Sierra Leone First Lady Fatima Maada Bio is the new head of OAFLAD – as the organisation ushers in new leadership  for 2025-2027

The First Lady of Sierra Leone, Fatima Maada Bio, has been elected President of the Organization of African First Ladies for Development (OAFLAD) – the advocacy group which brings presidential spouses together, to leverage their unique position, to advocate for policies that make health services accessible and laws that boost women and youth empowerment.

At elections which took place on the environs of the just-concluded African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Maada Bio took the mantle from Sustjie Mbumba, First Lady of the Republic of Namibia. She will be deputised by the First Lady of Angola, Ana Afonso Dias Lourenço.

Maada Bio will serve a two-year mandate. Oluremi Tinubu, the First Lady of Nigerian came a close second in the election, which also ushered in Steering Committee which includes First Ladies: Monica Chakwera (Malawi), Oluremi Tinubu, Constancia Mangue de Obiang, (Equatorial Guinea), Antoinette Sassou N’guesso, (Republic of Congo), Rachel Ruto (Kenya) and Zinash Tayachew, (Ethiopia).

Under this new leadership and with the new Strategic Framework 2025-2030, OAFLAD, will prioritize four strategic pillars: health, education, gender-based violence (GBV), and women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) which reflect OAFLAD’s commitment to addressing the most pressing issues facing children, youth and women, read a statement shared by the African Union Commission .

“In addition to these core focus areas, climate change, and peace and security are integrated as cross-cutting themes, recognizing both their implication on strategic actions and their profound impact on women’s well-being and development in the continent,” it stated.

Accepting the role, Mrs Maada Bio pledged to work tirelessly to build on the legacy of her predecessors and drive OAFLAD’s 2025-2030 Strategic Framework, which focusses on health, education, women’s economic empowerment, and the fight against gender-based violence.

#HandsOffOurGirls
A staunch advocate for the empowerment and well-being of women and girls, back in her home country Sierra Leone, she leads the Hands Off Our Girls initiative which was Launched in 2018.

The #HandsOffOurGirls campaign throws a spotlight on the scourges that hold women and girls back, such as child marriage, sexual abuse and rape, and domestic violence. It also implores policymakers to support women and girls through the provision of access to much-needed reproductive and sexual health facilities and tackling health issues such as Fistula.

She also spearheaded the adoption of World Day for the Prevention of, and Healing from Child Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Violence by the United Nations in 2022.

#WeAreEqual
Through OAFLAD, the First Ladies’ advocacy pushes for favourable policies, programs, resource mobilization and development of partnerships with all stakeholders at all levels. They also engage in various community-level activities to sensitize community and create awareness on health risks and policies, through campaigns such as #WeAreEqual which was to help drive further, conversations on sustainable and inclusive development and the equal participation of women, youth, and marginalised communities. 

The mission statement of the #WeAreEqual campaign is tellingly categorical: “Closing the gender gap in Africa is not an act of charity for girls and women, but an act of justice and common sense that will benefit us all. We are equal. Yet today, many young girls and boys grow up seeing otherwise, hearing otherwise, and learning to believe otherwise.

It is easy to forget that we are equal when our rights – to health care, education, economic opportunities, and freedom from violence – are not always treated the same. This is both unjust and unwise. Achieving gender equality is critical to driving social and economic progress for all and building the world that we want. As a society, we cannot move forward to achieve these goals if we are only lifting one foot off the ground,” it reads.
The task before Maada Bio and the OFLAD leadership is therefore, clearly defined, and all eyes are on what the OAFLAD will achieve next 2 years.