MiVoice

Moremi Initiative for Women’s Leadership in Africa (Moremi Initiative) is pleased to announce its annual call for applications for the 2013 Moremi Leadership Empowerment and Development (MILEAD) Fellows Program.

Get more information here.

We at Moremi Initiative are excited and can’t wait to welcome the 2013 MILEAD Fellows.

We invite you to share this announcment with emerging young African women ages 19 and 25 with the potential, passion and committment to contribute to the positive development and transformation of Africa.

Merci Beaucoup | Asante!!

The Moremi Initiative Team

The first speaker of the day was Comfort Ocran, entrepreneur, businesswoman and inspirational speaker. Her talk was about personal branding and about reputation management. She encouraged the fellows to not think about themselves as people who do just one thing, but as multi-talented individuals, being relevant in as many fields as possible. She emphasized the importance of perception and the power of branding, urging the fellows to be aware of the impact of their appearance, speech and mannerisms on people and how they were perceived.

The next speaker was Yawa Hanson-Quao, the founding director of Leading Ladies’ Network. She took the ladies through the ways to create a Bio and professional CV, showing them ways to establish their expertise, and present an accurate sense of who they are and what their brand is. ‘It is important that we break the mentality that says that we are to be quiet and modest.’ What kind of opportunities do I want to be considered for? Be brief, focus on your main achievements. Your C.V should show personality, and should reflect the real you. The test for a ac.v is if a 5 year old can read it. Tailor your bio to your reader and to the outcome you want. Always have a recent copy of a CV. Update it all the time, and email it to yourself, so you can store it digitally

The final speaker, Jemima Anderson, who talked on public speaking and ways to overcome the fear of it.

This entry was also written by Jama, and it’s about their trip on Saturday.

Our first stop was the Kakum National Park, 30km north of Cape Coast. The entire area is covered with tropical rain forest and is famous for its long series of hanging bridges, better known as the Canopy Walkway. This walkway has its highest point at 40m above the ground and the 7 bridges add up to a distance of 330m. Having read blog reports from the previous MILEAD groups, I’d been dreading this walk, due mainly to my fear of heights. However, the excitement from the rest of the ladies and the sudden urge to face my fears eased the tension in my chest. At one of the stores around the reception area, I bought a shirt that had ‘I Survived The Walk’ printed at the back. This served as my motivation as I promised myself I’d only wear it when I get to the final landing. After a rather light breakfast of Swiss rolls and some pie, we set out with the guide, through the thick forest. The climb up the steep hill got more difficult with each step and we were out of breath by the time we reached the canopy. After receiving instructions from our guide, we set out on the canopy, in groups of four. I lingered in the background long enough to see the first set reach the first landing. Partially convinced, I set out. The walk was very wobbly at first, but I was consoled by the short length I had to cover to get to the first landing. At some point, my head started spinning and I thought I was going to fall, even though the ropes were high enough to cover my height. I guess that’s what comes with being paranoid. So, I got to the first landing and almost took the left turn, which was going to lead me back to the starting point.

Seeing my colleagues already on the third bridge, however, I headed right. There was no way I was getting myself the reputation of ‘the girl who turned back’. In a short moment, I gave myself one of my infamous lectures and decided to use the walk as a life lesson. I used the final landing as an analogy for the goals I’d set in life and convinced my inner being that it is only through facing my fears and overcoming them that I can achieve my goals. This seemed to work and the walk over the next five bridges was a lot easier. There were rocky moments when the canopy kept swinging and the ladies wouldn’t stop jumping on it, getting me quite jittery. I quickly developed a survival mechanism which involved sticking my nose up in the air like a spoilt princess, looking straight ahead, closing my ears to all sounds and taking quick, short steps.Again, this worked and I marched gracefully on to the final landing. I was excited and realised I truly could achieve anything if only I set my heart and mind to it. The walk over the canopy was a rocky one that tested my faith at some point( recited all the verses of the Quran I know), but it was also one I got to learn a couple of life lessons from and would gladly do again. I later got a certificate for crossing all seven bridges and left the park with my head held high and a proud smile on my face.
Elmina Castle in Cape Coast was the second place we visited. This was used as a slave house during the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade. We had a guided tour of the building, beginning at the museum. Going through the castle was one of the most depressing moments of my day. It reminded me of the Slave House in Goree, Senegal. The Gambia also has a similar house in Juffureh, but I haven’t had the chance to visit it yet. Our guide took us through the various dungeons reserved for specific classes: men , women, children, resisting slaves etc. In one of the dungeons, he switched off the lights and everything went quiet for a moment as we let the reality of the historic happenings in those rooms sink in. By the time we left, my ever faithful tears had already spilled over and I was filled with mixed emotions. We also got to go through the “Door of No Return”, which exists in almost all the slave houses across the Continent. These doors were the same ones the captured slaves walked through as they made their way to the huge ships docked a few miles at sea, ready to transport them to unknown lands. Interestingly, in 1998, the remains of two former slaves were transported from the Caribbean Islands and taken through the door, back into Cape Coast. This symbolic event also involved the inscription “Door of Return” on the opposite side, encouraging people of African origin in the Diaspora to come back and trace their roots. A part of me was angry and engaged violent thoughts during the tour, while another part resolved to do more work on emancipating myself and others from the most dangerous form of slavery: mental slavery. I share these words that resonated deep inside and left me thoughtful throughout the ride to the Anomabo Beach Resort.
At Anomabo, we played games while waiting for lunch, which took a long time to get to us. I had initially received a tip from a few Gambian friends studying in Ghana, to try the famous Banku and Tilapia. My choice was made easy when it popped up in the menu. I share a photo taken after about three ‘fingerfuls‘ of the tasty and filling meal.

Today’s post is from Jama, a fellow from The Gambia. You can check out her blog at http://linguerebi.wordpress.com!

Yesterday, the fellows were blessed to be introduced to Madame Angela Dwamena-Aboagye for two lectures on Gender Roles and Values and Advocacy Skills. Angela is the Founder and Executive Director of Ark Foundation in Ghana. Her organization provides a host of services for the empowerment and advancement of women in Africa.
Her first lecture took us through identifying the differences between gender and sex; the former qualified as ‘socially constructed’ and the latter, ‘biologically defined’. Basically, sex is determined by Nature and one is considered male or female depending on their sex organs. Gender, however, is determined by the society and environment in which we find ourselves. It includes variables identifying differences in roles, responsibilities, opportunities, needs, constraints etc. We looked at and analysed various facets of the gender question including: the distinctive features of Gender, gender roles, gender relations, the relationship between gender and culture, gender bias etc. The lecture was punctuated by the usual questions and contributions from the brilliant fellows and the interaction helped to bring out the best in each of us.
As part of the lecture, each fellow was asked to write one thing they do not like but are forced to do and one thing they would love to do but cannot just because they are female. The ladies talked about various things which resonated, somehow, with everyone else. On the first list, a good number of fellows including yours truly, noted cooking as something they wished they didn’t have to do just because of their sex. Most love to do it when they want to and feel like doing it. In the end we decided to form the Anti-Cooking Coalition. We kid, of course. On the second point, fellows listed things like paying for a date, ability to ask a guy out, propose marriage, drive a taxi, ability to stay away from bras etc. In a nutshell, the exercise helped us to identify the way society affects the various gender roles assigned to the different sexes. Note, however, that there are exceptions in some cases as was seen with the Liberian fellow. She explained how gender roles were almost the opposite in her country where women are expected to drive on their own etc, in contrast to situations in some other countries.
After a short break, we did a short exercise to get us ready for the second lecture. You would think it would be excruciatingly painful to sit through two 2-hour lectures from the same resource person but the case was entirely different for us. The lecture on Advocacy Skills got even more interesting as all the Fellows could contribute actively in the discussion, given the varying levels of experience we all had in the field. We looked at the different types of advocacy, the process steps to ensure effective advocacy, the risks involved, the potential benefits etc. This tied in with the lecture on Effective Communication Skills we’d had the previous day. I got to share my experience advocating with the Tuta Pack Action Group, which aimed to end the indiscriminate sale of alcohol to minors in The Gambia last summer. I explained the path we took and the eventual results attained from the campaign and my chest swelled with pride when the group was applauded by everyone present. Other Fellows got to share their experiences too and we had a Q&A session after the lecture before heading out to lunch.
The third lecture on Leadership Dimensions did not hold and we used the time to do three Fellow presentations. This has been the most emotional moment I’ve had since coming to Ghana. The three ladies talked about themselves, their families, education and the work they were involved in. They also shared personal stories because they felt they had found sisters in all the Fellows and so felt safe to share their experiences. It was one rocky ride and I’m bracing myself for more as everyone else has resolved to open up some more to enable us create a support system for one another . One of the fellows broke into tears as she spoke about her experiences as an immigrant in the United States who felt alienated when she went back to her home country. The room went quiet and the looks on our faces reflected the struggles each one had gone through. In my attempt to encourage her through sharing my story as an immigrant student in Morocco, I also broke down. In our sadness and sudden rush of emotion, we all felt like one and there was a silent resolve to be there for each other. This taught me to respect every person and never try to judge people as we never can tell the battle they are fighting. It was an eye-opener for us all.

Today’s Values

(i) Authenticity
(ii) Integrity
(iii) Faith

Day three began with the each of the fellows sharing their MiLead projects. It was a very good session with brilliant ideas that would go a long way to help their countries. There will be a detailed exposition on each fellow and what she plans to do
After presenting their projects, the fellows were introduced to the skills behind effective communication by Dr Jemima Anderson. She started off with the brilliant quote, by Lee Iacocca, “You can have brilliant ideas but you can’t get them across your ideas wont get you anywhere”. She explained that communication only takes place when there is feedback from the other person. Beyond non-verbal skills, she also challenged the fellows to sharpen their non-verbal communication skills outlining skills such as posture, mannerisms, and manner of dressing.
After dealing with the non-verbal forms of communication, Ms. Anderson moved on to the last, but most ignored form of communication: listening. She talked about the three types of listening, which were:
1. Active listening
Listening for a purpose for understanding with a goal to understand and retain information and it requires a high level of concentration. You are sure that you have listened actively when you provide appropriate feedback
2. Empathic listening
This is a kind of active listening where you try to identify with the person’s situation with this type of listening you are fully involved in the conversation and

3. Critical listening or listening or evaluate
It can be acquired and with this type of listening there is the challenge to analyze and fully understand the sender’s message and with this type of knowledge you must have certain amount of knowledge so you can evaluate

One way to communicate effectively you must be able to identify the type of listening so you are psychologically prepared for what you are listening to.
In concluding, the talk challenged the fellows to know their particular communication skills and to understand those of the people they would be working with.
The next session began with Esi Ansah, and it was on the topic of time management. This was one of the most crucial talks because all the fellows could definitely testify to the abuse of time in their various countries. In beginning her talk, Ms. Ansah outlined the reasons for good time management stating “Nobody wants to follow someone who cannot respect other people’s time’.
She stated that for leadership, it was important to have strong time management skills. The fellows then went through a personal evaluation of their strengths and weaknesses when it came to time management.
In order to understand their time management skills, the fellows also took a test on their personalities: sanguine, choleric, melancholic, and phlegmatic.
In concluding, Ms. Ansah stressed that it was always important to find the balance between being effective and efficient. She concluded by saying ‘It’s important to make sure that you identify the time wasters. Laziness is just as terrible as busyness.”
The fellows were quite excited for their next team-building activity and after Mawuli explained the rules, they broke up into teams and dashed off to exchange their pens for something better. 30 minutes later, the fellows returned with their stores of goodies from the streets. Nana Aba’s team made about 40 cedis from the pen, wile Salma’s brough back a coveted Malt drink and some money.

After sharing their goodies, the fellows headed back to Volta Hall for an amazing dinner.