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Honoring 26 Amazing Women Leaders   
June 29, 2011 — “There are many women in the world who are discouraged from using their voices,” explained Turiza Tandago, founder of the Angore Women and Youth Development Foundation and Global Women in Management (GWIM) workshop participant. “So this is my plea to you: Listen to the silent and unspoken words of women in this world. Their needs and wants are often made clear in actions, not in words.” Turiza (pictured right) spoke at the June 22 reception at the National Museum of Women in the Arts. The reception was held in honor of Turiza and her fellow GWIM participants who hailed from 20 different countries. The event marked CEDPA’s 54th GWIM workshop, which has been supported by ExxonMobil’s Women and Girls Initiative since 2005. Turiza painted a picture of the environment she comes from so the audience could understand that many women in the world today are in a place where they cannot speak for themselves. She described how in the Hela culture of Papua New Guinea women are discouraged from speaking out in public or to walking, sitting or standing in front of men. “That is why I am surprised that of all the amazing women participating in GWIM, I am the one standing here before you,” she said. Turiza, like the other 25 women leaders participating in the workshop, courageously works to make changes in her community. She demonstrated her courage, once again, by not only speaking in public for the first time at such a large event, but doing it in front of U.S. Ambassador-at-large, Melanne Verveer, who was the keynote speaker for the evening.
Ambassador Verveer shared her enthusiasm in meeting the honorees in her speech and encouraged the women leaders to continue to be agents of change in improving the lives of women and girls in their communities. She explained that they were key in moving their countries forward. She adamantly stated, “No country can get ahead if it leaves half of its population behind.” Also speaking at the event were Dr. Neal Goins, ExxonMobil’s Director of International Government Relations; CEDPA president and CEO, Carol Peasley; and Lady Nne Abraham, pictured left, president and CEO of Our Ladies Development Centre in Nigeria and a CEDPA alumna. “The impact of GWIM in my life and my organization, if written down will run into hundreds of pages,” said Lady Nne Abraham. “But, there are some exciting ones I will not forget even in my dreams." Lady Nne graduated from GWIM in 2005. Like the participants of this year’s workshop, she attended the workshop to improve her leadership, project management, decision-making, business development, proposal writing, and monitoring and evaluation skills, but she came away with so much more. “The multiple impact of this program cannot be measured. The impact is not only on our lives and our organization, but on other beneficiaries of our activities and programs,” said Lady Nne. “It is one thing to have the talent in you, but it is another thing to bring it out for people to see and benefit from. That is expertly what CEDPA and ExxonMobil have done in my life.” Read more about our GWIM program and meet some more of CEDPA's alumni. |
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