THE BUREAU OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Monrovia, Liberia

NEWS SUMMARY FOR FRIDAY

Today’s edition of the summary highlights news of the plan meeting in Liberia of over sixty Anti-Corruption practitioners and government officials from West Africa for a three-day regional workshop on Whistleblower and Witness Protection.

DOMINANT STORY

West African Anti-Corruption Chiefs Meet In Monrovia

TheINQUIRER reports that more than sixty Anti-Corruption practitioners and government officials from West Africa will gather in Monrovia next week for a three-day regional workshop on Whistleblower and Witness Protection. According to the daily, the meeting will be attended by heads of Anti-Corruption bodies, Police Chiefs from West Africa, Parliamentarians with oversight on corruption issues and representatives from International Organizations. The gathering which is being organized by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in partnership with the LACC and the Network of National Anti-Corruption Institutions in West Africa (UNODC), seeks to increase the knowledge of participants about the systems to protect whistleblowers and witnesses and to share experiences and lessons learned from other countries within the region and beyond.

Related Captions: W/African Anti-Corruption Chiefs Meet In Monrovia(In Profile Daily), West African Anti-Corruption Chiefs Meet In Monrovia(Heritage), West Africa Anti-Corruption Chiefs To Meet In Monrovia(Daily Observer)

OTHER STORIES

Pres. Sirleaf Meets WAHO Director General

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf on Thursday, September 16, 2016 received a delegation from the West African Health Organization (WAHO) at her Foreign Ministry Office in Monrovia. The delegation was headed by the institution’s Director General, Dr. Xavier Crespin and included Mr. Richard Awuyno, Director for General Services. President Sirleaf thanked the WAHO Director-General for the visit and congratulated him for his preferment as head of WAHO, the FOCUS newspaper says.

Related Caption: Ellen Meets WAHO Director General(Heritage)

LINCSA Launches Physical Arms Collection

According to the Heritage newspaper, the Liberia National Commission on Small Arms has officially commenced a voluntary arms collection exercise in six-targeted communities in Grand Gedeh, Maryland and River Gee Counties. Members of LINCSA are been accompanied by representatives from the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL), the Liberia National Police (LNP), and the Bureau of Immigration (BIN). The exercise is being carried out under the auspices of the ECOWAS-EU Small Arms and Light Weapons project, a regional initiative by ECOWAS and funded by the European Union (EU) to pilot “Weapons Collection Programs” within the broader context of “Disarmament and Community Development” or “Weapons for Community Development.”

CBL, UNCDF to Launch Working Group on Digital Financial Services (DFS)

The Central Bank of Liberia in collaboration with the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) program Mobile Money for the Poor (MM4P), is expected to launch the national Working Group on Digital Financial Services (DFS). The primary objective of the launch is to provide a platform for collaboration among the different players in accelerating the development of the digital financial services ecosystem in Liberia. The launch, which is expected to take place on September 20, 2016, is aimed at enabling the Working Group to provide an appropriate forum for industry-level dialogue, the FOCUS newspaper asserts.

Lower House Reshuffles – Deputy Speaker Appoints New Committee Chairs

Mr. Hans Barchue, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, has appointed new committee chairs and co-chairs for several statutory committees including the Committees on Judiciary, Ways and Finance, the Public Account Committee, and State Enterprises. Those appointed include: Byron Brown, who maintains his current position as Chair on Rules, Order Administration; Representative Bill Twehway Co-chair to Byron Brown, replacing Representative Mariamu Fofana; and Worlea Sawah Dunah, Chairman on Judiciary, replacing Representative Garyah Karmo amongst others, FrontpageAfrica newspaper reports.

Related Caption: Deputy Speaker Reshuffles Committees – All Pro-Tyler Lawmakers Out(Daily Observer)

Boakai Donates Fire Truck to Fire Service

Vice President Joseph N. Boakai Thursday presented one fire truck and an assortment of fire equipment to the Liberia National Fire Service. He said another fire truck intended for the City of Voinjama in Lofa County will soon be in the Country. Vice President Boakai also spoke of an ambulance donated by the Patriots for the Transformation of Liberia in the United States, a group backing the presidential bid of Vice President Boakai. He praised the firemen of the LNFS for their commitment to duty. Meanwhile, Vice President Boakai has been visiting the family of the late Former Senator Nathaniel Williams of River Gee County, the In Profile Daily writes.

Related Captions:  Vice President Boakai Donates Fire Truck, Equipment To Fire Service(Heritage)

Food security in Liberia has increased and livelihood in the rice sector improved, according to an official of the U.S. Agency for International Development Food and Enterprise Development (USAID FED) program. The Chief of Party of USIAD FED in Liberia, Lee Rosner, made the disclosure Tuesday in remarks at the opening of a two-day Agribusiness Expo held at the Monrovia City Hall. The Expo is being held under the theme: “Building a Food Secure Future in Liberia”. Rosner noted that FED has supported the rice value chain through the creation of new rice farmers to utilize abandoned lowland areas. According to Rosner, many lowland and upland farmers lack improved skills and access to modern technologies to improve productivity and as such post-harvest losses remain high as they are unable to process and store their crops quickly, the Heritage newspaper says.

‘Liberia Gradually Achieving Full Potential in Agriculture,’ Says Minister Addy

Commerce and Industry Minister Axel M. Addy has said that despite challenges in the agriculture sector, the country is gradually getting to achieve its full potential in the sector. He added that agriculture can transform the country, especially when given the required attention to lift it from its current position. Addy made the statement during a two-day “Agribusiness exposition” held at the Monrovia City Hall in Sinkor. The Exposition was jointly organized by the Ministry of Agriculture and the USAID Food and Enterprise Development Program in Liberia, the Heritage newspaper reads.