** WCI is now launching an exciting new blog series entitled, Voices from the Field. The bloggers for this initiative are affiliated with our Liberia Office. These blogs will aim to keep friends of WCI up-to-date and engaged with ongoing WCI activities in Liberia.**

Is there really a cure for aging? There are thousands of articles, studies, and research that focus on how women can ‘reverse the aging process’. Now, Goldman Sachs’ 10,000 Women Program might also want to consider making this claim.

On graduation day, 26 women of all ages walked into SKD Stadium in Monrovia, Liberia looking years younger. They all have a bright new future! They have new skills, new vision, and a renewed hope that their efforts will rebuild their country. As one graduate stated, “I came into the class a business women, I am leaving an entrepreneur. She also said that the members of the class have made a commitment to each other to support each other and to share their new knowledge with their children. They all agreed,It is the only way we can succeed.

The graduating women had finished the rigorous 10,000 Women Business Training Program sponsored by Goldman Sachs. They were ready to take on the world with their new insight to running a successful business. Much like any graduation around the world, these women were relieved, enthusiastic, and committed to putting into practice the new skills they earned after months of hard work.

Unlike most graduations, these women understood that their efforts and integrity will keep their country out of war and their families safe. The women come from different backgrounds, tribes, and manage diverse businesses. A few are highly educated professionals with training in the medical and agricultural fields; however, most women have a very basic education.

They were not given the same opportunities to go to school, get a job, and provide a stable home for their family. Instead, these women make the best of their situations with what they have and survive by identifying and pursuing opportunities they are able to find. Their determination and ability to learn and adopt business skills without training in this field is commendable. What is even more astounding is the women’s willingness to learn more, make changes, and build a better business and a better life.

The US Ambassador to Liberia, Linda Thomas Greenfield, recognized the importance of these women’s accomplishments and remarked, “This is your country, your economy, your business. The United States is your guest and your friend.”

Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf congratulated the women and spoke to them as the leaders they are strong and influential. President Sirleaf declared, “If you educate a woman, you educate a nation.”

We should all wish these women good luck and prosperity. They have better skills and bigger dreams. They will succeed!

Blog Post by Nancy Wallace, Liberia Country Director