I am writing this so I never forget.
I am Jozela, a single mother, a Women for Women International graduate of 2024, and a football referee. I officiate both men’s and women’s matches. Even if people talk, I chose this career, and I would choose it again.
Jozela Nesua, South Sudan
Dear Jozela,
I am writing this so I never forget.
I am Jozela, a single mother, a Women for Women International graduate of 2024, and a football referee. I officiate both men’s and women’s matches. Even if people talk, I chose this career, and I would choose it again.
1. It taught me that leadership does not need a certificate. I have seen a 15-year-old boy in Yei organise a game without a ball, simply because he wanted his friends to play. Institutions look at reports, but young people look at each other. I see potential, not problems.
2. Before, I thought power meant being in charge. Now I know that power means being trusted, especially when players accept my decisions even when they are difficult. When a girl tells me, ‘Auntie, I want to be a referee too,’ that is power. It is not about controlling. It is about opening doors.
3. Stop chasing approval from people who do not understand us. Say yes to rest because I cannot pour into young people if I am empty. Start smaller. One young referee who is mentored well is better than ten workshop participants who are forgotten.
4. Speak the truth: ‘Yes, people judged me too.’ Ask young people, ‘What do you think? What do you need?’ Keep small promises. If I say I will come, I will come. Trust is built on the field, not in offices.
5. Stop making decisions about us without us. Stop three-month projects that disappear. Stop counting us as numbers and making young people perform their pain to receive help. We are not projects. We are people.
6. Protect young people’s voices. Let them lead, and give them safe spaces to play, fail, and try again. Protect girls, boys, and other young people in Yei and other towns who are already doing the work. Do not ever make anyone beg. Protect hope because, without hope, nothing else works.
7. Go back to the pitch. Feel the experience of officiating or playing and ask, ‘Will this help one young person believe that they can choose their career?’ If yes, do it. If not, walk away. People will judge you. Let them. You know why you started. Never give up on the career you chose.
8. Remember the 15-year-old girl in Yei who told me, ‘Auntie Jozela, I want to be a referee too.’ Remember the boy who organised a game for his friends without a ball because he believed his community deserved joy. They were not waiting for permission. They were choosing themselves.
Young people are brave, they are creative, and they care about each other. Leadership is not a title. It is simply starting.
Jozela Nesua , Referee and Women for Women International changemaker