Summary: · Health experts are urging swift regulatory approval for “Coartem Baby”, a groundbreaking new malaria drug for infants under six months, warning delays could cost lives. · Liberia continues to battle one of Africa’s highest malaria burdens, with nearly one million cases and an estimated 3,500 deaths in 2023 — most among children under…
Featured Stories
As Internet Use Surges, Thousands Of Poor Families Are Being Scammed; A New Bill Will Help But Police Warn They Still Have Few Options To Stop It
Summary: KARNGAR TOWN, Johnsonville — In interview after interview, the story begins the same way: a promise of opportunity arrives quietly, wrapped in hope for a way out of poverty, with no hint of danger. Here in this community on the outskirts of Monrovia, Nor G. Boo had just finished arranging goods in her small…
Experts Warn Deaths From Extreme Heat Are Growing as New Report Finds Last Year Was Hottest on Record
By Aria Deemie, climate change reporter with New Narratives Summary: · Monrovia experienced its hottest dry season on record in 2024. Climate models predict the city could face up to 118 additional hot days annually by mid-century. · Experts warn prolonged exposure to extreme heat increases the risk of heat exhaustion, dehydration, and pregnancy complications,…
Experts Warn Deaths From Extreme Heat Are Growing as New Report Finds Last Year Was Hottest on Record
Experts warn that extreme heat is not just uncomfortable but deadly, with the world’s hottest recorded year driving up heat-related deaths as people in Liberia and beyond face soaring temperatures, increased exhaustion, dehydration, and serious health risks that hit the most vulnerable hardest and underscore a growing climate crisis with real human costs. Aria Deemie…
They Survived Addiction. Now Comes the Hardest Part: Going Home
After years of struggling with addiction, Liberians who have completed treatment at the country’s only government approved rehabilitation center say the hardest challenge begins when they return home, where stigma, weak family support, and limited job opportunities make staying sober a daily struggle and show that recovery does not end with treatment but continues in…
In Liberia, a Rape Justice System That Works Only for Those Who Can Pay
By Tetee Gebro, senior reporter with New Narratives Summary: As Liberia marks the global campaign known as 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, rape survivors say they are being turned away from courts and told to “bring your money first” before their cases can proceed. Experts say the justice system extorts victims instead of…
Death of Domestic Violence Survivor Highlights Systemic Failures
By Joyclyn Wea, senior correspondent, New Narratives Summary: MISSION-THIRD, Montserrado County – Esther’s final words came in weak, gasping breaths. “I won’t make it,” the mother of six whispered, collapsing in the yard as neighbor Ma Fatu tried to hold her upright. Blood streamed from her nose. Moments earlier, according to her five-year-old daughter who witnessed the attack, Esther’s husband…
They Survived Addiction. Now Comes the Hardest Part: Going Home
By Nemenlah Cyrus Harmon with New Narratives Summary: · Liberia’s only government-approved rehab center has graduated more than 100 people, but many returning addicts say the true struggle begins after treatment, as they re-enter communities shaped by fear, stigma and memories of their past. · Relapse remains a constant threat, with graduates describing isolation, lack…
In Liberia, a Rape Justice System That Works Only for Those Who Can Pay
As Liberia marks the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, mothers and survivors are raising alarm over a system they say is extorting victims instead of protecting them. Rape survivors—including infants—are reportedly being denied help unless families pay unofficial fees. Mothers describe carrying bleeding children to hospitals and courts, only to be told to…
Experts Warn of Grave Impact For Students as Usaid-Funded Teacher Training Program
Education experts say the termination of a USAID program, that funded scholarships to aspiring teachers could undermine government efforts to recruit qualified staff for public schools.Advocates urged government to support students affected by the program’s closure, to complete their education and help address the country’s teacher shortage.As Garmai Tarnue reports for Radio Gbarnga in collaboration…
Doctors Warn Rampant Abuse of Anti-Microbial Drugs Is Creating Superbugs That Are Killing Thousands and Leaving Sick People Defenseless
Medical Experts are raising a warning saying more and more people are staying sick because the medicines meant to kill harmful germs that cause malaria, diarrhea and other dangerous illnesses —aren’t working anymore.The reason? Many Liberians are using antibiotics and other powerful drugs the wrong way, and that misuse is making these medicines weaker and…
Rural Liberian Clinic Gets Overhaul After Investigation Exposed Maternal Health Crisis
By Siaway T. Miapue with New Narratives Summary: ARTHINGTON, Montserrado— More than a year after an investigation documented the deadly risks women faced giving birth at a rural government clinic here, the facility has been renovated and equipped with a new maternity ward, officials said at a dedication ceremony this month. The Church of Jesus…
Experts Link Rising Breast Cancer in Ghana to Air Pollution, Poor Women Most at Risk
By Jennifer Ambolley AGBOGBLOSHIE, Accra –Here in the notorious informal community on the edge of the capital city, Efua Mensah along with the rest of the market sellers, wakes up to a haze.The smoke from fires – cooking and waste burning – never leaves the 46-year-old cancer survivor. It curls over the wooden stalls and…
As Survey Finds Liberians Among the World’s Biggest Worriers, Experts Warn Stress Is Driving the Rise in Chronic Diseases Especially Among Women
A new global report ranks Liberia among the top ten countries where people experience the most sadness and worry. Experts say women make up most of the number. As reporter Tetee Gebro tells us in this collaboration with Okay FM, women are carrying the heaviest burden caught between survival and stress in a country still…
As Survey Finds Liberians Among the World’s Biggest Worriers, Experts Warn Stress Is Driving the Rise in Chronic Diseases Especially Among Women
By Joyclyn Wea and Tetee Gebro with New Narratives Summary: MOUNT BARCLAY, Montserrado County- Each morning, as the sun climbs over here, Kebbeh Kollie grips a sledgehammer and strikes stone. The sharp clang echoes through the quarry near Mount Barclay, a rhythm of survival. For three years, the 40-year-old single mother has crushed rocks to…
Solutions For Media Viability in Fragile Democracies: A New Project in Liberia Shows How AI and Digital Tools Can Bring New Revenue Sources to Independent Newsrooms
A groundbreaking pilot project funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, shows that AI and other new digital tools present promising new options for financial independence in West Africa’s leading newsrooms….
New Narratives Kicks of Phase Two of Groundbreaking Air Pollution and Climate Change Journalism Project in Ghana
New Narratives kicked off phase two of our Clean Air Reporting Project in August. The project will continue its successful partnership with Joy News, one of the country’s leading news organizations. Joy reporter Michael Asharley will be Joy’s New Narratives air pollution/climate change beat reporter. Michael will also host the Joy/New Narratives weekly radio program…
Cost and Lack of Awareness Leave Millions With Poor Vision Limiting Children’s Education and Endangering Lives
Millions of Liberians are living with untreated vision problems due to the high cost of eye care and a lack of awareness about eye health, leaving many people unable to access glasses or proper treatment. The situation is affecting children in school who struggle to see the blackboard and keep up with lessons, while also…
Five Women Indicted in Trafficking Case Involving Their Own and Relatives’ Children
By Anthony Stephens, senior justice correspondent with New Narratives Summary: A grand jury in Monrovia has indicted five women for allegedly trafficking their own children and those of their relatives to Mali and Burkina Faso. The fourteen children—seven boys and seven girls, ranging in age from eleven months to eight years—have not been identified publicly…
NN Journalist Albert Oppong-Ansah Wins Prestigious Schmidt Award for Excellence in Science Journalism
New Narratives is proud to share that our reporter Albert Oppong-Ansah, editor with Ghana News Agency, has won the prestigious Eric and Wendy Schmidt Prize for Excellence in Science Journalism. Albert won the award for three stories that he did with New Narratives as part of our groundbreaking clean air reporting project with support from…
Experts Warn Lack of Price Information Keeps Farmers Trapped in Cycles of Exploitation by Predatory “Middlemen”
Summary: By King Brown with New Narratives TAYE TOWN, Grand Bassa County — The weeds have returned, thick and stubborn. But so has Patience Kpan. After a disastrous harvest in 2024, the 37-year-old mother of five is back on her knees weeding grass from her young rice plants. Her youngest child, a barefoot toddler, tugs…