"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 technocr… - Ellen Johnson Sirleaf

To girls and women everywhere, I issue a simple invitation. My sisters, my daughters, my friends; find your voice.

"Of course, I am the first democratically elected woman president in Africa, and that raises a lot of expectations. Because I represent the aspirations of women all over Africa, I must succeed for them. I must keep the door open for women's participation in politics at the highest level. That is both humbling and exciting."

My journey was supported by my many teachers and mentors who guided me to a world opened up by the enlightenment of higher education, and which led to my conviction that access to quality education is the social justice issue of our time.