And in other news, Liberia's first female vice president is here in Belize. Dr Jewel Howard-Taylor arrived a little before 3pm and her visit is at the invitation of the Mayor of Belmopan, Sharon Palacio, in conjunction with the Mayor's Association. The purpose is to create a long lasting relationship between the two countries through the She4She Champions World Summit to be held this Friday, March 4th. The summit promises to highlight other high ranking women leaders and today, the Liberia VP spoke more about the trip.
H.E. Dr. Jewel Howard-Taylor, Vice President of Liberia
"The common thread that binds us is our history that Africans were enslaved and taken across the world. Belize was a part of the slave trade where people that came from the African continent were brought here. So we relay about black, we relayed about tradition. As we drove from the airport, I really saw a lot of similarities in the way we live as the way you live. So I think you will find that there is more that connects us than divides us and so we look forward to the Belize/Liberia, Belize African connection to become more pronounced, so that your children could get a chance to see the ancestors that are still alive in Africa and we get a chance to come here and connect with the people who are here. I think its an exciting time."
"It's not an easy feel, but it can be overcome. Liberia has an amazing story of electing the first democratically elected female president of Africa. I'm the first female vice president of my country, so there are a lot of experiences we can share that if you have a passion to be a change maker, if you want to make a difference in the scheme of things then politics is where the decisions are made and women shouldn't be left out of any field. I think we can bring our best to the table wherever we find ourselves and so people shouldn't be afraid of getting involved. There is a lot of work that it takes, but its possible and that the message that I bring to encourage young Belizeans women to let them know that if we can do it in Africa, you can do it here too."
"Because of the culture prejudices that have held women down, we were seconded to the home as care givers, so the educational standards you see that men have attained over the years, women are just coming up, there are just now opening doors for women to go to school and learn and that is an important part of being anyone that you want to be and when you are a politician, the requirements are even more. So I think when we look at education for example, how you would understand the spear of life, understand the gain, understand the rules, understand how to protect in a way that will give you the benefits that you want, not just for you as a woman, but for every other woman that you represent and I think that's the main threat."
The summit will last for three days and commemorates International Women's Month.
