Cases of severe child malnutrition are rising in Liberia, as misinformation about infant feeding, healthcare costs and cuts to international aid put vulnerable babies at greater risk. In Grand Bassa County, the story of four-month-old Princess shows the devastating consequences when families lack access to accurate nutrition information and affordable treatment. King Brown reports in…
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Free Phone Service Triples Some Farmers’ Income, But Most Liberians Can’t Access It
A free mobile phone service is helping farmers in parts of rural Liberia check market prices before selling their crops, giving them greater bargaining power and helping some significantly increase their incomes. But with the service currently reaching only a small number of farmers in Grand Bassa and Rivercess Counties, questions remain about funding and…
Grand Bassa Residents Overwhelmingly Call for War Crimes Court in New Survey
A new survey by New Narratives has found overwhelming support for a war and economic crimes court in Grand Bassa County, with all 100 people interviewed backing the establishment of the court and most saying they would not vote for lawmakers who oppose it. Through the voices of war survivors, victims’ families, activists, and ordinary…
Fed, But Starving: Health Workers Say Misinformation, Fees and Aid Cuts are Causing a Dramatic Rise in Severely Malnourished Babies
By King Brown with New Narratives Summary: BUCHANAN, Grand Bassa County— The sun is hot here in Big Joe Town, outside Grand Bassa’s capital city. Lovetee, 21, sits on a wooden chair watching her four-month-old daughter, Princess, lying weak on her lap, suffering from diarrhea. Princess’s ribs show through her skin, and her hair is thinning…
3500 Teaching Scholarships Ended with US Cuts; Experts Say Cuts Will Hurt Efforts to Lift Low Skill Level of Liberia’s Teachers
This month’s shock cancellation of almost all foreign aid by the incoming administration of President Donald Trump has students and teachers across Liberia shellshocked. The US government has made substantial investments in Liberia’s education sector over the years spending hundreds of millions of dollars. Though experts say the education system is still largely dysfunctional, defenders…
3500 Teaching Scholarships Ended with US Cuts; Experts Say Cuts Will Hurt Efforts to Lift Low Skill Level of Liberia’s Teachers
By King Brown with New Narratives KPANDY TOWN, Grand Bassa County– Ezekiel Nwornee lies awake at night, the weight of his future pressing on him. After two years studying here at Grand Bassa University for his associate degree in primary education, he was looking forward to graduating next month. But the decision by United States…
Experts Warn Lack of Price Information Keeps Farmers Trapped in Cycles of Exploitation by Predatory “Middlemen”
More than one million Liberian farmers grow the food that feeds the country, but many of them do not know the real market prices of what they produce. Without this information, farmers often sell their crops at very low prices to middlemen who later make big profits, leaving farming families struggling to survive. Without access…
Visually Impaired Rural Students Trapped in Cycle of Poverty as Boakai Government Promises Improvements
By King Brown with New Narratives BUCHANAN, Grand Bassa County – Marpue Kpadoe sits on a small bamboo mat and moves her hands around in search of a bowl of water to wash her hands as she prepares to eat. The 18-year-old was born blind. She struggles to take her bowl of potato greens while her…
Experts Warn Lack of Price Information Keeps Farmers Trapped in Cycles of Exploitation by Predatory “Middlemen”
Liberian experts warn that many farmers remain trapped in poverty because they lack reliable information about market prices, leaving them vulnerable to exploitation by middlemen who buy crops at unfairly low rates and make big profits. Without access to timely pricing updates, farmers often have no choice but to accept whatever is offered, even when…
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…
In Rural Liberia, Where Police Lack Cars Or Equipment, Criminals Rule
Residents of Grand Bassa County say they are living in fear as a state of lawlessness takes over the county. Police – with no vehicles, fuel or other resources – say they are powerless to enforce the law. As a result, serious crimes are going on with no effort to arrest perpetrators….
President’s School Chairs Arrive In Rural Schools, But There Aren’t Nearly Enough
In Buchanan’s overcrowded Four Houses Public School, kindergarteners like 7-year-old Sarah struggle to learn while seated on the floor, amidst dire shortages of chairs, tables, and a deteriorating classroom structure….
Local Farmers Embark On Snail Farming In Grand Bassa County
(Last Updated On: November 3, 2022) PHOTO: One of the local Farmer, Emmanuel Giddings By King Brown with New Narratives KPANDY TOWN, Grand Bassa County – For Emmanuel Giddings, raising snails is second nature. The 47-year-old farmer has been raising, selling and eating the mollusks since he was a child. Giddings’ late father used to sell snails…