By Anthony Stephens with New Narratives The Liberian government sought the endorsement of its war and economic crimes courts from the United Nations in a meeting on Tuesday. The meeting comes three months after President Joseph Boakai quietly sent a letter to the U.N. Secretary General, asking for technical and financial support for the courts. Though the…
Journalism
Boakai Government Risking Cuts in US Aid Because of Failure to Act on Anti-Trafficking Cases
By Anthony Stephens with New Narratives MONROVIA, Liberia—In December 2022, after 10 months of abuse and exploitation as a housemaid in Oman, Kemah was excited to hear that the Liberian government was finally coming to her rescue. Kemah was one of more than 300 women allegedly duped into traveling to Oman under false promises of…
Ivorian Man on Trial As Stalled Human Trafficking Trials Resume
By Anthony Stephens with New Narratives MONROVIA, Liberia—An Ivorian man is standing trial in Monrovia over human trafficking allegations in the first trial since Liberia was downgraded to the US State Department’s tier two Trafficking in Persons Watch List after the Weah administration cut off funding to trafficking prosecutions. The US government has warned the…
Liberia’s Silent Crisis: Women and Children Bear the Brunt of Persistent Hunger
Liberia is facing a quiet but devastating hunger crisis, and women and children are suffering the most. In communities like West Point, mothers often survive on just one meal a day so their children can eat, while many families scrape by through informal work that barely covers a few cups of rice. Liberia ranks 112th…
Liberia’s Silent Crisis: Women and Children Bear the Brunt of Persistent Hunger
By Nemenlah Cyrus Harmon, climate correspondent with New Narratives Summary WEST POINT, Monrovia – Favor James wakes up every morning thinking about water. Not drinking it but selling it – cold water in plastic bags that she hawks on Kru Beach here in the capitals’ largest informal settlement, for a few coins. Born with limited…
Stroke, Heart Disease, Cancer and Diabetes Reaching Crisis Levels, Say Experts, But Few Liberians Know How to Protect Themselves
Heart disease, cancer, mental illness and diabetes are some of a group of diseases that are growing at an alarming rate in Liberia, killing far more people than better known killers like malaria and typhoid.More than one in three deaths are now caused by so-called lifestyle diseases – preventable diseases that are primarily caused by…
Stroke, Heart Disease, Cancer and Diabetes Reaching Crisis Levels, Say Experts, But Few Liberians Know How to Protect Themselves
By Tetee Gebro with New Narratives In a three-part series Tetee Gebro, senior reporter with Front Page Africa and New Narratives, examines what health experts call Liberia’s “next epidemic” and the barriers to helping Liberians retake control of their health. NEEZOE, Montserrado County —In 2018, William Pewu was living a regular life like most Liberians. The 54-year-old father of…
“Next Epidemic” of Heart Disease, Diabetes, Mental Health and Cancers Can Be Prevented Says WHO Representative, But it Needs a Nationally Coordinated Approach
Across the country, experts are raising the alarm about the growing number of Liberians becoming sick and dying from so called non-comminable diseases like diabetes, heart disease and stroke.Experts say the greatest tragedy is that they are preventable with the right information and lifestyle changes.But in part two of this series on the crisis, Tetee…
“Next Epidemic” of Heart Disease, Diabetes, Mental Health and Cancers Can Be Prevented Says WHO Representative, But it Needs a Nationally Coordinated Approach
By Tetee Gebro with New Narratives In this series Tetee Gebro, senior reporter with Front Page Africa and New Narratives, examines what health experts call Liberia’s “next epidemic” and the barriers to helping Liberians retake control of their health. In 2018 Kulah Quaqua began her usual day waking up early, heading to her job as…
Whistleblower Protections in Place But Transparency Advocates Say They Are Useless Without Funding
By Joyclyn Wea with New Narratives It’s been four years since Sensee Morris took the brave decision to call out corruption. It’s a choice very few Liberians make, according to transparency advocates, because of the dangers involved. And Mr. Morris has paid a heavy price. As a deputy managing director of the Liberia Water and…
Christmas Momentum Fades in Liberia’s Bong County
Momentum for the 2024 Christmas and New Year holidays has faded. As with every part of Liberia, residents of Bong County, one of the country’s populous regions, have complained of economic hardship. They told Joseph Titus Yekeryan, our Bong County correspondent, that the issue prevents them from providing for their families during these holiday periods….
Hunger on The Rise in Liberia, According to Latest Global Hunger Index
Hunger in Liberia is “serious” according to the latest Global Hunger Index.The number of malnourished people has risen to two in every fiveChild “stunting”, death and wasting has not improved in eight yearsGovernment rejects findings and commits to increasing food production as you will hear in this report by Cyrus Harmon, New Narratives’ senior correspondent….
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…
Hunger on The Rise in Liberia, According to Latest Global Hunger Index
By Nemenlah Cyrus Harmon with New Narratives ELWA QUARRY, Monrovia — Fatu Moore pounds rocks hour after hour in this quarry on the outskirts of the capital. Her weathered hands tell a story of survival. For 35 years she has crushed rocks here under the hot sun, transforming boulders into gravel for income to feed…
Flood Victims Angry as Disaster Agency Aid Vanishes and No Help Arrives Six Months After Floods
Flood impacted communities in Liberia say they feel abandoned by government.They have accused the Disaster Management Agency staff of stealing aid en route.As Eric Opa Duoe, New Narratives’ senior correspondent reports, experts say much more needs to be done to protect communities as climate change makes rainy seasons more deadly. New Narratives’ Eric Opa Doue…
Government Declares Collapsed Cestos River Bridge “Beyond Repair” as Economic Shock Ripples Across South East
By Eric Opa Doue with New Narratives ITI, River Cess – Last month’s Cestos River Bridge collapse here in the south of River Cess county, has caused chaos across the country, severing the primary route from the capital to southeastern Liberia during the Christmas and new year holiday period. The bridge collapsed under the weight…
Gains and Setbacks for Women in New Government As Women Renew Push for Gender Quota Law Before 2029 Elections
By: Joyclyn Wea with New Narratives MONROVIA, Liberia—Joseph Boakai used his second State of the Nation Address this January to promote a big step for women: 39 percent of his ministers – seven out of 19 – are women, the highest ratio of female to male ministers in Liberia’s history. President Boakai hailed it as…
A Fragile Lifeline for Liberia’s Growing Number of Children Living in the Street Faces Uncertain Future As Donor Support Falls
By Nemenlah Cyrus Harmon with New Narratives GARDNERSVILLE, Montserrado —Harriet Mulbah’s eyes brighten as she describes her dream of becoming a nurse. Until recently, that dream seemed impossible for the thirteen-year-old who spent her days guiding her blind mother through Monrovia’s crowded streets, begging for money instead of attending school. Harriet is among the children…
US Aid Cut Will Have Devastating Impact on Liberian NGOs and the Aid Economy, Says One Local NGO Head
By Nemenlah Cyrus Harmon with New Narratives The sun was just coming up one morning last week when the chief of one local NGO received the email that threatens to have upended her life’s work. The email subject line “A Memo of Our Project, Stop Work Order Notice,” with the letter subject “Suspension Notice” was…
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…
As Liberia Debates War Crimes Court, Experts Urge Forced Marriage Be Treated as a Crime
By Anthony Stephens, senior justice correspondent with New Narratives Summary: As Liberia intensifies debate over establishing a long-awaited war crimes court, justice experts are urging lawmakers to explicitly criminalize forced marriage in the court’s founding statute, warning that failure to do so risks sidelining one of the civil wars’ most pervasive abuses. One of these…