KWEE: Liberian Literary Magazine AUGUST 1, 2015 ISSUE | Page 10

Liberian Literary Magazine Authors of the Month Profiles Josiah F. Joekai, Jr. Josiah F. Joekai Jr. is a Liberian born to the union of Mr. Barkolleh K. Joekai, Sr. and Ms. Kolu H. Flomo at the Curran Lutheran Hospital in Zorzor, Lofa County. He is currently writing his Thesis for a Master’s Degree in Conflict Transformation from the Kofi Annan Institute for Conflict Transformation of the University of Liberia. It’s titled “A Critical Look at Democratic Elections as a Dimension of Peace and Legitimacy: The Case of Liberia”. Mr. Joekai has a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science with emphasis on International Relations from the University of Liberia. He has also earned diplomas and certificates from national and international professional development programs in election administration, public sector management, practical disarmament and peace building, strategic planning and project management. Mr. Joekai is an author, educator, election administrator and a highly development-oriented person. He has worked extensively in the public sector in the areas of education, democracy and governance in Liberia over the last ten years. He worked in key institutions in Liberia to include the National Legislature, Ministry of Education and now the National Elections Commission. Josiah has three books “Essential Elements for Liberia’s PostConflict Recovery”, “From Refugee to Prominence: A Memoire” and Emergence of July 15, 2015 ISSUE # 0715 . Democratic Governance in Liberia: Challenges and Prospect. These publications have generated much interest both at home and abroad. He has also written several other reading materials including published articles, poems and papers he presented at national and international conferences. He has delivered speeches and papers at national and international forums including the following: 1. “Good Citizenship: the Foundation for Nation Building”, speech delivered at the National Inter-High School Drama Competition in Liberia, 2014 2. “You are more than Refugees”, speech delivered at June 20, 2014 World Refugee Day Celebration in Liberia 3. “Structures and Systems of Electoral Commissions and how do they relate to Electoral Violence”, paper presented at the Mano River Union Electoral Commissions’ Forum in Freetown, Sierra Leone in 2012 4. Declared the Official Position of the Mano River Union on the General and Presidential Elections held in Sierra Leone in a nationally televised press conference in Freetown in 2012 5. “Youth and Armed Violence” paper presented at the Regional Conference on Developing a Na tional Strategy on Armed Violence in Liberia in 2006 In 2014, he was recognized and honored by Liberians for Democratic Advancement (LIDA) as “Author and Servant of the Year”. He has also played a pivotal role as member of ECOWAS and Mano River Union Elections Observation and Technical Missions to Guinea, Sierra Leone, Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana to contribute to the delivery of peaceful and credible elections in those countries. He is presently the Director of Civic and Voter Education at the National Elections Commission (NEC) of Liberia. Wayétu Moore Wayétu Moore is a writer and founder of One Moore Book (www.onemoorebook.com), a boutique publisher of multicultural children's books. She graduated from Howard University with a degree in journalism, received her Master’s degree in creative writing from University of Southern California. Moore is a former special correspondent to the National Newspaper Press Association. Her writing can be found in the Atlantic Magazine, Guernica Magazine, Gawker, The Huffington Post, Sea Breeze Journal of Contemporary Liberian Writings and various literary journals. She has been featured in The Economist Magazine, NPR, Uptown Magazine, NBC, ABC, BET, among others. Her company, One Moore Book, has published 19 books to date that feature the cultures of Liberia, Guinea and Haiti, including the 2nd children’s book by American Book Award winner and National Book Award finalist, Edwidge Danticat. She is also currently an adjunct professor of writing at The College of New Rochelle – Brooklyn College. Email: [email protected] Website: www.josiahfjoekai.com All rights re http://othnieldf.wix.com/mybooksserved ©2015 http://othnieldf.wix.com/mybooks