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Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf is the keynote speaker at this year’s Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture
July 9, 2008 – The Sixth Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture will be held this Saturday, July 12, 2008, in Kliptown, Soweto. Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf is the keynote speaker.
The annual event is considered the highlight of the Nelson Mandela Foundation’s calendar programme. Previous speakers include South African President Thabo Mbeki, former United States President Bill Clinton, former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan and Nobel Laureates Prof Wangari Maathai and Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu.
President Johnson-Sirleaf arrives in South Africa on Thursday, July 10, to begin her packed programme of events and tours. She will address a press conference in Johannesburg.
The Foundation is hosting a breakfast event in Illovo on Friday morning, where President Johnson-Sirleaf will address invited guests, in particular women who are leaders in social entrepreneurism, business and civil society. Other events include a heritage tour, and a dinner with industry leaders.
On Saturday, President Johnson-Sirleaf will be taken on a tour of Soweto hosted by the Mayor of Johannesburg, before the lecture programme begins at 2:45pm. The event will be broadcast live on South African television by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC).
The 800 guests invited to the event include world leaders, politicians and other dignitaries. Coverage of the events and a picture gallery will be published on the Foundation’s website in due course. The full text of President Johnson-Sirleaf’s speech will be available on our website shortly after the event concludes.