THE BUREAU OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Monrovia, Liberia

NEWS SUMMARY FOR WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

Stories on the just ended Small and Medium-size Enterprises conference held in Monrovia, the signing of the book of condolence at the French Embassy near Monrovia by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the ongoing University of Liberia Symposium and UNDP supports to youth are the dominant stories in today’s dailies.

Dominant Stories  

J-Palm CEO Calls For ‘Portfolio Approach’ To Invest In Liberia 

The Daily Observer reports that the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the J-Palm Liberia, Mahmud Johnson, has stressed the need for government, investors and partners to take a portfolio approach in investing in Liberia to circumvent the failing of some businesses in the country. Mr. Johnson made the assertion yesterday when he served as Keynote Speaker at the 2015 Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSME) Conference held at the Monrovia City Hall. The MSME Conference was held under the theme, “From Vision to Implementation, Buying Liberian, Building Liberia,” and featured 50 Liberian SMEs. According to him, in order to create thriving youth entrepreneurship ecosystem in Liberia, business owners have to become comfortable with the concept of risk. “A perennial problem we face is financing. To mitigate risks, traditional financial institutions in Liberia require loan applicants to possess a strong track record, and assets to serve as collateral. As young entrepreneurs, most of us have only been alive for maybe two or three decades,” Mr. Johnson said. He also said that most youth businesses in Liberia are creating the enterprises of future, which are using technology, internet, social media, and innovative marketing strategies to better serve their customers, and seeking “to address emerging social problems in innovative new ways.”

Related Caption:Pres. Sirleaf Prods Liberia Entrepreneurs on 25% Market Share(FOCUS),Ellen Says Entrepreneurs Are Emerging Pillars Of Growth And Job Creation” (FrontPage Africa), Ellen Graves Liberian Entrepreneurs At MSME Confab(Heritage),andEllen Wants Liberia Use Small Business Act (Inquirer)

Ellen Describes Paris Attacks as She Signs Book of Condolence at French Embassy

According to the Daily Observer, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has described the Paris attacks that left 129 people dead and over 90 persons severely wounded as a “senseless tragedy.” The President made the statement in a very somber mood yesterday when she was escorted by some of her officials to the French Embassy in Monrovia to sign the Book of Condolence. President Sirleaf early yesterday entered the courtyard of the French Embassy where almost all of her lieutenants were awaiting her, and briefly chatted with Ambassador Joël Godeau before proceeding to sign the Book of Condolence. The President said signing the Book of Condolence was to show solidarity with the French people. “We are here to express our sadness over the tragedy that happened in Paris and to express our condolences to the Government and People of France for the loss of so many lives,” President Sirleaf told reporters after signing the book. “We want to express our sympathy for such a senseless tragedy against the people of France,” President Sirleaf said, adding: “Anyone who hurts another country through the act of terrorism is doing the same to us, and we must stand with the people of France in this time of sadness.” She said Liberia is a great friend of France and will always stand with that country, especially in times like these. French Ambassador to Liberia, Joel Godeau, said his country appreciates the support of the government and people of Liberia. The French Envoy said the attacks were indeed an act of war against France and that the country will react decisively as the President, Francois Hollande, has said. “In such circumstances, we even need the support of all of our friends all over the world. And so we are grateful to see a country like Liberia come and express their solidarity with the French people,” he said.

Related Caption:“Senseless Tragedy”(The New Dawn)andPres. Sirleaf, Other Sign Book of Condolence At French Embassy(FOCUS)

UL Holds Symposium

Several academics from the University of Liberia and elsewhere are expected to deliver papers on how they believe the Nation can be impacted through graduate and professional education at a one-day symposium under the theme “The Role of Graduate and Professional Education in National Development. The New Dawn newspaper quotes a release as saying that university authorities said the symposium which is being held under the auspices of the School of Graduate and Professional Education starts on Wednesday, November 18, 2015, on the Capitol Hill Campus of the University of Liberia. The Dean of the Louis Arthur Grimes School of Law & Vice President/General Counsel of the UL Counselor David A. B. Jallah will speak on the topic “Legal Education,” while his colleague Dr. Vuyu Kanda Golakai, MD, Dean of the A. M. Dogliotti College of Medicine and Vice President for Health Sciences, will speak on the topic “The Role of Medical Education.” The newly appointed Acting Dean of Liberia College Prof. Dr. William Allen will address the topic “Social Science and Humanities,” while Prof. Dr. Samuel Ngaima, of the UL Graduate School, will speak on the topic “Financing Graduate and Professional Education—A Comparative Analysis of Select Tertiary Institutions in the West Africa Sub-region.” The daily says Academics from other institutions who are expected to deliver papers.

Related Caption:UL Holds Symposium On How Graduate And Professional Educational Can Impact National Development(Heritage and Inquirer)

UNDP Supports Youth-Focused Vocational Skills Training Partnership

UNDP in partnership with the Center Songhai Liberia (CSL) based in Bensonville, Bentol City, Montserrado County is to shortly launch a 4-months Youth-Focused Vocation/Skills Training targeting mainly young people. Some 200 youths will benefit from this training and trainee recruitment is currently underway. UNDP is investing some US$300,000 dollars on this programme, The Analyst reports.

Skills Training Partnership(Heritage), and UNDP To Launch Youth Skills Training Program(In Related caption:UNDP Takes Youths Vocational Program to Bensonville(FOCUS),UNDP Supports Youth-Focused Vocational Profile Daily)

Others

French Embassy Observes Memorial Service For Massacre Back Home

It was not moments of smiles at the French Embassy in Liberia yesterday, but moments of memories for the Friday, November 13, 2015 Islamic extremists' mass killings in Paris at different locations which currently dominate headlines on international wires and print media around the world. French Ambassador accredited to Liberia, Joel Godeau, who spoke to journalists yesterday following his formal memorial service statement delivered in French to his fellow compatriots in Liberia, termed the moments occasioned by the terrorists' attacks as difficult for France, but assured the public that his country will appropriately retaliate against the so-called IS fanatics. Ambassador Godeau with a deep sense of sorrow, expressed strong condemnation for the in discriminatory killings of innocent people at the Friday night during dinners and other social interactions, noting, “ you know during Friday night's; Saturdays nights people like to go out for dinners…..”Among places which were hard hit by the terrorists, Ambassador Godeau emphasized on the premises of a concert in Paris where he disclosed about 1,500 people, mostly youth, converged and about ninety persons got killed during the attacks.
According to him, they know that those who took part in the killings belong to the so-called Islamic State; wanting to destabilize France, reports the In Profile Daily.

Disable Community Extols WaterAid For Championing Sanitation

The FrontPage Africa newspaper reports that the British Charity, WaterAid has been commanded for championing the issue of sustainable sanitation as part of efforts to transform the lives of the poorest and most marginalized people in society. WaterAid Liberia and Sierra Leone continues to prioritize access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene especially in hard-to reach areas and for marginalized groups. People living with disabilities or visually impaired are among marginalized groups benefiting from improved WASH access as championed by WaterAid and partners. WaterAid visions a world where everyone, everywhere has safe water, sanitation and hygiene by 2030.

African Media Leaders Forum Charts New Pathways To Journalistic Excellence

According to the Heritage newspaper, more than 600 media leaders met at the 7^th African Media Leaders Forum during November 11 – 13, 2015 to review new opportunities arising from digital technologies and charted a forward-looking action plan for media development on the continent. “Africa is on the cusp of unprecedented economic, cultural and social transformations” said Eric Chinje, CEO, African Media Initiative (AMI). “African media have a central role to play in catalyzing sustainable development on the continent and securing sustainable growth of the media sector. At Birchwood Hotel and Conference Center, we took an evidence-based approach to secure a better future for African media and improve the everyday lives of Africans”, furthered Mr. Chinje.

World Bank Group Official Outlines Solutions For Transformation In Sub-Saharan Africa

 The World Bank New Country Director for Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone, Dr. Henry Kerali has outlined several solutions that Liberia and other African countries can utilize in achieving sustainable development growth in Sub-Saharan Africa. According to Dr. Kerali, Liberia and other countries in the region should support smallholder farmers, because the solution is not to sell their lands to large scale farmers. You only end up increasing the number of urban poor by doing so. The other solution is to go out there and be entrepreneurs”, said Dr. Kerali. Dr. Kerali was speaking Tuesday, November 17, 2015 at the Monrovia City Hall when he served as a guest speaker at program marking the third annual MSME Conference, reports the Heritage newspaper.

Liberian Entrepreneurs To Get Boost

The Government of Liberia through the Ministry of Commerce and Industry has pledged its commitment to supporting young Liberian entrepreneurs, who are desirous of doing business in the country. The government says it is about time young Liberian entrepreneurs take the responsibility to producing goods in the country.  Liberia’s Minister of Commerce and Industry, Axel Addy, said the focus is on young Liberian innovative entrepreneurs, who are contributing to the country’s transformation story by being productive citizens and role models for others. Minister Addy said this year’s conference has facilitated over US$1 million investment in SME with new innovations such as the Liberia innovation fund for entrepreneurs, and the Liberian marketplace, saying each year the conference has had a specific focus although last year various topics were covered, including Entrepreneurship Development, Access to Finance, and Access to Market, respectively. According to him, this year’s conference is for annual capacity building, networking and business linkage, aimed at providing a forum for Liberians youth to participate in a comprehensive E-Plus business plan competition for emerging starts. According to the New Dawn newspaper, Minister Addy spoke Tuesday, November 17, 2015 at the opening of a two-day Small Business Enterprise or SME conference held at the Monrovia City Hall in Sinkor, Monrovia.

President Sirleaf Applauds Women Around The World

President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf has applauded women across the globe for their demonstrated leadership role at all levels. President Sirleaf noted that although at the top level of political leadership, the numbers have been few, but the role they have played in changing their own environments and the world is well documented in history. The first African female president also said Africa too has registered great women leaders in every country, with strong showing in South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, and Tanzania, to name a few, adding that Rwanda stands out with the highest number of Women in Parliament throughout the world. Liberia is proud to have broken the glass ceiling. “Women leadership today covers every sphere of society, challenging and breaking through traditions in the church, in private companies, in sports, in the highest level of Government. The topic of this year’s Annual Event Women, Leaders and Africa is thus very appropriate,” President Sirleaf noted, reports the New Dawn newspaper.

Gov’t Gets US$1.5M Incinerators To Dispose of Pharmaceutical Waste

The Liberia Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Authority (LMHRA) on Tuesday received an incineration facility intended to dispose of pharmaceutical waste, counterfeit drugs as well as other unwanted products imported into the country by unscrupulous business people. The facility is located in Careysburg, Montserrado County, and comprises of two small and two large modern incinerators. They were donated by the French Charity, Medecin Sans Frontiers (MSF), and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). LMHRA Executive Director, David Sumo, said the cost of the facility is about US$1.5 million. Mr. Sumo described the facility as a “huge contribution to the reconstruction of the health sector,” when partners turned over the facility. “This is another contribution to the resilient health system that the government wants to build or is in the process of building,” Mr. Sumo said. “The facility will have a lot of impact because this is one challenge that the regulatory authority has been faced with: how to get rid of substandard drugs that are sometimes confiscated from street peddlers and some pharmacies.” The facility, he assured, will be used to “clean up the mess in the health sector.” According to Mr. Sumo, when a country lacks such a facility, the only means of burning or incinerating counterfeit drugs is to dig large holes into which the drugs are deposited and burned with gasoline acting as an accelerant. He however noted that keeping the incinerators in operation is another huge challenge that the LMHRA is faced with as each of them uses over 250 gallons of fuel. According to the Daily Observer, the Ministry of health (MOH) has donated a high voltage secondhand generator to be used at the site where the unwanted items would be disposed of.  USAID Health Officer, Ben Zonner, and the Technical Officer for Pharmaceutical assigned with the World Health Organization (WHO), Mauricio Arango, urged the LMHRA to make good use of the facility by getting rid of substandard or expired drugs from the market writes the Inquirer.

V.P. Boakai Wants More Liberians To Engage In Agriculture

The Daily Observer reports that Vice President Joseph Boakai has re-emphasized the need for more Liberians to engage in agriculture to become self-sufficient. The Vice President made the remarks when he paid a courtesy visit to the Minister of Finance and Development Planning (MFDP), Amara Konneh, to discuss issues relevant to the country’s economic growth.  According to VP Boakai, agriculture is the only way for Liberians to bring themselves out of poverty and be food sufficient, adding that it will also create employment opportunities for many other Liberians, especially the youth. After recounting the losses in the rubber and iron ore sectors, he expressed the belief that agriculture is the bedrock of the nation because it comes with many opportunities. “The agriculture sector,” he said, “needs government’s attention before it can reach the full potential through the construction of good road networks to enable farmers to deliver their produce to the markets.”

Related Caption:VP Boakai Discusses Liberia’s Agriculture, Economy Future(FOCUS)

Liberia's Oil: Exxonmobil Corp. To Drill Offshore Liberia

ExxonMobil Country Manager for Liberia and Ivory Coast Steven Buck,  says the entity plans to begin drilling oil in late 2015 or early 2017, Countries such as Nigeria and Ghana have awarded a number of exploration blocks offshore and Liberia has followed suit. The US oil firm signed for block 13 in 2013, however placed the project on hold due to the Ebola epidemic. According to President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, ExxonMobil has shown commitment and strength despite falling prices in the global market. Although the Ebola Crisis affected ExxonMobil, it has re-opened its offices in Liberia so it can resume business. "I am very excited to see ExxonMobil here," said Sirleaf following a meeting with Buck. "Their presence demonstrates to the world that Liberia is once more on the move," added Sirleaf. The United States has lifted economic sanctions on Liberia that it had put in place against former president, Charles Taylor, reports FrontPage Africa newspaper.

2018 World Cup Qualifier: Liberia Go Down 0-3 To Ivory Coast In Abidjan

Reigning African champions Ivory Coast convincingly beat Liberia 3-0 in a 2018 World Cup qualifier second round, second leg tie in Abidjan to go through to the group stage 4-0 on aggregate. France-based Giovanni Sio of Rennes broke the deadlock inside 16 minutes from a corner-like cross by Gervinho and completed his brace with a shot that caught goalie Tommy Songo unaware after a defense splitting pass.   It was a defeat plotted in Paris and hatched in Abidjan as midfielder Jean Michel Seri of Nice in France sealed the win after Arthur Boka made light work of defender Solomon Grimes, drove through the danger area on the touchline before cutting back for Seri. Liberia head coach James Salinsa Debbah made two changes to the squad that lost 0-1 in the first leg as Dioh Williams and Alseny Keita replaced the injured Patrick Wleh and Patrick Gerhardt., reports FrontPage Africa.

World Bank Provides US$100k Seed Capital

The World Bank Group country Director for Ghana, Sierra Leone has disclosed that the Bank Bank is providing US$100,000 seed capital for 10 Liberian businesses. According to Dr. Henry Godfrey Kerali, this will be accompanied by a capacity building exercise which will lead to the selection of qualified businesses, FOCUS reports.

EMW Trains Journalists In Central, South-Eastern Liberia

The Analyst asserts that Extractive Media Watch (EMW) in collaboration with the Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) has completed the training of eight journalists in Central and South-Eastern Liberia in extractive reporting. Speaking at the start of the training workshop on Friday, November 13. 2015 in Ganta City, Nimba County, the Coordinator of EMW; Mr. Roland Perry cautioned journalists to take the training serious so that they can be fully prepared to report on the extractive industries.

Sweden Pledges To Construct Four Courts

The Government of Sweden has pledged to support the construction of the Omega Magisterial Court and three other courts in Bong and Nimba counties. Swedish Ambassador to Liberia Lena Nordstrom made the pledge Tuesday at the ground breaking ceremony of the Omega Magisterial Court in Paynesville, outside Monrovia, FOCUS writes.