By Joyclyn Wea, gender correspondent with New Narratives Summary: Liberian women’s health advocates have cautiously welcomed a government announcement that it is going to more closely regulate Misoprostol, a drug widely used to cause a medical abortion or to provide care for women facing life-threatening conditions during and after pregnancy. But they warn that the…
R. Joyclyn Wea
Women Across Party Lines Join Forces to Push Greater Representation in Government
At a meeting in Monrovia, women from major political parties acknowledged that despite their central role as voters, mobilizers, and organizers, they remain marginalized in leadership, holding just 10.7% of seats in the Legislature. The coalition, supported by UN Women and civil society groups, unveiled a revised constitution and strategic plan to strengthen advocacy, county…
Women Across Party Lines Join Forces to Push Greater Representation in Government
By Joyclyn Wea, gender correspondent with New Narratives Summary: In a political system where women occupy less than 11 percent of seats in the country’s Legislature – one of the lowest rates in the world – women from Liberia’s major political parties gathered Tuesday in an effort to overcome differences and work together to achieve…
Liberia’s Anti-Corruption Watchdog Asked Liberians to Report Corruption By Putting Allegations in Boxes – It Didn’t Work
Liberia’s anti‑corruption watchdog has admitted its plan to fight graft by placing “whistleblower boxes” in government buildings has failed, with fewer than three reports submitted in seven months as citizens fear retaliation for being seen near the boxes. Experts say the experiment highlights a deeper crisis of trust and safety in reporting corruption, and are…
Funding Cuts, Weak Oversight, And Hidden Traps: Experts Sound the Alarm on Liberia’s New U.S. Health Deal
Liberia’s new U.S. health deal is being sold as progress, but experts warn it may leave the country more vulnerable than ever. Funding for lifesaving programs has been slashed, oversight is weaker, and critical services for women and families could disappear just when Liberians need them most. Even more alarming, the agreement gives the U.S….
Liberia’s Anti-Corruption Watchdog Asked Liberians to Report Corruption By Putting Allegations in Boxes – It Didn’t Work
By Joyclyn Wea with New Narratives Summary: In August, the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission, hoping to encourage Liberians to call out what experts say is rampant corruption at every level of government, began placing whistleblower boxes across key government ministries, agencies, and police stations. They hoped people, particularly officials of government, would quietly report corruption and other illegal…
National ID Card Rollout Continues to Be Held Up by $1.7 Million Unpaid Government Debt
Liberia’s digital identity crisis is spiraling into a national emergency. Seven months after the government halted the rollout to “fix the system,” millions of Liberians remain locked out of banking halls, telecom services, and basic public systems—all because a US$1.7 million unpaid debt has left the country’s biometric database in the hands of a foreign…
Funding Cuts, Weak Oversight, And Hidden Traps: Experts Sound the Alarm on Liberia’s New U.S. Health Deal
By Joyclyn Wea, health reporter and New Narratives editors Summary: Late last year, the government of Liberia signed a five-year health agreement with the United States. President Joseph Boakai’s administration celebrated the deal as a step toward taking control of the country’s own health system. But health experts, former U.S. government officials, and civil society groups are raising serious…
“We Are Tired”: Women Demand Justice and Action on Gender Violence; Police Chief Promises Action
Women across Monrovia raised their voices in a powerful march demanding justice for Toni Jackson and urgent action to end the rising tide of gender‑based violence in Liberia. Carrying signs that read “We Are Tired,” they called on authorities to protect women and girls with the seriousness the crisis deserves. Police Inspector General Gregory Coleman…
“We Are Tired”: Women Demand Justice and Action on Gender Violence; Police Chief Promises Action
Scores of women dressed in black marched through Monrovia on Monday to demand justice for the wife of prominent Liberian economist Samuel Jackson, Toni Jackson and to call for stronger action against gender-based violence in Liberia.The women said Jackson’s death is not just one family’s tragedy, but part of a bigger problem facing women across…
National ID Card Rollout Continues to Be Held Up by $1.7 Million Unpaid Government Debt
By Joyclyn Wea and Tetee Gebro with New Narratives Summary Seven months after President Joseph Boakai halted Liberia’s national digital identity card rollout to “fix the system,” the National Identification Registry says Liberia still cannot run the system because it is locked by the Kenyan company that built it. The Registry says the company will…
Liberia’s Senior Women Lawyers to New Graduates: Be Brave, Work Hard, Fight for Your Place
By Joyclyn Wea and Tetee Gebro, gender reporters with New Narratives Summary: Some of Liberia’s most senior women lawyers gathered over the weekend under an outdoor canopy in front of the Charlyne M. Brumskine Law Group offices in Congo Town, Monrovia, to deliver a message to the country’s newest female law graduates: do not wait…
“We Are Tired”: Women Demand Justice and Action on Gender Violence; Police Chief Promises Action
By Joyclyn Wea, gender correspondent with New Narratives Summary: SINKOR, Monrovia— Dressed in black, chanting in anger and grief, scores of women marched through Monrovia on Monday to demand justice for Toni Jackson, the wife of Samuel Jackson, a prominent economist and political commentator, and to press the Liberian government to act more forcefully against gender-based…
Young Liberians March Demanding Stronger Government Action on Rape and Gender Based Violence
Young Liberians marched to the Women’s Peace Hub in Monrovia to demand real action on rape, saying that five years after the issue was declared a national emergency, cases are still rising and survivors are still fighting for justice; they delivered a petition calling for faster trials, stronger forensic services, better survivor support and an…
Young Liberians March Demanding Stronger Government Action on Rape and Gender Based Violence
By Joyclyn Wea, gender correspondent with New Narratives Summary: CONGO TOWN, Monrovia – Dozens of young Liberians marched through the streets of the capital to the Women’s Peace Hub here on Thursday for an anti-rape protest. They had planned to march on the nation’s Capitol building but government officials said they did not properly request…
Large Numbers Expected for Thursday’s Youth March On the Capitol AgainstRape and Other Forms of Gender Based Violence
Young Liberians are preparing to march on the Capitol on Thursday, demanding real action to stop the rise in rape and gender‑based violence. Despite a national emergency declared in 2020, cases continue to climb, and activists say survivors still face intimidation, delays, and unequal justice. Youth organizers want lawmakers to show concrete results—stronger investigations, fairer…
Large Numbers Expected for Thursday’s Youth March On the Capitol Against Rape and Other Forms of Gender Based Violence
By Joyclyn Wea with New Narratives Summary: Six years ago, former president George Weah won praise for declaring rape a national emergency. He promised a tougher response to sexual and gender-based violence. But little real change was evident, and the numbers kept rising. In 2024, the number of cases of rape, domestic violence, and other…
Ex-President Sirleaf Lashes Lawmakers in Capitol Speech, Calls Low Representation of Women Embarrassing
A former president’s address at the Capitol reignited debate over Liberia’s low number of women in political leadership, highlighting that women hold less than 11 percent of seats in the Legislature despite their historic role in securing peace and democracy. Advocates and women leaders say the problem stems from weak gender‑quota laws, political party practices…
Ex-President Sirleaf Lashes Lawmakers in Capitol Speech, Calls Low Representation of Women Embarrassing
By Joyclyn Wea, gender correspondent with New Narratives Summary: • Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberia’s former president, said the country should be ashamed that only 11 women serve in the 103-seat Legislature, a fact that is holding back the country’s development and peacebuilding. Advocates welcomed the president’s words, saying the low number reflects an unwillingness for…
Saudi Rice Shipment Becomes Early Test of Boakai Government’s Anti-Corruption Drive, But Experts Say Delay in Trial is Undermining Trust
Flood victims in River Cess and Margibi say they were left hungry and abandoned after the 2024 rains destroyed their homes, even as officials promised help that never came. Their stories now sit at the center of a major corruption case involving 25,000 bags of Saudi‑donated rice that prosecutors say were diverted instead of reaching…
Saudi Rice Shipment Becomes Early Test of Boakai Government’s Anti-Corruption Drive, But Experts Say Delay in Trial is Undermining Trust
By Joyclyn Wea and Nemenlah Cyrus Harmon with New Narratives Summary: ITI VILLAGE, River Cess County -When the rain came hard in 2024, residents here in this village in the southern part of the county described a disaster: floodwaters swallowed roads, farms, and homes, stranding people and pushing families into makeshift shelters. In the same…