Fatima Deribe is a Senegalo-Nigerian, though born and bred in the United Kingdom. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations from LSE. She has a fierce pride and passion for her people and believes that the privileges she has received (such as quality education) bring a responsibility to invest her time and skills to the empowerment of her people so that they may too receive the same opportunities. This commitment is demonstrated by her academic background and work experiences with Internally Displaced People in Nigeria and her regional and national work with UNDP in Dakar. These experiences have provided broad exposure to the many issues we, as Africans, must address. She believes that as Africans we must learn about ourselves, our beauty, our heritage, our languages, and our art and we must honor and respect it. Invest in it by heart and by wealth. We must stop exporting our capital, genius, and respect. Only then will we be honored and respected and more importantly empowered as a people.