J. Luce Foundation Young Global Leader Address U.N.

Isaac Bayoh of Sierra Leone is one of the Young Global Leaders of the J. Luce Foundation. He recently spent a week with Harlem’s Queen Mother who he met in our office in Roosevelt Island. She has been a friend of ours for many years.

Isaac writes:

I want to make a difference in the lives of young women and the girl child in Sierra Leone. Discrimination has no place in the 21st Century, and I believe every girl has the right to go to school, stay safe from violence, access health services, and fully participate in her community.

Back home in Sierra Leone, equality for women’s rights doesn’t exist. I want to create an organization that can create the possibility of young women and girls to empower themselves in all aspects of life.

I strongly believe that when girls are educated, healthy, and empowered, families are healthier. I think empowered, educated girls have healthier, better educated children and higher wages – helping to break the cycle of poverty.

I also believe that every girl has the right to be in charge of her future and her fate, and I want to create an organization that empowers a collective obligation to protect her rights and promote her well-being.

To reach our world-wide goals, we have to reach girls

I am not only committed to empowering women and girls, but also committed to empowering others who are suppressed, including those whose sexual and gender orientation are not accepted by the cultural majority.

In partnership with Queen Mother, Delois Blakely, and with the help and support of The J. Luce Foundation and the United Nations, I plan on establishing an organization back home in Sierra Leone with the goal of mobilizing resources and partners in support of the implementation of Africa‘s priority programs and projects.

My aspiration is to see a Sierra Leone where development is people-driven by unleashing the potential of its women and youth and utilize the strength and knowledge gained to empower and transform Africa at large.

Originally published in LinkedIn, Oct 21, 2017.