Top 49 Quotes & Sayings by Ellen Johnson Sirleaf

In terms of being able to renew my nation, to be able to be able to bring back a devastated country, to restore hope to our people, to lift women and to give them a new horizon, a new ambition and new dreams, in respect of all of that, I think we've accomplished it, and I feel very good about that.

I beg you I no magician. I can't just wave a magic wand.

I just think that unless you have that cohesiveness in the family unit, the male character tends to become very dominant, repressive and insensitive. So much of this comes also from a lack of education.

I don't think people understand the awesomeness of the destruction of this country - its institutions, its infrastructure, its law, its morals.

All girls know that they can be anything now. That transformation is to me one of the most satisfying things.

Women work harder. And women are more honest; they have less reasons to be corrupt.

When I took office, Liberia began to recover from years of neglect. Our people have brought clean water into the heart of Monrovia to children who have never known water from a tap. Efforts are underway to expand water projects as much as possible throughout the country.

The people of Liberia know what it means to be deprived of clean water, but we also know what it means to see our children to begin to smile again with a restoration of hope and faith in the future.

I would like to make sure, first of all, that our women in the informal sector - I mean, these are the farmers and the traders; many of them are not educated, many of them lacking literacy - be able to give them better working conditions. And we've done a lot to be able to achieve that.

My calling was first of all to ensure there was peace in the country, because we could easily have gone back to war. In the midst of the country, there were still warlords; there were many child soldiers who had never gone to school - they were part of the social setting - compromises had to be made.

I've been involved in politics for quite some time. I've held positions, and my experiences are very deep, and I think I have the capacity, the courage, and the character to institute the kinds of reforms that are so desperately needed.

I think we're ready for succession. We just must try to do it right.

As more men become more educated and women get educated, the value system has to be more enhanced and the respect for human dignity and human life is made better.

I think the majority of the Liberian people want peace.

We have to overcome the practice of male domination - even though it's changing, and changing in Liberia quite drastically.

Liberia just needs to go through this one political transition and it can really take off. Everything's in place now. We cannot afford to put the country in the hands of someone that lacks the experience.

My mother was a disciplinarian. She believed that when young girls start to go out with young boys, they get married.

We've done a lot to restore Liberia's credibility, Liberia's reputation, Liberia's presence.

One has to look at my life story to see what I've done. I've paid a heavy price that many people don't realize.

The future belongs to us, because we have taken charge of it. We have the commitment, we have the resourcefulness, and we have the strength of our people to share the dream across Africa of clean water for all.

I underestimated the low level of capacity. I also underestimated the cultural roots of corruption.

I'm not talking about what you hear from 5 per cent of the population on the radio, in the papers. I don't pay attention to it. I travel around the country. I'm happy I have a good relationship with the people.

I work hard, I work late, I have nothing on my conscience. When I go to bed, I sleep.

My mother was the strength. She was the anchor. She was a preacher and a teacher.

I stand by it. I take the criticism for it. I think it's unfair, but yes, there is a thing about nepotism, and we all try to respect it.

Ethnicity should enrich us; it should make us a unique people in our diversity and not be used to divide us.

To girls and women everywhere, I issue a simple invitation. My sisters, my daughters, my friends; find your voice

If your dreams don't scare you, you aren't dreaming big enough.

The people of Liberia know what it means to be deprived of clean water. But we also know what it means to see our children begin to smile again, with a restoration of hope and faith in the future.

I believe that there are certain attributes in a woman that give her some advantages over a man. Women are usually more honest, more sensitive to issues and bring a stronger sense of commitment and dedication to what they do. Maybe because they were mothers, and being a mother you have that special attention for the family, for the young, for children…

In Liberia, the big challenge that remains for us is job creation. We want young people to work or go to school. That is our main preoccupation right now.

I've been a victor of circumstance.

In Liberia, our salary scales are so low that our judicial system has become corrupt over the years. Now, we need to do some things ourselves.

Liberia has to take primary responsibility for its own reform agenda. But our resources are limited. We have to attract the private sector to get jobs to our people that will enable us to raise the government revenue, but to do that we have to build infrastructure. It's a very complex problem of development we are facing here.

We all have a stake in the battle against Ebola.

I earned my professional credibility a long time ago in a male-dominated world. I just hope that as a woman, I bring in an extra dimension to the job. I bring in the sensitivity of being a woman and a mother, and that means I pay more attention to women, children, and the social needs of society.

We are here because we share a fundamental belief: that poverty, illiteracy, disease and inequality do not belong in the twenty-first century. We share a common purpose: to eradicate these ills for the benefit of all. And we share a common tool to achieve this: the Millennium Development Goals.

Ebola is not just a health crisis. Across West Africa, a generation of young people risks being lost to an economic catastrophe.

There is no easy fix or youth unemployment. Partnership between the public and private sectors can make a big difference.

If your dreams do not scare you, they are not big enough.

Our entire judicial system in Liberia has broken down because of the many years of lawlessness, indiscipline and warfare. We need more training to get more qualified judges. We need infrastructural reforms. All of our laws need to be re-examined by a law reform commission.

I don't face any particular problems as a woman president because I have been a professional for a long time. I keep telling people: I am a technocrat who happens to be a woman.

Leadership is never given on a silver platter, one has to earn it.

Liberia can move on and break from the past. That is very important for us to try to achieve our development goals and reconcile our nation.

The size of your dreams must always exceed your current capacity to achieve them. If your dreams do not scare you, they are not big enough.

In Liberia, our main obstacle is infrastructure: the lights, the water, the roads. Companies can't operate without those things. And even though we have commitments from our partners, it takes time to turn commitments into cash.

Of course, I am the first democratically elected woman president in Africa, and that raises a lot of expectations. Because I represent the aspirations of women all over Africa, I must succeed for them. I must keep the door open for women's participation in politics at the highest level. That is both humbling and exciting.

Future generations will judge us not by what we say, but what we do.

I don't run a woman government. I run a government of people.