Louise N’Jie

Louise Antoinette N'Jie, ( Mahoney; 23 January 1922 – 22 May 2014) was a Gambian teacher, feminist and politician who was the first woman to serve as a cabinet minister in The Gambia.

Early life and education

Louise Antoinette Mahoney was born in Bathurst (now Banjul) in British Gambia on 23 January 1922, the third of five children. Her father, Sir John Mahoney, was of Aku descent and was the first Speaker of the National Assembly of the Gambia and her mother, Hannah, was the first Gambian woman to work as a clerk in the Government Secretariat in the 1910s. Her younger sister Augusta was the first female candidate to stand in a Gambian national election and later married Gambia's first President, Sir Dawda Jawara.

Career

N'Jie taught in various primary and secondary schools in Gambia for ten years and was principal of Bakau Primary School from 1957 until 1963. In 1958, she was appointed to the Committee for the Preparation of the Royal Visit and the Reception of Queen Elizabeth II to The Gambia in 1961. In 1970, she was one of the founders of the Federation of Gambian Women. and in January 1985, became Minister of Youth, Sport and Culture, making her Gambia's first female member of cabinet. She oversaw an increase in the education of girls and a 20 percent increase in the number of female teachers. She was a committed Christian and active in local churches throughout her life.