her house in South Africa, Esther is still invested in the art that she has always done and loved. She is one of AWLO’s extraordinary voices and we explore her incredible works.

HER STORY

At the age of 9, in accordance with the Ndebele tradition, Esther was taught how to paint by her mother and grandmother. In an interview with SheLeadsAfrica, she speaks on how she was inspired by her mother and grandmother saying; “I was inspired by both women. From as far as I can remember, I followed traditions passed down from my mother and grandmother. I learned traditional Ndebele wall painting and bead-work, as a child that was all I did every day.”

[Tweet “Esther Mahlangu has used traditional painting to become a voice that represents the beauty that is predominant in Africa”]

Esther Mahlangu’s consistency and interest in the traditional paintings of her people has led her to be recognized in the Western World and she has used the traditional painting to become a voice that represents the beauty that is predominant in Africa. In an interview she talks about how African art has influenced the western culture; “There has always been a fascination, demand, and admiration for art from Africa”

Esther’s paintings are a reference to the Ndebele traditions with a modern twist to them. She also in an interview highlights the uniqueness of the Ndebele style; “…the Ndebele style is one of the most significant styles of painting that still resembles original shapes and forms. It is colorful and abstract and lends itself to incorporation into modern design.”

The beauty of her paintings gave her the opportunity to design a BMW car making her the first woman to receive the honor.

[Tweet “Esther Mahlangu’s paintings has given her the opportunity to design a BMW car; making her the first woman to receive the honor.”]

HER HOPE FOR AFRICA

Esther not only paints, but she also has an art school where she teaches on the significance and importance of the Ndebele painting. She does this in order to sustain the cultural heritage of the Ndebele people.

She says in an interview; “I have always had the calling to teach the science and significance of the Ndebele painting, and why we paint. Over the decades it has become my goal to preserve my cultural heritage. I built an art school in the backyard of my home in Mathombothiini (Weltevreden) in the Kwamhlanga district in Mpumalanga Province.”

Her hope is that African art can be taught in formal schools and institutions in South Africa and she is working towards that dream; “…What is mostly important to me is to have formal educational schools and facilities teach African art. That is a dream I am building towards.”

Esther also hopes to transfer her skills to the next generation. She remains one of Africa’s representatives of how some cultures in Africa portray beauty and art which is often times underestimated and shows the world that there is more to Africa than the stereotypes that Africa is known for.

“The legacy I want to leave in this world is the art and crafts that has made me the recognized icon I am today…”

She is one of the 30 Extraordinary Voices featured in the Women’s Month Series by AWLO. Click on your favorite social media button below to share if you have been inspired by Esther Mahlangu.

Extraordinary Voices, Leadership Blog

Extraordinary Voices: Waris Dirie is a Voice Against Female Genital Mutilation

Waris Dirie was born in 1965 at Gallacaio desert, Somalia. She is one of twelve children born to a nomad family. She was a model, currently a writer and a social activist.
Waris’ journey through life has been inspiring. She shows that the leadership journey is sometimes filled with bumps but with determination and courage, you can succeed. Here are things we found about Waris Dirie and how they have made her one of our extraordinary voices.

[Tweet “Waris’ journey through life has been inspiring. She shows that the leadership journey is sometimes filled with bumps but with determination and courage, you can succeed”]

Outstanding Courage

[Tweet “Waris Dirie ran barefooted for several days across the desert to Mogadishu at 13 to avoid her arranged marriage to a man of over 60 years”]

From an early age, she has shown outstanding courage. In an interview, she described herself as being strong-willed and determined and not the type of child her traditional parents wanted.

She showed how courageous and strong willed she was when she ran barefooted for several days across the desert to Mogadishu at 13 to avoid her arranged marriage to a man of over 60 years.

[Tweet “I knew there was so much I could do with my life, but on my terms – @Waris_Dirie”]

In an interview with the guardian she said “I knew [most married women in her community] put up with everything and anything. Any abuse, hopelessness, and I thought, was I here to be used and be abused? I knew there was so much I could do with my life, but on my terms.” The thought of her being more than a child bride pushed her to make the courageous decision to run away from home and become more.

Her fight Against Female Genital Mutilation

At the age of 5, she underwent the gruesome ordeal of female genital mutilation, she was left in a makeshift shelter under a tree for several days to recover. Due to the physical and emotional turmoil she went through after being mutilated, she has spent her time fighting against FGM.

In 1997, she abandoned her modeling job to focus on her work against FGM. She said in an interview with ventures Africa; “…I was meant to survive everything I did so that one day I could speak out about this torture and fight for little girls out there who are not able to fight on their own!” Her fight led her to start the Desert Flower Foundation which advocates for the abolition of FGM. Still in an interview, she highlights; “…No innocent little girl should go through this kind of unnecessary cruel pain.”

She also started a medical centre in Berlin which is solely to offer reconstructive surgery to women who have gone through FGM and even with that, she says; “I don’t want to put too much focus on it, because the whole point is to stop this mutilation in the first place. We don’t have to have special hospitals to reconstruct a God-given thing”

[Tweet “I would like the world to remember me for my fight against FGM and as a survivor who never gave up… – @Waris_Dirie”]

Advocacy Through Writing

Waris is not only an activist against FGM, a former model, but she’s also an author. She has written several books such as Desert Flower, Desert Dawn, Letters to My Mother, Desert Children. Her books highlight her ordeal and also sets out to educate people on the dangers of female genital mutilation to young girls. She hopes that through her books, the world can become aware of the fact that FGM still exist and that thousands of women and girls go through it. Hence, why she said; “ I wanted to reach people through my story; I wanted them to know about the pain and suffering that thousands of girls and women have to go through every day…”

Her journey has not been easy. From a young girl who suffered mutilation, to a teen who for several days had to run barefooted to avoid child marriage, working as a maid, her story is inspiring as the bumps didn’t stop her from doing what she says is her mission. About bringing an end to FGM, she has this to say; “I can’t turn back, not now I’m almost there. You just have to keep going until one day it will come to an end.”

She also inspires us to never give up on our dreams “I would like the world to remember me for my fight against FGM and for the women of Africa, and then I would like to be remembered as a survivor who never gave up…as I wish the people in this world would never give up on their dreams, their hopes and their life happiness.”

She is one of the 30 Extraordinary Voices featured in the Women’s Month Series by AWLO. Click on your favorite social media button below to share if you have been inspired by Waris Dirie.

Extraordinary Voices

Extraordinary Voices: Sabrina Wanjiku Simader- Kenyan Alpine Skier

Sabrina Wanjiku Simader was born on the 13^th of April, 1998 in Kenya to a Kenyan mother and Austrian father. The 2018 Winter Olympics isn’t the first competitive event she has participated in. In 2016, she represented Kenya in the Winter Youth Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway.

[Tweet “Meet Sabrina Wanjiku Simader- First Kenya Alpine Skier”]

Interesting Facts About Sabrina Wanjiku Simader

Sabrina Wanjiku Simader, was the first female Kenyan athlete at the Winter Olympics. She grew up in Austria where she picked up the sport. Simader started skiing at the age of three.

The 18-year-old Simader was the only African starter in the women’s super-G race at the world ski championship.

Sabrina competes in the more challenging and dangerous speed disciplines, downhill and Super G. Usually, skiers from outside the traditional Alpine skiing nations do not venture beyond the less risky slalom and giant slalom. Through her passion and love for the sport, Sabrina took part in the Super G in St.Moritz. When she turned 13 she won a local championship.

Sabrina carried the Kenyan flag during the opening ceremony of the 2018 winter Olympics at Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium, South Korea.

She is one of the 30 Extraordinary Voices featured in the Women’s Month Series by AWLO. Click on your favorite social media button below to share if you have been inspired by Sabrina Wanjiki Simader.

Leadership Blog

Extraordinary Voices: Proscovia Alengot – Africa’s Youngest Legislator

Proscovia Alengot Oromait was born on the 1^st of January 1993 in Katawaki District, Uganda. She is the second of ten children, a Ugandan politician;where she served as a member of parliament for her district from 2012 -2016.

She is Extraordinary Because:

She set the pace for not just women but young women to realize that you can aspire for greatness even at an early age. We also explore what makes her inspiring.

[Tweet “Proscovia is inspiring because she defied all odds and proved to both young and older women especially young women that age is not a determining factor for leadership”]

A YOUNG WOMAN IN LEADERSHIP

Proscovia has defied all odds and proved to both young and older women especially young women that age is not a determining factor for leadership. After the death of her father at the young age of 19, Proscovia contested in elections to be a member of parliament for the Usuk County, Katakwi District from 2012-2016 in Uganda and won 54.2% of the vote. She became the youngest member of parliament in Uganda and Africa.

Proscovia being sworn in

LEADERSHIP QUALITIES

Proscovia has leadership qualities that make people believe in her enough to elect her. She was termed by her teachers as being determined, organized, creative and respectful. Even when her father was a member of parliament she was his greatest campaigner to the youth. When she openly came out to contest her teacher said; “…. when i heard that she was contesting, i didn’t doubt that she would convince voters.”

Even when she won and faced backlash from older men in the parliament, she still stood tall and didn’t let it scare her. she said in an interview “….I will stand. As Obama said, yes I can. I said, Proscovia, I can”

[Tweet “”It’s just been my dream to become a leader of Uganda. And here I am, the youngest MP, and I’m so proud of what I am.””]

HER BELIEF AND CONFIDENCE IN HERSELF

Her courage and confidence was also a well-known fact amongst family and friends. One of her friends said this about her; “she has a great vision in life. she would say she would be a great lady no matter how many times she failed.” . In an interview with the independent online newspaper she can be quoted “It’s just been my dream to become a leader in Uganda. And here I am, the youngest MP, and I’m so proud of what I am.” This courage and confidence is what we believe helped her achieve this great feat of becoming the youngest member of parliament in Africa. She has shown that with determination and courage, you can achieve your dreams

She is one of the 30 Extraordinary Voices featured in the Women’s Month Series by AWLO. Click on your favorite social media button below to share if you have been inspired by Proscovia Alengot.