The Bureau of Public Affairs

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

 Monrovia, Liberia

DAILY NEWS SUMMARY FOR MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2017

Today’s edition of our regular news summary highlights the visit to Liberia of a High Level Global Fund delegation to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria; with a US$65.7 million to curb the menace and strengthen the Health System.

DOMINANT STORY  

Global Fund Delegation Concludes Visit 

The New Dawnnewspaper reports that the High Level Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (TGF) Delegation has concluded an eight day official mission to Liberia. The mission occurred, from 6 to 13 September 2017, in the context of negotiating, and finalizing new grant allocations for the country intended to accelerate progress towards building Resilient and Sustainable Systems for Health (RSSH). For this, the Global Fund has allocated US$65.7 million for response to HIV/TB, Malaria and Health System Strengthening. The daily says the TGF’s Team was able to meet and discuss with wide range of stakeholders, working along with the Liberia’s CCM for the Global Fund, Principal Recipients (PRs) of the grants, and in-country partners in order to finalize the documents that will be required for grants approval.

Related Captions: High Level Global Fund Delegation Concludes Mission To Liberia(Heritage), Top Global Fund Delegation Ends Mission To Liberia(FOCUS)

OTHER STORIES  

Ellen Extends Early Warning And Response Center 

President Ellen Johnson - Sirleaf has issued Executive Order No. 88, extending Executive Order # 76 that establishes the National Early Warning and Response Mechanism Coordinating Center (NEWRMCC). The New Dawn newspaper quotes an Executive Mansion release as saying that the strategic framework for the establishment of National Early Warning and Response Mechanisms was adopted by the Heads of State and Government in a communiqué at the 45th Ordinary Session of ECOWAS held in Accra, Ghana on 14 July, 2014 (Article 51). The daily says Executive Order #76 was issued on June 16, 2016, establishing the National Early Warning and Response Mechanism Coordinating Center but has since expired. 

Related Caption: Pres. Sirleaf Issues Executive Order #-88; Extends EO #76(FOCUS)

President Sirleaf Off To US

President Ellen Johnson - Sirleaf has departed the country to attend 72nd Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, the United States of America. The Executive Mansion says President Sirleaf departed the country on Sunday, 17 September and is expected to be away from the departure date to 2 October 2017. According to the INSIGHT newspaper, while President Sirleaf is away, Liberia’s Attorney-General and Justice Minister Cllr. Frederick Cherue will serve as Coordinator of the Cabinet in consultation with Vice President Joseph Nyumah Boakai.

Related Caption: Ellen Off To New York For 72nd Session Of UN General Assembly (The New Dawn)  

Liberia’s Ambassador To France And UNESCO Turns Over Chairman of ECOWAS Group of Ambassadors 

The Liberia’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Liberia to the Republic of France and Permanent Delegation to UNESCO, Ambassador C. William Allen, has turned over the Chairmanship of the ECOWAS Group of Ambassador to Ambassador Sankardja Lare-Sambiani. In his turn-over remarks the out-going Chair of the ECOWAS Group of Ambassador H.E. Allen thanked his colleagues for the level of support they accorded him and the accomplishments they achieved during his tenure as the Chair of the group. Ambassador Allen called on his colleagues to give to the new Chairman of the group, Ambassador Lare-Sambiani, their full cooperation as he takes on the administration of the group in the year ahead, reports the Heritage newspaper.  

 Cabinet Receives Update On National Action Plan-OGP, Public Works, Civil Service  

According to the Heritage newspaper, Cabinet has received and reviewed the National Action Plan of the Open Budget Partnership under the auspices of the Ministry of information Cultural Affairs and Tourism as well as updates on the status of road infrastructure and reforms in the Civil Service Agency. According to an Executive Mansion release, Liberia’s Open Government Partnership Commitments and Action Plan for the period 2017 – 2019 underscored the conducted of successive general presidential elections held in 2005 and 2011; the rule of law and economic recovery on irreversible trajectory; reforms made in confronting corruption, waste and abuse, freedom of information Act, public procurement and concession Act; pubic financial management Act; the Extractive Industries transparent Act as well as the Revised General Auditing Commission Act. The key pillars of the Open Government Partnership have been thrust on transparency, citizen participation, accountability and integrity, technology and innovation.  

36 LEC Staff To Undergo Training In Nigeria 

The Daily Observer says thirty-six (36) employees of the Liberia Electricity Corporation (LEC) will depart the country on Wednesday, September 20, to undergo intensive empowerment training in Nigeria as part of the West African Power Pool (WAPP) plan for Liberia. The West African Power Pool (WAPP) is a cooperation of the national electricity companies in Western Africa under the auspices of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) working to establish a reliable power grid for the region and a common market for electricity. Mamadou Alpha Sylla, coordinator for the Capacity Building Program at the WAPP said WAPP hopes that beneficiaries of the training will be able to train their workmates upon their return to Liberia, adding that “This is part of our program in terms of training Liberia’s technicians and ensuring that they are unified in the electricity market.”  

Liberia, Sierra Leone Tighten Border Security Against Trafficking In Persons 

According to the Daily Observer, the cross-border security personnel of two countries known to be hubs for Trafficking in Persons (TIPs) have recommitted themselves to be more effective in the fight to prevent human trafficking. The two countries’ border security officials, civil society representatives, and leaders of several communities made their pledges through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Thursday to strengthen bilateral efforts to tackle child trafficking. The MOU was signed at the Bo-waterside border (Boport) in Grand Cape Mount County at the end of a two-day training organized by Defense for Children International (DCI), which brought together about 45 members of the government, law enforcement, communities and civil societies from Liberia and Sierra Leone.  

FDA Gets US$1.2m For Liberia Forest Inventory 

The Forestry Development Authority (FDA) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Thursday signed a grant agreement to do an inventory of the forest sector of Liberia. Speaking at a brief official signing ceremony at the headquarters of the FDA in Paynesville, Deputy Operation Manager, Bowen Seyon extolled the excellent relationship that subsist between the two entities. He described the signing of the financial agreement as a great day for the FDA and an answer to prayers for the sustainable management of Liberia’s forest sector.  FAO Country Representative in Liberia, Marc Abala noted that although Liberia is endowed with many natural resources, if there is no sustainable management of the Liberian forests the nation’s progress may likely remain elusive, reports the Daily Observer.  

AFL Rescues Flood Victims In Margibi County 

According to the FrontPage Africa newspaper, the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) in a time sensitive manner on Thursday, September 14, 2017, through a deployed section of the Liberian Coast Guard (LCG), successfully ferried approximately 200 trapped individuals, mainly children, women and the elderly, who had been cutoff in a flooded Dennisville Community in Central Kakata City. According to the LCG Commander, water and food are urgently needed for those trapped in the flooded areas. The daily says as the disaster is being monitored, the residents of the other affected communities are sending out SOS (emergency) call for the quick intervention of the AFL as well as other humanitarian organizations to move swiftly to mitigate the already troubling situation from getting worse within the next few hours as areas continue to experience down pour of rains.

UNFPA Funded Liberia Fistula Project Trains More Fistula Survivors In Vocation

The Heritage newspaper says the Liberia Fistula Project on Thursday, September graduated 13 fistula survivors from its rehabilitation program in Bong County. The fistula survivors received six months training in tailoring, pastry, cosmetology as well as soap-making. The graduates are all survivors of obstetric fistula; a condition that arises from complication during child birth; leading victims to abnormally discharge bodily wastes including urine and or feces. During the ceremony held in Bong County, the fistula survivors received starter’s kits in line with their individual vocations; US$100 each to help them begin life and mobile phones for easy tracking by the project.

Related Caption: UNFPA-Liberia Fistula Project Trains Fistula Survivors(The New Dawn)

LACC Conducts Inter-religious Council Workshop On Corruption

The Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC) will this Tuesday and Wednesday (September 19-29, 2017) conduct a workshop for representatives of the Inter-Religious Council of Liberia. According to the Heritage newspaper, the workshop which takes place in Monrovia, seeks to increase the participation of religious leaders in the fight against corruption and to make the fight against corruption a moral issue that undermines national development. The workshop which is expected to bring together representative from thirty-four (34) churches, Christian Organizations and affiliates as well as representative from twenty-five Mosques, Muslim organizations and affiliates also aimed at preventing the use of religious institutions as conduits for dirty money.

Persons Living With HIV Hope Clows-As UNAIDS Reaffirms Support

UNAIDS Country Director accredited to Liberia, Dr. Miriam Chipimo has reaffirmed the UN coordinating body of the  AIDS response support  to the Liberia Network of Persons Living with HIV (LibNep+) in the country. According to the FOCUS newspaper, Dr. Chipimo made the declaration recently during the Network’s regular Quarterly Association Meeting, hosted at UNAIDS country office in Monrovia.