THE BUREAU OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Monrovia, Liberia

DAILY NEWS SUMMARY THURSDAY, APRIL 21, 2016

Dominating today’s news stories are President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf’s Congratulatory Message to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the investment of over US$1 billion by Government of Liberia and its partners in  the power sector.

Liberia Applauds Queen Elizabeth II

The Insight newspaper quotes a Foreign Ministry release: The President of the Republic of Liberia, Mrs. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, has sent a Message of Congratulations to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, of the United Kingdom, Canada and Her Other Realms, Territories, Head of the Commonwealth and Defender of the Faith, on the occasion commemorating her 90^th Birthday Anniversary, April 21, 2016. According to a Foreign Ministry release, in President Sirleaf’s Message to her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, she extended to the Government and people of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Barbados, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the Commonwealth nations, heartfelt greetings on behalf of the Government and people of the Republic of Liberia and in her own name. “As we join you in celebration, we pay tribute to you as the longest serving monarch in British history, whose modesty and call for national duty as citizen inspired trust and rallied all British citizens during the Second World War and beyond; these distinct attributes of yours remind all leaders of the sacred obligations to their people,” the Liberian lead stated. President Sirleaf furthered that in these reflections, the Government of Liberia is appreciative of the friendship and good understanding which so happily subsist between the United Kingdom and Liberia, since the United Kingdom’s recognition of Liberia’s declaration of nationhood in 1848. The Liberia leader then wished Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth good health as she joins in the activities commemorating her 90^th birthday anniversary and for the Government and peoples under Her Majesty’s leadership the blessing of peace, unity and prosperity.

Related Captions:Ellen Congratulates Queen Elizabeth On 90^th Birthday(Heritage),and President Sirleaf Congratulates Queen Elizabeth On Her 90^th Birthday(Daily Observer)

GoL, Partners Invest Over US$1bn In Power Sector

The Government of Liberia and partners are investing over US$1 billion in the country's electric power generation sector, Lands, Mines and Energy Minister Patrick Sendolo has disclosed. Making the disclosure Tuesday at the Ministry of Information regular press briefing in Monrovia, Sendolo said as part of the project, government will on Saturday, April 30, put on line its newest funded 18-megawatt power plant situated on Bushrod Island., FOCUS newspaper reports.

Related Captions:New Power Plant Gets On Line On April 30(Insight), Liberia Applauds Queen Elizabeth II(News),and New Power Plant Gets On Line On April 30(Insight)

Other Stories   

GoL Welcomes U.S. Human Rights Report 

According to theNew Dawn newspaper, the Government of Liberia through the Ministry of Information Cultural Affairs and Tourism (MICAT) has welcomed the 2015 Human Rights Report on Liberia, released by the U.S. State Department, over the weekend. The government has called on citizens, including critics not to only identify negative aspects of the report that talk about the judicial system and the police, among others, but should also look at its positive aspects, which talk about performance and progress the country has achieved in terms of prosecuting corrupt officials and rights violators. Information Minister Lenn Eugene Nagbe, who addressed the regular press briefing Tuesday of his Ministry said, “We as a government welcome this report from the U.S. State Department; we think it meets the standard we identified in our gaps, and our progress as a nation; we understand that there is much to be done in our judicial system and other areas of development.” The Country Reports on Human Rights Practices are submitted annually by the U.S. Department of State to the U.S. Congress in compliance with sections 116(d) and 502B(b) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (FAA), as amended, and section 504 of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended. The reports cover internationally recognized individual, civil, political, and worker rights, as set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

2 Persons Leave ETU

The Chief Medical Officer of Liberia Dr. Francis Kateh has disclosed here that only two persons are presently in Ebola Treatment Unit, while 58 others are on the verge of completing 21-day observatory period after they were discharged. Speaking Wednesday in Monrovia, Dr. Kateh said the 58 persons are now Ebola-freed and counting up to April 28, to be formally certified. He expressed confidence that the remaining two in the ETU will come out successfully. Dr. Kateh urged Liberians to make use of Ebola vaccines being administered to people, saying about 196 doses of the vaccine have been given to 196 Liberians to help prevent them from contracting the virus. The chief medical officer also urged community leaders to call the Ebola team immediately whenever there is death in their respective communities so the body can be swapped before burial to determine if the victim died of Ebola or not, reports the New Dawn newspaper.

USAID Pledges to Support Local Businesses in Liberia

The FrontPage Africa newspaper reports that the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has pledged to continue to support local businesses in Liberia as the mandate of the Investing for Business Expansion (IBEX) expires in the country.  The objective of IBEX’s four-year mandate was to build the capacity of partner banks to fully utilize USAID's Development Credit Authority risk guarantee and provide technical assistance to borrowers at small- and medium-sized enterprises. Now that the tenure of IBEX’s mandate has expired, the Mission Director of USAID, Dr. Anthony S. Chan, says there is an enormous scope for investment in local businesses in Liberia, saying micro, small and medium sized enterprises are critical to providing employment. He noted that USAID has strengthened enterprises in hospitality, construction, transportation, general merchandise, and healthcare. Director Chan said through IBEX, USAID has taken a strategic and comprehensive approach to business development in Liberia, focusing on empowering local small businesses. According to him the objectives of IBEX are aligned with the priorities identified by the Government of Liberia under the Agenda for Transformation.

Ebola Recovery Package: Female Survivors, Orphans Benefit Items

The FrontPage Africa newspaper writs that the Liberia Coca Cola Bottling Company (LCCBC) and the Africa Coca Cola Foundation (ACCF) in partnership with Business Link Humanitarian Aid Wednesday identified with Ebola survivors and orphans through an Economic Recovery program initiated by the two institutions. Speaking during a tour at school facilities and market places where goods were purchased for the women, the Director of Business Link Humanitarian Aid, Madam  Edwina Vakun-Lincoln, said that the empowerment initiative is the organization’s own way of contributing to the nation’s post-Ebola recovery plan. During the tour, school fees for several children in the slum Township of West Point, who were made orphans during the Ebola outbreak were paid and many women received assorted goods for business empowerment.  Madam Vakun-Lincoln stated that the program started during the heat of the outbreak of the Ebola Virus Disease in the country when Business Link Humanitarian Aid began looking out for funding from different donor organizations in 2014. She indicated that the initiative is targeting 100 women who will be educated on how to build their capacities after Ebola by becoming self-sufficient. The project which is sponsored by the Liberia Coca Cola Bottling Company (LCCBC) and the Coca-Cola Africa Foundation in collaboration with the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection (MoGSP), the Ebola Virus Disease Survivors Network, and Unions and Community Leaders — is targeting a total of 1,000 female survivors and affected women of the Ebola Virus Disease, and 500 girls left orphaned by EVD. 

PREVAIL; Survivors Network Gets US$24m For Clinic Care

The Partnership for Research on the Ebola Virus Disease in Liberia (PREVAIL) in collaboration with the Ebola Survivors Network of Liberia has taken a giant step forward to expeditiously address health complications diagnosed in Ebola Survivors who have enrolled into the Ebola Natural History Study. At part of the Clinical Research Study on Ebola Survivors and their close contacts, those diagnose of medical complications are referred to government-run health facilities in the country for treatment since PREVAIL as a research organization does not provide clinical treatment. However, following reports that Ebola survivors seeking treatment at various government-run medical centers were being slowly attended to, and that in some cases needed drugs for their various ailments were not readily available, the President of the Ebola Survivors Network of Liberia Mr. Patrick Farley has announced that with the help of PREVAIL, international partners have committed US$24 million to address the clinical needs of Ebola survivors in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone, reports the Informer newspaper.

Related Caption: PREVAIL, Survivors Network Secure US$24M For Clinic Care(Heritage)

6-Month TPS Extension For MRU Ebola Refugees

According to Daily Observer, Secretary of Homeland Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson has extended the designations of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for an additional six months. Although there have been significant improvements in the conditions in all three countries since their designations for TPS in November 2014, the lingering effects of the Ebola Virus Disease outbreak and continued recovery challenges support this six-month extension. The extended designation is effective May 22, 2016, through November 21, 2016.

Pres. Sirleaf To Break Ground For 40km Gbarpolu Road

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf will lead an array of government officials, including members of the Gbarpolu County Legislative Caucus, on Friday to break grounds for the construction of a 40-kilometer road in Gbarpolu County. The road, according to Gbarpolu County Senator Armah Jallah, will connect Muan-Kwelleh to Palaquelleh and several other towns and villages in Gainwolala District. Making the disclosure to the Liberia News Agency Wednesday, Senate President Pro-Tempore Jallah said the groundbreaking will pave the way for the construction of several other feeder roads in the county, FOCUS newspaper writes.

Related Caption:Gbarpolu Gets New Road Soon(News)

World Bank Approves US$27m For Mini-Hydro In Lofa

Lands, Mines and Energy Minister Patrick Sendolo has disclosed that the World Bank has approved US$27 million for a hydro-diesel project in Lofa County. The project will include the construction of a one to two megawatt mini-hydro plant in the Kaiha River and acquisition of a back-up diesel generator. Minister Sendolo made the disclosure Tuesday during the Ministry of Information regular press briefing in Monrovia, FOCUS newspaper reports.

Related Caption:World Bank Approves US$27M For Mini-Hydro In Lofa(Heritage)

GOL, Partners To Dedicate Three Service Centers

The Government of Liberia and partners will today, Thursday begin the formal opening of three County Service Centers (CSCs) beginning with the one in Kakata, Margibi County. A release from the Ministry of Internal Affairs says President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf will perform the official opening ceremonies along with an array of government officials, development partners and members of the diplomatic corps. They  are also expected to formally open the Bong County Service Center in Gbarnga City on Monday, April 25 and the Nimba County Service Center in Sanniquellie City on April 26, the release said. According to the  release, the visiting State Secretary for International Development Cooperation of Sweden, Ms. Ulrika Modeer, is also expected to grace the opening of the Margibi County CSC, Heritage newspaper asserts.

Partners Review Small Arms Project First Quarter Implementation

The Liberia National Commission on Small Arms (LiNCSA) and partners have concluded a day-long National Technical Committee review meeting on the first quarter implementation (January to March 2016) of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) - European Union (EU) Small Arms Project. The ECOWAS-EU Small Arms Project is a US$5.5 million (Euro) pilot project covering seven countries: Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger and Nigeria (2015-2017), funded by EU and implemented by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). It seeks to among other  things, create awareness on to dangers link to the small arms and light weapons proliferation, build capacities of national institutions, including civil society organizations and security forces and carry out community-based development projects implementation. In his introductory statement at the opening of the day long first quarter meeting of the National Technical Committee, the Chairman of the Liberia National Commission on Small Arms said the Technical Committee meeting presents an opportunity for ensuring that the challenges identified receive early response from the steering Committee that is expected to meet late April in Nigeria, Heritage newspaper writes.