Environment, Climate and Extractives Reporting

New Narratives supports dozens of investigations into extractives industries and climate, land and water justice in West Africa each year. We shine a spotlight on the impacts on real people here on the frontlines of climate change. In Ghana our work has focused on the dramatic impacts of air pollution. In Liberia and Sierra Leone we have shone a spotlight on mining and oil industries as well as climate justice. We have highlighted the work of changemakers and supported the work of civil society organizations bringing transparency to these crucial sectors. See some of our work here. We thank our donors – the Clean Air Fund, American Jewish World Service, the Swedish and US embassies in Liberia, and German Development Cooperation – for supporting this work.

Liberians’ Health: Generators, Cars Posing Dangers to Residents

Monrovia – On June 19 this year, two men—Varnie Sarjue and Jusue Vannie – spent the night in the office of GMT Fishery in the Bong Mines Bridge community outside Monrovia. Both men were guarding the company’s properties, and on that fateful night Sarjue brought with him his girlfriend, Garmeh Howard. They put on a…

James Harding Giahyue
Front Page Africa

Politics and Oil

Liberia’s third post conflict democratic elections are expected to be held in 2017 to   usher   in another government when the mandate of the   current government’s second and final term expires. This will mark the country’s first democratic transition in more than forty years. Already, the United Nations Mission in Liberia or UNMIL has turned over the…

Jefferson Massah

Total Gas Stations Threaten Protected Wetlands

As the rest of the world struggles to come to terms with the effect of climate change, the poorest countries, like our own, are on the front lines. Scientists say the vast majority of climate change is caused by richer countries like the US and China, far out of our control.  But an investigation by…

Tetee Gebro

Oil Crisis Sparks Shift to Renewable Energy in Liberia

It stands one storey tall and is painted in radiant orange and green but that is not what makes Emma’s Fashion perhaps the most noticeable building at V.O.A. Junction on the Roberts International Airport highway. What makes it stand out is 16 solar panels attached to two opposite sides of its roof, providing the modern…

James Harding Giahyue
Front Page Africa

No Oil but Chevron Leaves Its Mark on Liberia

As almost all of the oil companies are shutting down operations in Liberia, we look back at what one of the biggest companies Chevron, is leaving behind as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility program in Liberia. This is a special radio production on Radio Gbarnga bringing to the spotlight the impact of Chevron’s  Corporate…

By Jefferson Massah
Radio Gbarnga

Uncertain Over Payment: Ex-NOCAL Staff Wary of Severance Pay

Monrovia – It has been more than six months since President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf ordered a restructure of the National Oil Company of Liberia (NOCAL) in an effort to prevent bankruptcy. With that came the redundancy of more than 100 employees. The decision sparked a serious dispute between the workers and company over severance payments….

James Harding Giahyue
Front Page Africa

‘Dialogue, Not a Monologue’: Liberia, Africa Youths Yearning to be Heard

I watched in amazement as stately Cameroonian 30-something, Mamadou  Kwidjim Toure, founder of pan-African youth movement “Africa 2.0”, slipped former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo a note on the elevated stage. Overhead, two wide-screen projectors magnified this exchange to an audience of over 200 at the recent Mo Ibrahim Foundation Governance weekend in Dakar, Senegal.  See…

By Robtel Pailey
FrontPage Africa newspaper

Liberia’s Water Woes: Why Clean, Safe Water Is Still Out of Reach for Many Liberians

Monrovia: “Water! Water!” Eugene Seoh shouted from his three-story apartment building on Benson Street, a main avenue in the center of Monrovia. From across the road, water vendor Jerry Worlogar looked up and nodded.  Seoh hurried down the stairs.  He stood before Worlogar’s hand-drawn cart full of white five-gallon containers. “Thirty-five \[Liberian] dollars for one…

By Tecee Boley
FrontPage Africa newspaper

Charles Taylor’s Verdict Proves What Goes Up Must Come Down

 by New Narratives Fellow Robtel Neajai Pailey I was in The Hague on April 26 when they convicted Charles Taylor. Appearing like a child being publicly scolded, he stood on seemingly wobbly legs, head bowed, when they pronounced him guilty on 11 counts of crimes against humanity for aiding and abetting rebels during Sierra Leone’s…

By Robtel Pailey
FrontPage Africa newspaper

Denying Liberia’s Babies: Teen Fathers Speak

By Mae Azango “Some of these young boys are from broken homes. Sometimes it is peer pressure that causes many of the teen fathers to deny pregnancies.”  But there are also other factors. – Ali Sylla, Founder and Executive Director of the Center for Counseling and Restorative Dialogue in Monrovia. Nathan became a young dad…

By Mae Azango
FrontPage Africa

Moving from Open Door to ‘Growth with Development’

During President William Tubman’s Open Door Policy, Liberia was averaging double-digit growth rates. Being open for business, however, did not mean growth was open to all. In the 1960s, it was claimed that we had ‘growth without development’—economic activities from large-scale foreign concessions in iron ore, rubber, palm oil, and timber did not improve the…

By NN op-ed columnist Robtel Pailey
FrontPage Africa