Vera Songwe serves as The World Bank’s Country Director for Senegal, Cape Verde, Gambia, Mauritania and Guinea-Bissau. She is also a non-resident senior fellow at the Brookings Institute with the Global Economy and Development and Africa Growth Initiative. Dr. Songwe holds a Ph.D. in Mathematical Economics from the Center for Operations Research and Econometrics from the Catholic University of Louvain (CORE-UCL) in Belgium. She was previously a visiting scholar at the University of Southern California and at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. In 1997, she joined the World Bank Group as an economist on the Middle East and North Africa. She is also a member of the Mo Ibrahim Governance Advisory Board.
Vera Songwe
My Definition Of Success | Success means achieving everything you strive for and then more. Yes my definition has changed, from considering success as my personal achievements to my actions that have a positive influence on others.
I Am Driven By | The pursuit of excellence, collective excellence. Today this means moving the dial in Africa. Working in Africa for Africa and being part of this moment of hope and change. The desire to want to be part of those who contribute in earnest to making Africa a better place. A place we can be and should be proud of.
A Key Talent | Hard work, persistence and the courage of my convictions. Nothing comes easy and you have to work hard at everything. Success is never ready made or given. With persistence you have the strength to keep fighting for what you believe in, what you think is correct. Hard work prepares you for the challenges, persistence allows you to keep going even when it all seems futile and the courage of your convictions gives you a reason to keep working hard and persisting. It is the result you are looking to achieve, but you must work hard for it. Nothing worth celebrating is ever handed to you freely.
The Principles I Live By | You must do onto others what you expect them to do to you. This is a very simple rule but it is one of the most difficult I find. One does not always succeed but the important thing is to keep trying to live up to it and at the end of every day to ask if you met the goal and how you can do better the next day. This process of self-assessment reminds us we are not perfect but also helps you to keep on trying to improve. It is a positive and constructive affirmation of who I am and want to be.
How I Use My Mind | I am always and constantly asking myself why I do what I do? What are the results I am looking to achieve. The discipline of having a clear result is sobering but also helps you to focus. For every action I take I have an expected result I hope to achieve. Having daily, monthly, yearly targets and working against these targets has been a very good disciplining tool for me. But it only becomes binding if you are honest with yourself.
It is with thanks to this dedicated author and meticulous researcher that the indigenous South African Nguni cattle, their widely patterned and multi-coloured hides and the poetry surrounding their Zulu naming, have been recorded for posterity in a beautifully crafted coffee table book following a doctoral thesis. Dr Marguerite Poland is revered for, inter alia, […]
Jean de Villiers was named Springbok captain for 2012 before the series victory over England in June, which made him South Africa’s 54th Test skipper. He is one of the most experienced Springboks ever and a natural leader, having led Western Province and the Stormers during his provincial career. De Villiers is deceptively quick, has […]
Stephen Koch is a professional speaker, climber, snowboarder and mountain guide. His list of alpine ascents and descents include some of the most notable firsts anywhere in the world, most of which have never been repeated. He is best known as the first and only person to snowboard on all Seven Summits, the highest peak […]
Jon Mooallem is a a contributing writer at New York Times Magazine and writer at large for Pop-Up Magazine. Jon is also the author of American Hippopotamus and Wild Ones. Jon Mooallem Definition Of Success | I used to conflate success with impressing people and accumulating little tokens of prestige. Now, I see success in […]
Eunice was honored by the World Economic Forum as a Young Global Leader in 2012 for her professional accomplishments and commitment to society, as well as her potential to contribute to shaping the future of the world by providing inspiring leadership. Forbes named Eunice as one of the 20 Youngest Power Women in Africa. She […]
Severine Autesserre is an Associate Professor of Political Science, specializing in international relations and African studies, at Barnard College, Columbia University (USA). Severine traces civil war and endemic violence to its roots, and its resolution, in local and interpersonal conflicts. Severine Autesserre is Driven By | I am driven by a visceral hatred of violence […]
Passionate about international education and providing diverse academic options to committed learners, Angela Franklin (a native of Cincinnati, Oh) has worked in West Africa and the United Arab Emirates in the development and implementation of several international branch campuses. Franklin has extensive professional experience working with international partners to develop collaborative programs. As the Director […]
Asha De Vos | The Legacy Project has published several key research publications on Sri Lankan blue whales, which have led to this population being designated as a species in urgent need of conservation research by the International Whaling Commission (IWC). The IWC has since invited key Sri Lankan government personnel to participate in whale […]
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