Education Edition

At the Akilah Institute, we educate Africa’s female leaders to solve the world’s most pressing challenges, through a lens of opportunity and sustainability. Fortunately, there is no shortage of inspirational African women for them, and the world, to look up to. Be it in education, environment, business, or personal life, there is a wealth of wisdom available to those who will listen.

So with this in mind, the Akilah Blog is happy to introduce a new series, highlighting words of wisdom by African women in a variety of topics! We kickoff, quite naturally, with the field of education!

Executive Director of UN Women: Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka

The importance of a market-relevant education

Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka is Executive Director of UN Women and holds the rank of Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations. Before this, she was the Vice President of her native South Africa, the first woman to hold this role. She also served as South Africa’s Minister of Mining and Energy, two sectors crucial to the country’s development, a job to which she was appointed by Nelson Mandela. In her current role as head of UN Women, she champions the advancement of women’s rights and gender equality across the world. A key element of this is access to market-relevant education, which can lead to jobs for the economies of the future.

“We also have to match the skills with the needs of the economy… I think we are losing the plot because we are continuing to produce the people that are not going to be the drivers of industrialization. So that needs the discipline of both training institutions and policies that drive our people to industrialization.”

Africa’s Female President: Ellen Johnson Sirleaf

The importance of an ethics-based education

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was Africa’s first female president, elected to lead Liberia in 2005 and again in 2011, the same year she won the Nobel Peace Prize for her tireless work towards the empowerment of women and girls. In 2016, she was elected as the Chair of the Economic Community of West African States, making her the first woman to hold the position. Her words of wisdom speak to why an ethics-based education is so important, and why education needs to be about more than just imparting knowledge and skills — it needs to impart values that make society better.

“ As more men become more educated and women get educated, the value system has to be more enhanced and the respect for human dignity and human life is made better.”

Singer and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador: Angélique Kidjo

The importance of an inclusive education

This Beninese singer and songwriter has been hailed as “Africa’s greatest living diva”. She is also a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, a winner of the World Economic Forums Crystal Award and Amnesty International's Ambassador of Conscience Award. She is a contributor to the New York Times and was ranked as one of the world’s most influential women by Forbes. Among the causes she champions is the education of women and girls — and her words of wisdom on the topic remind how it is in all of our interests to ensure education is accessible and universal.

“ Everyone wins when children — and especially girls — have access to education. An educated girl is likely to increase her personal earning potential and prepare herself for a productive and fulfilling life, as well as reduce poverty in the whole community.”

Nobel Peace Prize Winner: Dr. Wangari Muta Maathai

The responsibilities that come with the privilege of gaining an education

Dr. Maathai was the first female professor in her home country of Kenya, and also the first African female recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. Her Greenbelt Movement directly contributed to more than 30 million trees being planted across the world. Among her many words of wisdom, is this reminder of the responsibility that comes with being able to get an education.

“ Those of us who have been privileged to receive education, skills, and experiences and even power must be role models for the next generation of leadership.”

The wise words of these incredible African women point us towards the future of education. An education that is market-relevant, ethics-based, and inclusive, resulting in leaders who know the responsibility that comes from the privilege of having this education.

The Akilah Institute is Rwanda’s only women’s only college. It is here that Africa’s female leaders are educated to solve the world’s most pressing problems, through a lens of sustainability and opportunity. The Akilah Institute is supported by the Akilah Foundation, a registered non-profit in the United States. You can support Akilah by donating here.