THE BUREAU OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Monrovia, Liberia.

NEWS SUMMARY FOR THURSDAY, MARCH 26, 2015

News of the current status of Liberia's lone ebola patient, President Sirleaf's congratulatory message to Bangladesh, and the importation of huge petroleum underway, are the dominant articles in today's dailies.

DOMINANT STORIES

‘Lone Ebola Patient Stable’ – One Contact Suspected, Dr. Kateh Declares

The Deputy Head of the Incident Management Team on Ebola says the condition of the lone patient admitted at the Ebola Treatment Unit is stable as of Wednesday March 25, 2015. Dr. Francis N. Kateh spoke Wednesday at the Information Ministry press briefing on the Ebola virus disease in the country. He said, “The patient life is very important to us. We are doing everything possible to ensure that the patient survives. The patient is stable”, the New Republic reports.

Related Caption: New Ebola Patient Is Stable – Says Dr. Francis Kateh (West Africa INFO POST),  and IMS Confirms Isolation Of Active Ebola Contact (In Profile Daily)

Liberia Hails Bangadesh On 44th Independence Day

The Insight newspaper quotes a Foreign Ministry release: The President of the Republic of Liberia, Her Excellency Mrs. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, has sent a message of congratulations to the Government and People of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh on the occasion commemorating the 44^th Independence Anniversary of that country, March 26. In Her message to her Bangladeshicounterpart, H.E. Mr. Abdul Hamid, President Johnson Sirleaf extended sincere felicitations to the Government and People of Bangladeshon behalf of the Government and People of Liberia and in her own name; and prayed that the Almighty Allah continues to endow President Hamid with abundant wisdom and strength to lead his compatriots to greater prosperity. According to a Foreign Ministry's release, President Johnson Sirleaf then expressed hope that the two countries would work together to strengthen their ties of friendship and cooperation.

Related Caption:Ellen Congratulates Bangladesh On 44th Independence Day(Heritage), and Liberia Hails Bangladesh On 44th Independence Day (FOCUS), LPRC, Importers Strenthen Partnership(New Democrat)

Huge Fuel Importation Underway

The In Profile Daily pens that the price of fuel is expected to drastically reduce in mid 2015, following the decision by the Management of the Liberian Petroleum Refining Corporation (LPRC) to commence the importation of the product in the country, T. Nelson Williams informed journalists Wednesday, March 25, 2015. Economically, the decision by the Management of LPRC to begin heavy fuel importation into the country is also probable to decrease the cost of electricity and further boost economic activities.

Related Caption: LPRC Prepares For Heavy Fuel Importation (New Dawn), and Petroleum Importers Pledge Commitment To LPRCBoss (New Republic)

OTHER STORIES

 World Bank, EU Envoys Applaud Redlight-Gbarnga Road Project – As Gyude Moore Leads Assessment Tour

Significant progress has been made on the repaving of the dilapidated Red Light-Gbarnga-Guinea Border highway, World Bank, EU and Public Works officials said Tuesday (March 24) during a two-day road assessment tour being led by Public Works Minister William Gyude Moore. “I am impressed by the effort made by the contractors on the road”, World Bank Country Manager Inguna Dobraja said about progress on the 180.36 kilometers segment (costing US$166 million) from Red Light to Gbarnga, INSIGHT writes.

Related Caption: World Bank, EU Envoys Applaud Redlight-Gbarnga Road Project (West Africa INFO POST)

PCC Boss Identifies With Struggling Public School

The Heritage newspaper writes thatthe Mayor of the Paynesville City Corporation (PCC) Madam Cyvette M. Gibson has identified with the senior high division of the Paynesville Community School or PCS. As part of her kind gesture, the PCC boss donated three sets of commode and several copies of various books to the school on Wednesday, March 25, 2015. PCS, a government run institution, is said to have been faced with poor water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) condition over the years. Currently, students of the institution use pit latrines for defecation thereby ignoring the Ebola scourge in the country. Speaking during the donation of the items, Madam Gibson said the three sets of commode are aimed at improving the sanitary condition of the school, while the books will help improve the reading capacity of students at the institution. They noted that the donated books will also help improve their learning capacity.

Tolbert Nyenswah Co-panelist At Berlin Confab

Liberia's Assistant Minister and head of Liberia's Incident Management System, Tolbert Nyenswah is currently in Berlin Germany, as a Co-panelist at a form attended by the World's richest man, Bill Gates, the head of U.S. Center for Disease control and other global health experts. They are discussing a global framework and policy to properly handle any future disease outbreak in any part of the world. A session, which comprises health experts, was briefly hosted by German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, before her meeting with Greece's Prime Minister, reports the News newspaper.

All 30 Senators To Attend CRC Gbarnga Confab

The Senate Plenary on Tuesday unanimously agreed that all Senators attend the Constitution Review Commission (CRC) conference schedule to take place in Gbarnga, Bong Country from March 29 to April 2, 2015. The Senate reached the decision after the Chairperson of the CRC, Madam Gloria Musu Scott had presented a summary of the work of the Commission since it started in 2012. Madam Scott said over 500 people have been invited to attend the conference and informed lawmaker that several other equally important issues which were not highlighted in her briefing will be placed on the table for deliberation, reports the Daily Observer.

Liberia Launches U-Report Program

The Federation of Liberia Youth (FLY) with sponsorship from UNICEF Liberia Tuesday launched the U-Report program in Monrovia. The launch, which was held at the YMCA Gymnasium on Broad Street, brought together students from various institutions in and around Monrovia. U-Report is a social monitoring tool designed for young people and community residents to strengthen community development and citizens' engagements. The exercise allows citizens to speak out via SMS and other channels through polls and unsolicited messages, and results and ideas are shared with the community. Issues polled included health, education, water sanitation and hygiene, youth unemployment, HIV/AIDS, and disease outbreaks, among others writes the New Dawn newspaper.

Grand Gedeh Receives 100-Scholarship

According to the New Dawn newspaper, the Putu Iron Ore Mining Company in Liberia's Southeastern Grand Gedeh has awarded one hundred scholarships to students of the county. An official of the company told Grand Gedeh citizens at the Zwedru City Hall recently that the company was undertaking the initiative to motivate students of the county as well as encourage academic excellence in such difficult times.

Upper House Petitioned

In continuation of the observance of World Water Day in Liberia, the children of Liberia, represented by more than one hundred students from across the country Tuesday, march 24, 2015 petition the Liberian Senate. Reading the petition on behalf of the children, program organized by the Liberia CSOs WASH network in partnership with the Liberia WASH Consortium, Water Aid Liberia other partners, student Lucky Bartee, of the CDB King Elementary School, said that the government of Liberia made commitments to improve water and sanitation in the country through increasing water service access by at least five percent (55), increase water and sanitation access to primary schools and rural health facilities by at least ten percent, increase water and sanitation budgets annually by at least fifteen percent in real terms and to create separate budget lines in national budget for water and sanitation. Meanwhile, receiving the petition on behalf of the Liberian Senate, Senate Pro-Tempore, Amah Jallah of Gbarpolu County, assured the children of the Senate preparedness to work with various institutions working to ensure access to water in the country, saying “we will be prepared to work with the various institutions that are working to ensure access to water in the country”, West Africa INFO POST reports.

ACBC Donates US$1.5M Medical Items To Health Ministry – As Ministry now Contemplates On Building A ‘Resilient Post-Ebola health Sector’

The African & Caribbean Business Council (ACBC), has donated over one million dollar worth of assorted medical items to the Ministry of health. Members of ACBC, a Pennsylvania State non-for-profit corporation, headquartered in Philadelphia, donated the six 40-foot containers of medical items valued at US$1.5 million, on Monday, March 23, to authorities of the Health Ministry. The State of Arkansas Department of Health also made the donation possible. Speaking to journalists after presenting two of the six containers to the  Liberian government, through the Ministries of Health and Foreign Affairs, Mrs. Christine Maycole, a US-based Liberian and a member of ACBC, said as a Liberian, it is a part of her responsibility and duty to help rebuild her country’s broken health and education sectors. Speaking earlier, the Acting Minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Elias Shoninyan, said the donation, containing 2.5 million syringes and others, would still continue to be at health facilities even after the Ebola crisis. “I just want to say to the African & Caribbean Business Council that the Government of Liberia truly appreciates the gesture”, Acting Min. Shoninyan said. Deputy Minister for Administration at the Health Ministry, Mr. Matthew Flomo also stated that the Ministry was “overjoyed” to receive the six 40-foot containers of medical items. “We know that ACBC is here to help us”, INSIGHT reports.

Pres. Sirleaf Submits Air Service Bill For Enactment

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Tuesday submitted to the National Legislature for enactment “An Air Service and Reciprocal Promotion and Protection of Investments Bills between the Liberian Government and Qatar. According to the letter which was read separately in both the House of Representatives and Senate Tuesday, the agreement if passed will further grant both parties the right, irrespective of their international schedules, to fly across the other party’s international territory without landing and the right to make stops for non-traffic purposes. “The letter instruments signify the intentions of both countries to also create and maintain favorable conditions for employment by investors of one party in the territory of the other”, the letter said, West Africa INFO POST writes.

 West African Bloc To Hold Anti-Terrorism Meeting In Niger Republic

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) plans to organize a stakeholders meeting aimed at addressing terrorism challenges facing the region, an official said Monday. The meeting, themed “ECOWAS education for peace through inter religious dialogue”, is scheduled for October in Niger Republic, Abdoulaye Maga, ECOWAS Director of Education, Culture, Science and Technology said in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, The New Republic reports.

Two AFL Officers Undergoing Flight Training In Nigeria

Two personnel of the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) are undergoing two-year flight training in Nigeria, an official of government has announced. Deputy Information Minister Robert Kpadeh named the two officers as Second Lieutenants Varney A. Sirleaf and Jarrick J. Dwanah. He told the Ministry of Information daily press conference in Monrovia Tuesday that the training was part of efforts by the Ministry of National Defense to enhance the air capabilities of the AFL, West Africa INFO POST asserts.