Mrs. Isha Johansen is a Sierra Leonean born in the year 1965, into the family of Tejan-Cole of Creole descent. She was formerly known as Isha Tejan-Cole until she married her husband, Arne Birger Johansen a Norwegian Consul in Sierra Leone.
She has been tagged the iron-lady of Sierra Leone, following her dedicated efforts to reach the peak in the African football federation.
She was born of a football lover, Isha’s father is the cofounder of East End Lions F.C. in Freetown and one of the patriarchs of Sierra Leone football association. Isha had been initiated into the club of sports enthusiast while she was still a little girl. Her father usually carried her to the fields and she witnessed many live matches, she also practiced by playing with her brothers and friends.
Isha had a bond with football and her heart ached at the terrible state of football status in her country.
In 2004, she established her football club called F.C. Johansen, this was her first solution to the problem. The club was made up of young boys under the ages of 11 whose heart was sold out to sports but their lives and dreams have been interrupted by Sierra Leone Civil War that lasted over a decade (1991-2002).
At some point in her life, while her husband drove past a patch, she consistently observed a group of young children who were always playing football on a rocky slope just metre away from her home.
She later discovered that these children had no parents or guardians who catered for them and no home like the other privileged children.
She decided to step into the lives of these children and change their story. She gathered them together and engaged in a discussion, they struck a deal that if they promised to stay in school and do the educational bit, then she will support them with their passion for football.
It was on the promise that she made to these children that FC Johansen was born and Isha is the only Female Football Association President in the world.
Becoming the founder and CEO of FC Johansen took Isha to the current prominence position in Sierra Leone football domain.
However, it was not just the uniqueness of her gender status but based on the recorded victories of her club in international youth competitions.
The FC Johansen has won a silver medal when they represented their country at the annual Mittnorden Cup in Sweden, four years after the club came to being. FC Johansen has also defeated Liverpool at the finals of the Swiss Under-16 which gave them assess to the Cup, and also won the Mitnordick Cup in Sweden in 2009.
Her club is the first and only club to host an international youth football tournaments at the national stadium in Freetown, bringing in teams all the way from Brazil, Norway, South Africa, and many other teams from West Africa to play international standard football in Sierra Leone.
On the 3rd of August 2013, she was elected as the first female president of Sierra Leone’s Football Association (SLFA)
She takes out her time to identify areas in the lives of youth and women where can affect positively areas like;
Standing for the breast cancer victims, she is a breast cancer activist and has established an NGO called the Pink Charity Fund.
The Pink Charity Fund partners with Sierra Leone ministry of health to fight against breast cancer and put an end to the disease among all sectors of the socio-economic stratum among Sierra Leonean women.
Isha is also the initiator of the Sierra Leone annual African International Youth Tournament that started in 2009.
She developed an award platform of WOMEN OF EXCELLENCE AWARD in 2003 and 2005 to honor the excellent sierra Leonean women in the diaspora and in the country.
The award recognized Liberia president, Ellen Sirleaf, long before she became the country president.
Isha Johansen is a jewel and a faithful pathfinder for the youths of the football federation in Sierra Leone, with great achievement and accountable successes.
