Jerromie S. Walters
Sejong, Korea: Liberian women are proving in every necessary way their unmatched ability to do the unexpected; this ideology is being displayed both in and out of Liberia in the most intrinsic and extraordinary ways.
There’s absolutely no doubt about this thought, especially considering the overwhelming victory of veteran Liberian female advocate Vickjune Wutoh as President of the African Development Forum (ADF) at the Korea Development Institute (KDI) School of Public Policy.
Vickjune Wutoh won with an astonishing 64.4%, ahead of her competitors, who accumulated about 34%. A total of 80 African students participated in the elections, and the vast majority of them are from east, west, north, and central Africa.
The young Liberian female advocate and her progressive team based their campaign on “Projecting One Africa,” a platform that endeavors to rebrand ADF based on service, inclusive leadership, and cultural diversity.
According to Vickjune Headliner Wutoh, her leadership style is based on teamwork in order to ensure a successful term. “I’m grateful to God for this win, because he made it possible.” Imagine winning 64.4% out of 80% of registered voters among African students from east, west, north, southern, and central. I believe in teamwork, so the strategy was to build an inclusive leadership team, which was successfully done. Each team member comes from the East, Central, and West regions, and I’m happy this was possible.
She assured her team’s commitment to working with the school’s administration in order to welcome new students for the next semester: “We presented our work plan for the entire term.” Our first step is to work with the Admission Office to welcome the new students for the next semester. “After that, we will integrate them into different programs for them to be able to participate.”
“I’m grateful to God for this win as President of the African Development Forum here at the Korea Development Institute School of Public Policy and Management. “I thank the students of Africa for their support, and I look forward to serving them with such a great team,” she narrated in a Facebook post.
Accordingly, their leadership tenure is for about a year, and as such, it’s incumbent upon them to do all they can between now and 2023.
Vickjune is the Executive Director of the Initiative for Youth Empowerment and Economic Development (IYEED Inc.), a local advocacy organization and economic empowerment hub that promotes gender equality through advocacy and programs in Liberia.
She holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the African Methodist Episcopal University in Monrovia. Her enrollment at the institution was prompted by her desire to obtain a master’s degree.
ADF is the presence of Africa at KDI, an association established to unite the students through their common interests in economics, education, social issues, governance, and culture.
The KDI School of Public Policy and Management (KDI School) is a government-run graduate school located in Sejong City, South Korea, and is affiliated with the Korea Development Institute (KDI) and a member of the National Research Council for Economics, Humanities, and Social Sciences.
The school specializes in fostering international experts in the fields of development economics and public policy, and it was first established in 1997 in Dongdaemun District, Seoul, before moving to Sejong City in 2015 under the South Korean government’s actions to establish the city as the de facto administrative capital of the country.
