Sarah Balekage

Born in Eastern Congo, Sarah overcame the barriers of conflict, poverty, and gender inequality to become the first in her family to study abroad. After graduating from Li Po Chun United World College in Hong Kong, she went on to St Olaf College in the United States on a Shelby Davis Scholarship.

At Oxford, under the Mastercard Foundation scholarship and Africa Oxford Initiative, she is researching how education reform in Congo has influenced girls’ schooling and child marriage rates. Her journey reflects resilience, purpose, and a commitment to lifting others as she climbs.