Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Quotes

My life was forever transformed when I was given the privilege to serve the people of Liberia – taking on the awesome responsibility of rebuilding a nation nearly destroyed by war and plunder. There was no roadmap for post-conflict transformation. But we knew that we could not let our country slip back into the past. We understood that our greatest responsibility was to keep the peace.

Today, across the globe, women, and also men, from all walks of life are finding the courage to say, loudly and firmly, in a thousand languages, “No more.” They reject mindless violence, and defend the fundamental values of democracy, of open society, of freedom, and of peace.

"One has to look at my life story to see what I've done. I've paid a heavy price that many people don't realize."

It’s a big challenge in whatever country we’re in, because the stereotyping, the obstacles that women face are global… And so the action must be global, it must be collective. And it must be a networking across borders, because our rights are the same, our goals are common.

If I might thus speak to girls and women everywhere, I would issue them this simple invitation: My sisters, my daughters, my friends, find your voices!

Future generations will judge us not by what we say, but what we do.

Increasingly there is recognition that full gender equity will ensure a stronger economy, a more developed nation, a more peaceful nation. And that is why we must continue to work.

Once the glass ceiling has been broken, it can never be put back together, however one would try to do that.

" True reconciliation is not just about forgiving, but also about building a future together".

"I don't face any particular problems as a woman president because I have been a professional for a long time. I keep telling people: I am a technocrat who happens to be a woman."

The size of your dreams must always exceed your current capacity to achieve them. If your dreams do not scare you, they are not big enough.”

I earned my professional credibility a long time ago in a male-dominated world. I just hope that as a woman, I bring in an extra dimension to the job. I bring in the sensitivity of being a woman and a mother, and that means I pay more attention to women, children, and the social needs of society.

“Why are some countries able, despite their very real and serious problems, to press ahead along the road to reconciliation, recovery, and redevelopment while others cannot? These are critical questions for Africa, and their answers are complex and not always clear. Leadership is crucial, of course. Kagame was a strong leader–decisive, focused, disciplined, and honest–and he remains so today. I believe that sometimes people's characters are molded by their environment. Angola, like Liberia, like Sierra Leone, is resource-rich, a natural blessing that sometimes has the sad effect of diminishing the human drive for self-sufficiency, the ability and determination to maximize that which one has. Kagame had nothing. He grew up in a refugee camp, equipped with only his own strength of will and determination to create a better life for himself and his countrymen. ”

Technology has turned our world into one interconnected neighborhood. What happens in one place is seen in every corner, and there has been no better time for the spread of peace, democracy and their attending social justice and fairness for all.

Leadership is never given on a silver platter, one has to earn it.