The First Lady of Sierra Leone, Dr. Fatima Bio on Tuesday 3rd December 2024 commended the Vice Chancellor and Principal of the Milton Margai Technical Education (MMTU), Professor Philip John Kanu for giving her the platform to share knowledge.
She was delivering a lecture as part of the Solade Adams Public Lecture Series on the theme: ‘Women in Leadership in Sierra Leone” Prospects and Challenges” at the Great Hall of the Goderich Campus in Freetown during which she also revealed that she has visited several universities in the world including Harvard where she has delivered lectures.
According to the First Lady, mining companies operating in the country should do more for the people and observed there is no need for African countries to celebrate independence, as they are not free adding that leadership is the decision-making process and that women have been disadvantaged since creation.
Dr. Fatima Bio continued that men only celebrate the birth of a girl because they fathered her, as they prefer boys who are encouraged to participate in sports and other activities while girls cook and do the house chores noting that boys and girls start school together but that girls drop out of school early due to menstruation and pregnancy but that the narrative has changed due to the Free Quality Education and the (STEM) Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics that offer automatic scholarships to girls underscoring that girls are not recognized for their good work and affirmed that it is not a crime to be bore a woman.
She furthered that although women have excelled in the past, society does not fawn at girls getting pregnant now. She cited Madam Yoko, Ella Koblo-Gulama and Umu Hawa Tejan Jalloh, the first female Chief Justice of Sierra Leone as sterling examples that must be emulated recalling that women, like the late First Lady Patricia Kabbah, stood up against the tyrannical rebels during the civil war and advocated for peace.
Unlike in the past, the First Lady went on, there are campaigns promoting women’s human and socio-economic rights and other issues as well as many social media platforms to launch their campaigns, affirmed that a better woman translates to a better husband than a woman who is a liability, that an educated woman knows her worth, underscored the need for girls to go to school stressing that there is no need for families to have many children they cannot take care of and urged parents to spend time with their children.
“If given the opportunity, women can be productive like anything. Women are facing many challenges to attain leadership like cultural and traditional norms, economic, lack of land and loan facilities, especially in the Northeast of the country were female Paramount Chiefs are not elected, the reason government and partners is giving women the opportunity. The number of female Members of the Parliament has increased from 8-42 through the Proportional Representation System of government. Also, 40% of women are now in leadership positions in spite of the many challenges including finance,” she articulated.
The First Lady commended the Mende and Sherbro ethnic groups for electing women Paramount Chiefs informing that several legislative and legal reforms have taken place that are all prospects for women to take leadership positions in government and the decision-making process and appealed to women to register their marriages to inherit their husband’s properties.
She added there is now a level playing field for women and men reiterating that women must use of the opportunity and add value to themselves as all is not lost stressing that they should not be afraid to come forward and speak out and change the narrative.
Concluding, the First Lady asserted that women should champion issues affecting them, as they are resilient.
Earlier, the Vice Chancellor and Principal of MMTU, Professor Philip John Kanu welcomed all at the ceremony while the question and answer session climaxed the well-attended event.
A student, Zainab Saffa, rendered the vote of thanks.
