On Gender, Media, and Women Leaders in Sierra Leone

Williette James is head of the Mass Communications department at Fourah Bay College, University of Sierra Leone. Recently, she introduced the Women's Leadership Initiative. The group fights to nurture women and university students like me, Inyilla Conteh of Young Life in Freetown, in diverse ways.


"The initiative is to help strengthen the minds of young women, who feel their views and opinions are never important in the gatherings they attend," she said. "We are going to ensure that we expose them to media and other opportunities by enabling them to master the art of public speaking. Most women are shy to speak in public; even the educated ones, and we aim to bridge that gap because bold women always stand a chance of blunting the sharp ends to possibilities,” she said. 

Seven years ago, James was the coordinator of the U.N.-backed Gender Media Club in Sierra Leone, She told VOA that "it’s imperative that the press give more coverage to women's issues if their lives are to improve."

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