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…
By Joyclyn Wea, senior reporter with New Narratives D. was 18 and had just entered the 12th grade in 2017 when she discovered she was pregnant. Like all teenage students, ambitious for a successful future – in her case as a banker – she feared having a baby would end her dreams. She also feared…
As the Liberian Senate considers a bill to legalize abortion, health experts say that growing access to safe abortion pills is already saving lives by reducing unsafe procedures that put women and girls at risk. Supporters of the bill argue that clear, legal access to reproductive health care is critical for protecting women’s health and…
After years of delays, construction of the long-awaited West Point Sea wall is finally set to begin later this year to protect coastal homes from erosion, even as plans will require the relocation of about 1,000 community members. Joyclyn Wea reports in this social media Video. To read more about this story click this link:…
Frustration is growing in Liberia as thousands are denied banking and other essential services due to a national ID enrollment backlog, while World Bank funding for more enrollment centers remains on hold because of government debt. Tetee Gebro reports in this social media Video. To read more about this story click this link: https://frontpageafricaonline.com/news/national-id-chaos-frustration-grows-as-banking-access-and-other-services-denied-amid-enrollment-backlog-world-bank-funding-for-more-centers-on-hold-because-of-government-debt/ This…
Weekend surges are increasingly threatening homes and properties in Sinkor as coastal erosion worsens along Liberia’s shoreline. Joyclyn Wea reports in this social media Video. To read more about this story click this link: https://frontpageafricaonline.com/news/liberia-weekend-surges-threaten-sinkor-properties-as-coastal-erosion-crisis-deepens/ This story was a collaboration with New Narratives as part of the “Investigating Liberia” project. The Swedish Embassy provided funding,…
Liberia has unveiled a new emissions reduction plan that aims to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 44 percent by 2030 as part of its climate commitments. Joyclyn Wea reports in this social media Video. To read more about this story click this link: https://frontpageafricaonline.com/news/liberia-unveils-emissions-reduction-plan-targets-44-percent-cut-by-2030/ This story was a collaboration with New Narratives as part of…
Liberia’s Anti-Corruption Commission has installed whistleblower boxes at key government institutions to give citizens and public servants a safe, anonymous way to report corruption in the country’s ongoing fight against graft. Joyclyn Wea reports in this social media Video. To read more about this story click this link: https://frontpageafricaonline.com/news/can-whistleblower-boxes-help-solve-liberias-corruption-problem-the-anti-corruption-commission-thinks-so/ This story was a collaboration with…
Following a chaotic rollout and mounting public frustration, the Liberian government has indefinitely suspended its controversial compulsory national identification program. The government announced the move in a press release from the Ministry of Information Monday. “The National Identification Registry (NIR) informs all public social service providers to take note and act in compliance with this…
By Tetee Gebro and Joyclyn Wea with New Narratives MONROVIA, Liberia—The Liberian government has extended the deadline for compulsory registration of national Identification Cards by 76 days. The move followed a chaotic rollout process that had sparked national outrage. Long queues, poor communication, and limited infrastructure had triggered widespread frustration and service denials for millions….
By Joyclyn Wea and Tetee Gebro with New Narratives MONROVIA, Liberia — Members of Liberia’s House of Representatives are pushing for the government to make the country’s mandatory National Identification Cards free of charge in the wake of the chaos and frustration surrounding the registration process. The National Identification Registry is charging $US5 for a…
By Tetee Gebro and Joyclyn Wea with New Narratives RED LIGHT, Monrovia – Rick Scott arrived at the National Identification Registry center here on a recent morning at 5 a.m., joining a line of hopeful citizens in the predawn darkness. By evening, the 54-year-old businessman returned home empty-handed for the fourth time in a week,…
By Joyclyn Wea, senior correspondent with New Narratives Summary: OLD ROAD, Monrovia – The wooden box bolted to the wall at the Ministry of Education looks ordinary enough. But according to the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission, the country’s independent corruption watchdog, this simple contraption could be a game-changer in the country’s long fight against entrenched corruption….
By Joyclyn Wea, senior correspondent with New Narratives Summary: Liberia has approved its third Nationally Determined Contribution committing to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 44 percent by 2030 and reach net-zero emissions by 2050. The plan, unveiled by Boakai government officials at a validation event with international partners and stakeholders at the Monrovia City Hall…
By Joyclyn Wea with New Narratives WEST POINT, Monrovia-When the sea turns rough, Elizabeth Gray and her family have nowhere to run. Water floods through their home in this low-lying informal settlement, forcing her three children to relieve themselves indoors while waves crash just meters from their door. As this year’s rainy season gets underway,…
Joyclyn Wea with New Narratives Summary · Ocean surges destroy fences along Liberia’s Sinkor coastline, with UN projections warning that 230,000 Liberians face losing their homes to rising seas by 2100 · Stark inequality emerges as former President George Weah’s residence stands protected by boulder barriers while neighboring properties are unprotected · Critical infrastructure is…
By Joyclyn Wea, senior correspondent with New Narratives with photography by Allison Hunter WEST POINT, Monrovia — As heavy rains batter the coast, fear thickens in West Point. Five years ago a storm surge took the home Sarah Gary’s father built when she was a child. Now Gary lives in a house just feet from the Atlantic’s…
Having a child is a time of profound joy for most mothers, and so it was for Anita when told she had given birth to a girl who she named Maureen. But Anita’s dream of living happily together with her family fell apart when she learned that her child had autism spectrum disorder, a neurological condition that affects communication, social interactions, and behavior….
MONROVIA, Liberia—With less than three months until vital presidential and legislative elections, Liberia’s political parties have defied their own commitments to fill 30 percent of their candidate ranks with women….
MONROVIA-It has been four years since a gas station and minimart owned by George Kailondo, the businessman and politician with the ruling Coalition for Democratic Change political party, were constructed on SKD Boulevard in Paynesville. The building, constructed on wetlands protected by the Liberian government under an international agreement to help save an important and…
It will come as no surprise to most Liberians that they are getting poorer. The average Liberian now lives on just $570 a year, down from $650 in 2013 according to the World Bank. That makes Liberia among the ten poorest nations in the world. It may surprise Liberians then, that their lawmakers are among…
