By Eric Opa Doue with New Narratives KANGBO TOWN, River Cess— On a hot morning in this forest-fringed village of Gborgar Town deep in south-central Liberia, Marthaline Gbar sits hunched outside her zinc-roofed home, stirring a pot of simmering cassava leaves. The pot, barely half full, was meant to stretch across four children aged 5…
‘I Smile in Public and Die Inside’; New Mothers Suffer Alone With A Condition That Devastates Families
By Augusta S. Lafalay with New Narratives Summary: · Liberian mothers face a hidden postpartum depression crisis, with cultural stigma, spiritual beliefs, and lack of diagnosis leaving many to suffer in silence. · Experts warn that inadequate screening and minimal funding are undermining maternal mental health, destabilizing families and worsening outcomes for children. · Survivors…
Radio: As Rural Healthcare Struggles, One Lofa Entrepreneur Steps Up to Bridge the Gap
In Liberia’s remote northern counties, accessing basic healthcare can mean walking miles, only to find that the medicine you need isn’t there.But in Lofa County, one young nurse is pushing against the odds. With no formal support, he’s building something rare: a self-funded health service that’s quietly reshaping lives in communities left behind and showing…
“We’re Failing a Generation,” Experts Say President Boakai’s Drug War Lacks Urgency as Generation Slips Through the Cracks
This story was a collaboration with New Narratives as part of the “Investigating Liberia” project. The Swedish Embassy provided funding, but the founder had no say in the story’s content….
New Report Recommends Holistic Approach to Drug Crisis; Calls for Joint Taskforce Against Drug Trafficking In The Mano River Area
By Nemenlah Cyrus Harmon with New Narratives Liberia is facing a full-blown drug crisis according to a new report that finds the reasons for the crisis are rooted in poverty, failures of post war justice, unemployment and a growing regional drug trade. The report, the first to look at the reasons for the growing problem,…
Report Confirms Weah Government Failure to Fund Coastal Defense Project Delayed Progress for Years Costing Homes and Livelihoods
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,…
“We’re Failing a Generation,” Experts Say President Boakai’s Drug War Lacks Urgency as Generation Slips Through the Cracks
By Nemenlah Cyrus Harmon, senior reporter with New Narratives Mount Barclay, Johnsonville —Inside a fenced compound lined with barbed wire Jakuba Kamara sits quietly among dozens of recovering youths once gripped by drug addiction. After six months at this rehabilitation center Kamara reflects on the harrowing life he left behind. The 42-year-old remembers the stench…
Weekend Surges Threaten Sinkor Properties as Coastal Erosion Crisis Deepens
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…
Economy Deeply Hit by Aid Cuts as Jobs Are Lost and Local Businesses See Huge Drop in Income
By Anthony Stephens and Allison Hunter with New Narratives Summary: Caroline Armah is exactly the sort of person the development world has tried to champion. The 33-year-old entrepreneur is building a business solving one of the most fundamental problems Liberia faces: affordable, childhood nutrition. Armah’s business Calaw Foodssells a nutritional supplement made of finely ground…
Liberia’s New Tourism Authority Wants a Piece of West Africa’s Multi-Billion Dollar Tourism Sector But Challenges Abound
By Aria Deemie and Jake Duffy with New Narratives Summary: PAYNESVILLE, Montserrado – On a warm Saturday afternoon, Chris Onanuga, Liberia’s newly appointed presidential envoy for tourism, mingles with young people at a recreation day in Voka Mission. Some kick a football; others seek shade beneath sprawling trees. To Onanuga, the scene is something more…
Liberia Faces Persistent Human Rights Issues According to Latest US Human Rights Report
By Aria Deemie with New Narratives Despite a raft of government reforms and international partnerships, Liberia continues to face serious human rights challenges, according to the 2024 U.S. Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices released this week. The report found there were no significant changes in the human rights situation in Liberia…
Conservationists Raise Alarm as “Eco-guards” Resume Hunting in Nimba Reserve
By Jerome Saye with New Narratives Summary: GBOBAYEE TOWN, Nimba County – It is evening here as Paul Flomo hangs his single barrel shot gun over his shoulder and heads into the forest to hunt. Not so long ago it was Paul’s job to stop hunting in this ecologically rich part of the Nimba Mountain…
Nobel Laureate Gbowee Pushes for War Crimes Court Office to be Made Statutory Body; Some Activists Disagree
By Anthony Stephens, senior justice correspondent with New Narratives Leymah Gbowee, one of Liberia’s most celebrated peace activists, on Wednesday called on the country’s Legislature to pass a law making the Office of the War and Economic Crimes Court of Liberia a statutory body, thereby protecting it from the whims of a future president who…
Citizens’ Fury Boils Over as Monrovia Residents Torch Drug Den
By Nemenlah Cyrus Harmon and Anthony Stephens with New Narratives Summary: · Residents of Saye Town in Monrovia have destroyed a notorious drug den, accusing authorities of years of inaction against crime and addiction in their community. · The Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency welcomed the raid, but locals remain distrustful, citing alleged collusion between some…
Lonestar Cell Sues EPA Over Noise Fine, Agency Confirms
By Aria Deemie, Environment Reporter New Narratives Summary: Liberia’s Environmental Protection Agency said it is facing a legal challenge after telecom company Lonestar Cell filed a lawsuit contesting a $US15,000 fine for noise pollution at its Congo Town facility. The case, filed on May 27, is currently before the Civil Law Court in Monrovia. According…
Experts Say Liberia’s New Environment Lab Could Slash Pollution if the Government Matches it With Enforcement
By Aria Deemie, climate change reporter New Narratives Summary: Experts say Liberia’s new fully equipped environmental laboratory is a breakthrough that could transform how the country tackles pollution. The laboratory, launched last month by the Environmental Protection Agency, will allow EPA technicians to conduct forensic testing on air, water, and soil samples, allowing them to…
After Years of Delay, Sea Wall Funded by Global Climate Financing Set to Begin Construction as 1000 Community Members Await Relocation
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…
As Rural Healthcare Struggles, One Lofa Entrepreneur Steps Up to Bridge the Gap
By James Papy Kwabo Jr. and Peter Kollie with Alternate Youth Radio and New Narratives ZORZOR, Lofa County – In a region where access to essential medicine can determine whether someone lives or dies, one young nurse is quietly building a health movement from the ground up. Despite the lack of support for entrepreneurs in…
Experts Say Liberia’s Security Council Seat Could Strengthen Push for Climate Security, as U.N. High Court Issues Landmark Ruling
Summary: By Aria Deemie, climate change reporter with New Narratives In a historic ruling, the United Nations’ highest court has declared that countries have a legal duty to act on climate change, a decision advocates say could reshape global climate diplomacy. The ruling comes as Liberia regains a seat on the U.N. Security Council for…
“We Are Not Ready”: As Rainy Season Gets Underway Disaster Agency Goes Unfunded With Hundreds of Thousands at Risk
By Aria Deemie, climate change reporter with New Narratives As Liberia’s rainy season gets underway, the country’s national disaster agency warns it is not prepared for what could become one of the worst flooding seasons in recent history. International forecasts warn that more than 825,000 people are at risk in the coming weeks. As the…
As “Lifestyle” Diseases Surge, Ganta Hospital Leads Fight Against Diabetes
By Tetee Gebro with New Narratives GANTA, Nimba County — McArthur Davis was 18 when doctors told him to burn his clothes to cure what they thought was an infection. His vision was failing, sores covered his body, and though clinic after clinic had treated him, he never got better. It wasn’t until he reached…