THE BUREAU OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Monrovia, Liberia

NEWS SUMMARY FOR MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2015

Today’s summary of the local dailies included news of the launching by the United Nations of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, Sierra Leone Vice President’s call for Cuttington University graduates to be creative and innovative, the United States Government’s promise to support the Liberia National Police and the presentation of US$15,000 for the up-keep of siblings of the late Shaika Kamara who was shot dead on August 27, 2014 riot.

DOMINANT STORIES

Ellen Hails Adoption Of Post-2015 Development Agenda

Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, addressing the United Nations Summit for the Adoption of the Post-2015 Development Agenda last Friday declared that the successful implementation of the 2030 Development Agenda will depend largely on the concrete measures taken at the sub-national, national, regional and global levels. “We must craft ambitious national responses towards implementation of the Agenda,” President Sirleaf told the gathering. President Sirleaf is part of a 27-member panel appointed by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in July 2012 to advise on the global development framework beyond 2015, the target date for the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Former President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of Indonesia and Prime Minister David Cameron of the United Kingdom were also part of the panel, which includes leaders from civil society, private sector and government.

She said progress has been far from uniform across the world-or across the Goals and that there remain huge gaps across and within countries. Poverty remains the greatest challenge especially in rural areas, though urban poverty is also extensive, growing, and underreported by traditional indicators. The President said priorities are substantially integrated into both the 2015 agenda and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda. “Together these documents demand a universal commitment to the share vision of eradicating poverty and hunger, safeguarding our planet and opening the doors to prosperity for the benefit of people everywhere. Peaceful Societies and the revitalized global partnership are essential requirements for the achievement of these aspirations”, reports the FrontPage Africa newspaper.

Related Captions:President Sirleaf Joins World To Launch Agenda 20130, SDGs (FOCUS),UN Finally Adopts SDGs…To Reduce Poverty, Deaths Others(FOCUS), UN Finally Sustainable Development Goals(Heritage), President Sirleaf, Other African Leaders Speak On Continent’s Development(INSIGHT)

S/Leone VP Urges Cuttington Graduates

The Vice President of the Republic Sierra Leone has urged graduates of the Cuttington University to make a difference as they walk into the larger society. Vice President Victor Bockarie Foh, said governments being the largest employers in developing countries, graduates leaving universities should be innovative in making themselves self-reliant as government does not have the capacity to employ all of them, but they could become self-employ through innovative approaches. He told the graduates that creativities will enable them to gain respect of their colleagues and fellow citizens. Vice President Foh spoke Saturday, 26 September at the 54th graduation exercise of the Cuttington University in Suakoko, Bong County. Over 500 students graduated from the Graduate, Undergraduate and junior colleges of the university with degrees in various disciplines.  Vice President Foh also praised efforts of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf in cementing Liberia-Sierra Leone relationship. He said with Liberians and Sierra Leoneans working for the development of their respective countries after going through horrendous experiences, President Sirleaf has worked for the maintenance of good friendship between the two nations and peoples. During the ceremony, the administration of Cuttington conferred on Vice President Victor Bockarie Foh an honorary Doctorate degree. The 54th graduation closes the chapter of Dr. Henrique Tokpa as President of Cuttington. Dr. Tokpa, who resigned the post few months ago after 25 years of service, continues to receive commendations for his excellent leadership that saw massive improvement at the university. He is heavily being credited for the establishment of the Master’s Program, and Junior College as well as staff capacity building, among others. It was also under his administration that Cuttington University won the Exams Ethics Marshall Award as the best university in Liberia. The 54th graduation exercise was also attended by the Vice President of Liberia, Ambassador Joseph Boakai, and other high-profile officials of both governments. The New Dawn

Related Caption: “Be Creative, Innovative”…S/Leone Veep Tells CU Graduates (The News),554 Degrees: Cuttington University Grads Urge To Make Difference (FrontPage Africa)

U.S. Gov’t To Support Specialized Units Of LNP

Specialized subunits of the Liberia National Police (LNP) will receive continuous technical and professional support from United States of America (USA) amidst UNMIL drawdown; U.S. Ambassador Deborah R. Malac has promised. She committed the U.S. Government to support the LNP Emergency Response Unit (ERU) and the Police Support Unit (PSU) over the weekend when she made a courtesy visit to the LNP Headquarters in Monrovia. According to Ambassador Malac, the support her government has planned to give will help in professionalizing the two subunits with skills to maintain law and order in the country in preparation for the UNMIL drawdown. Speaking on behalf of the LNP during Ambassador Malac’s visit, Col. William K. Mulbah, LNP Deputy Director for Administration, thanked the US Government for its continuous assistance provided to the police especially the ERU and the PSU, INSIGHT reports.

Related Captions: US Gov’t Commits More Support To LNP(The New Republic), In The Wake Of UNMIL Drawdown: US Gov’t Promises More Support To LNP(Heritage)

Ellen Gives US$15K To Shaika Kamara Family

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has presented US$15,000 for the up-keep of siblings of the late Shaika Kamara who was shot dead on August 27, 2014 by an Armed Forces of Liberia soldier in West Point, Central Monrovia. The money which is also intended to sponsor Kamara’s siblings in school was provided through the intervention of the Inter-Religious Council of Liberia (IRCL). Presenting the money to the Kamara family at the Head office of the IRCL on Clay street in central Monrovia Saturday, the Secretary General of the IRCL, Saint John York, said a Memorandum of Understanding has been reached between the Kamara family and the IRCL to sponsor the schooling of Shaika Kamara’s siblings and not necessarily to compensate them. York explained that that the siblings – Luseini, Sam and Fanta Kamara will be catered to including their schooling and upkeep, the Informer newspaper reports.

Related Captions: Shaiki Kamara Family Finally Accepts Compensation(The New Republic), Ellen Gives US$15K To Shaika Kamara Family(Heritage)

OTHER STORIES

Poverty Gap Persists Ellen Tells UN Summit

A sub front page story of the New Democrat newspaper writes that admitting that the world made significant progress in the Millennium Development Goals (MGD), President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has lamented that a huge gab remains across and within some countries but expressed optimism that the new development agenda has called the attention of world leaders to the challenges ahead. "But progress has been far from uniform across the world or across the Goals. There remain huge gaps across and within countries. Poverty remains the greatest challenge especially in rural areas, though urban poverty is also extensive, growing, and underreported by traditional indicators," the president said. Addressing the United Nations Summit for the Adoption of the Post 2015 Development Agenda, on Friday, the President said the world has made significant progress in achieving many of the MDG targets adding that the average overall incomes have increased, extreme poverty has declined, child mortality rates have fallen life expectancy has risen and more people in the developing world have access to improved sanitation services, she said.

Ellen Seeks Road, Energy Investment Priority For Liberia

The FOCUS newspaper asserts that President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has urged western investors wanting to invest in Liberia to consider road, power and ports development, among other, as priority areas they could investment. She spoke at the CEO Investment Summit and Investment Business leader Award 2015 held in New York, U.S.A. over the weekend at the margins of the UN 70^th General Assembly. She stressed that Africa is still challenged with advancing the transformation of the continent and its peoples due to the profound infrastructural deficit that exists, particularly in West Africa. “Transformation is still lacking in Africa because its infrastructural development is limited. We must fix our infrastructural problems to be able to transform the continent”, she stressed.

Liberian Students Urged To Pursue Science Education

Liberian students are being urged to develop interest in the Sciences in their academic pursuit. The need for more students to study in the various sciences has been stressed by the USAID Excellence in Higher Education for Liberian Development Project (EHELD) being implemented by the Research Triangle Institute (RTI). Speaking at a two-day Open House and Leag program in Suakoko, Bong County recently, the USAID-Excellence in Higher Education for Liberia Development project chief of party, Yarkpazuo Kolva, said the Open House provides an opportunity for people to see what’s being done there in order to make informed decisions based on facts. He said the two-day exercise was geared at allowing people, especially students and organizations to have insight of what has been taking place in the past four years the USAID-EHELD project has been working with the Cuttington University College of Agriculture and Sustainable Development., writes the New Dawnnewspaper.

Related Caption:USAID-Eheld Wants More Science Students(New Democrat)

Ghana ECOMOG Soldiers Remembered

Ghana Navy has held its first ever "Remembrance Day" service for its officers, who lost their lives in peacekeeping operations, particularly during the ECOMOG intervention in Liberia when Ghana Navy Ship, YOGAGA, was shelled. It would be recalled that in August 1990, in the heat of the civil war in Liberia, a group of West African nations under the auspices of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) took an unprecedented step by sending a peacekeeping force known as ECOWAS Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) to Monrovia, the New Democrat writes.

Liberia Launches INDCs Document

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and its local and international partners have launched Liberia's Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs). The INDC document was officially launched at the weekend in Monrovia. Program marking the launch of the document brought together top government officials, environmentalists and other stakeholders. Established in 2003 through an Act of the Liberian Legislature, the EPA is the principle authority for implementing the national environmental policy and sustainable management law for the protection of natural resource in Liberia, the Heritage newspaper reports.   

USAID-GEMS Identifies With LRA – Gives Furniture And Equipment

Furniture and equipment, valued over US$100,000.00 have been donated to the Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA). The donation was made Wednesday by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Governance Economic Management Support Project (GEMS). Presenting the items to the LRA, USAID-GEMS Chief of Party Victoria Cooper Enchia, said the furniture and equipment are her organization’s technical support to the LRA Decentralized Revenue Collections Window, INSIGHT newspaper reports.

40 Refugees Get Land To Grow Crops

UNHCR partner Africa Humanitarian Action (AHA) handed over the first farm garden to 40 People Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWA), elderly persons and people with mental illnesses, all refugees, in the PTP refugee camp, Zwedru, Grand Gedeh country. This is the first handover pilot which serves as a good practice to further handover the farms to its growers. The programme, through which 120 persons are engaged in the growing of cassava, maize, beans, ground nuts, bitterballs and soybeans, is possible thanks to the immeasurable support from the refugee leadership, the host community as well as by UNHCR’s partners LRRRC, WHO, WFP, Care and Liberia’s Ministry of Agriculture, The Informer reports.

Related Caption: 40 Refugees Empowered To Grow Crops (INSIGHT)

PUL, UNDP Host Social Good Summit Today

The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Liberia in collaboration with the Press Union of Liberia (PUL) is to host its first Social Good Summit to highlight the ways in which new technology was harnessed to help tackle the Ebola outbreak in some of the  country’s most disadvantaged communities. Dr. Mosoka Fallah will lead a panel on technology and public health in the Liberian capital, Monrovia on September 28, 10:00am, at the West Point Administration Building to discuss how technology was used to collect and share Ebola related data, FOCUS reports.

S/Leone VP Commends Liberia Women

Sierra Leone Vice President Victor Bockarie Foh has commended Women of Liberia for the role they played in the 2012 Sierra Leone election which his party, the All People’s Congress (APC) won. He extended an invitation to Liberian women to visit Sierra Leone so that they can officially congratulate them for working with international electoral observers during their presidential, parliamentary and local council elections. According to him, Sierra Leone President Ernest Bai Kromah has signed a contract with a construction company to begin the rehabilitation of the road linking Liberia to Bo District in South-eastern Sierra Leone and will construct the bridge on the Sierra Leone side of the border, The Informerwrites.

Related Caption: S/Leone VP Commends Liberian Women(Daily Observer)

GoL Provides US$2m To 2,500 Public Schools

The Ministry of Education (MoE) has provided US$2 million to 2,500 public schools to develop a more efficient and effective school-based management system. Liberia’s Deputy Information Minister for Public Affairs Isaac Jackson made the disclosure during the Ministry of Information press briefing at the Ministry last Tuesday. Mr. Jackson explained that the money was provided under the Government of Liberia (GOL) Global Partnership for Education (GPE) arrangement for pay reform and teachers’ verification exercise. However, Jackson pointed out that the MOE will ensure that teaching and learning reach international standards as Liberia continues to develop, FOCUS writes.