Since the end of the civil conflicts in 2003 there has been no comprehensive assessment of the state of Liberians mental health. But experts say there is no doubt that at least a million of us are suffering.And as Liberia begins the process to hold accused perpetrators to account in a war crimes court, experts…
By Nemenlah Cyrus Harmon, New Narrative Climate and Enviromental Reporter Summary · Liberia’s wetlands are rapidly disappearing due to illegal settlements, weak enforcement of environmental laws, and public neglect, with the Mesurado Wetlands in Greater Monrovia among the hardest hit, environmental authorities warned during World Wetlands Day. · EPA officials revealed severe ecological damage, including…
By Joyclyn Wea, New Narratives health correspondent Summary When a pregnancy turns dangerous, doctors do not always have time to debate words. Liberian pharmacist and former politician Joseph Somwarbi told a recent workshop in Monrovia that abortion opponents have taken advantage of the issue to score political points at the cost of thousands of Liberian women’s…
By Tetee Gebro, gender reporter with New Narratives Summary: The Liberian government has approved an emergency relocation for the family of an eight-year-old rape survivor after her mother reported intimidation, unauthorized filming, and repeated visits by strangers following media coverage of the case. Officials say the intervention was driven by safety concerns, underscoring both the real risks…
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…
By Aria Deemie with New Narratives The United States Congress passed the “Big, Beautiful Bill,” which President Donald Trump signed into law on Friday. The Senate sharply reduced a controversial tax on remittances, money sent abroad by immigrants from an initial 5 percent proposal to 3.5 percent, and finally to 1 percent, easing the burden…
By Aria Deemie with New Narratives As civil society organizations intensify calls for debt cancellation and fiscal reform, the Liberian government has defended what it calls a deliberate effort to rebuild trust with global lenders. Alice E. Williams, assistant minister for External Resources and Debt Management at the Ministry of Finance, acknowledged the country’s historic…
By Aria Deemie with New Narratives In a quiet office on the outskirts of Monrovia, Isaac Success Yomah manages a stream of transactions from Liberians collecting money sent by loved ones abroad, mostly from the United States. It’s steady business, and for many of his customers, essential. But a provision in President Trump’s so-called “Big Beautiful Bill“ put…
By Aria Deemie, climate, environment and science reporter with New Narratives Liberia’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), has shut down and seized the equipment of a Liberian-Chinese mining company over alleged illegal operations and given 7-day ultimatums to a number of others, including a fully Chinese owned company. Scott Investment is co-owned by Gao Freng, a Chinese national,…
By Aria Deemie, climate and environment reporter with New Narratives Summary: SENJEH DISTRICT, Bomi County, Liberia — Sweat beads on Charles McGill’s brow as he lifts a cutlass and slams it into a log, the forest crackling with midday heat. At 89, he should be resting. Instead, he’s helping fuel Liberia’s booming charcoal trade, one of…
By Aria Deemie, climate, environment, and science reporter with New Narratives CONGO TOWN, Montserrado—Residents of the community housing Lonestar Cell MTN say they are “happy” for the recent $US15,000 fine imposed on the company by Liberia’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The fine, one of the first since the 2004 Environmental Protection and Management Law of Liberia came into effect,…
The lawyer for a 14-year-old rape survivor challenges the credibility of police conclusions that cleared former government official Bryant McGill, calling for full transparency in an investigation that many fear undermines trust in Liberia’s justice system. Tetee Gebro reports in this social media Video. To read more about this story click this link: https://frontpageafricaonline.com/news/liberian-government-relocates-rape-survivor-family-over-safety-threats/ This story…
By Aria Deemie with New Narratives VARNEY GOWAH TOWN, Montserrado – Kulah Tokpah arrives home from her farm, exhausted, her arms burdened with firewood for the meal she is preparing for men clearing her new plot of land. Her once fertile farm is now a patchwork of withered crops, cracked soil, and dead plants. Kulah…
By Evelyn Kpadeh Seagbeh with New Narratives TUBMANBURG, Bomi County – Under a hot afternoon sun, Massa Kollie stirs a mixture of caustic soda and oil, her bare hands working methodically. Sweat trickles down her face and arms as she labors to make iron soap with no safety gear. It’s a livelihood born of necessity….
In this Kool FM/New Narratives radio report, listeners travel to rural Liberia where the twin forces of deforestation and climate change are leaving communities dangerously exposed to more frequent and devastating windstorms. Across counties like Nimba and Rivercess, families who once relied on forests as natural barriers now find their homes and livelihoods laid bare…
We bring listeners to communities across Liberia reeling from what many describe as the worst rainy season in memory, with floodwaters submerging homes, forcing tens of thousands from their villages, and claiming lives as experts warn these disasters signal an even more volatile climate future. Through the voices of mothers, farmers, and local leaders on…
By Evelyn Kpadeh Seagbeh with New Narratives ROBERTSPORT, Grand Cape Mount County – Francis Gray points to a small mound under a banana tree with a yellow flower planted on the top. The tiny grave holds the remains of his 19-month-old daughter, Linda. Linda was the center of Francis’ and her mother Amie Sheriff’s world…
By Joseph Daniels and Khushali Haji with New Narratives As the Government of Liberia plans ahead to sell off forests for carbon credit markets, forest communities worry about livelihoods. KPATAWEE, Bong County – Bennie Vio walks slowly, a sharp machete resting on his shoulder, observing the growth of the crops he and his family planted…
By Eric Opa Doue with New Narratives GLANYAH, River Cess – A week of relentless rainfall has plunged the traditional town of Glanyah into chaos, as rising waters swallowed homes and displaced hundreds of residents. This once-thriving community, established in the late 1970s by farmers and hunters, now faces an unprecedented crisis, with 27 houses…
A Liberian civil war survivor says the deportation of former LURD commander Mayama Sesay, also known as “Black Diamond,” has left him fearing for his safety, Anthony Stephens reports in this social media video. To read more about this story click this link: https://tinyurl.com/3p5w4v9p This story is a collaboration with New Narratives as part of the “Investigating…
By Eric Opa Doue with New Narratives ZAMMIE TOWN, River Cess – It is not yet midday and Odel Morris is already out of water. Most of the customers of her business, selling tea, coffee and snacks here in this rural part of the county are leaving, without being served. Morris says she has been doing for…
