A Liberian lawyer has received a 2019 Goldman Prize for his work in protecting Liberia from the environmental damage of deforestation linked to palm oil plantations. Alfred Brownell, 53, is the executive director of Green Advocates, an environmental NGO in Monrovia. The organization supports communities trying to exercise their environmental…
The United States has issued a one-year extension for Liberians living in the country under Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) provisions that have been in place for decades but were set to expire on Sunday. President Donald Trump said Thursday that he reconsidered the deadline set last year after the administration…
The clock is ticking on the status of thousands of Liberians living in the United States, where a longstanding provision to protect them from deportation will expire at the end of the month unless the U.S. Congress or President Donald Trump take action. To that end, 50 members of Congress…
From flooding to drought, countries across the African continent experience climate change in environmentally and economically diverse settings – but what do its citizens really think about it? The Ghana-based Afrobarometer research organization checked in with five different countries for their 2018 reports, from West Africa to the south, and…
Now there’s even more controversy surrounding the More Than Me (MTM) organization, a charity based in the United States but operating in Liberia, where rape and sexual abuse cases involving students at its Monrovia academy became the subject of an October investigative report from ProPublica and Time. The in-depth reporting by Finlay Young…
As the United States cracks down on Iran with newly reimposed sanctions, the top counterterrorism expert at the U.S. Department of State said Tuesday that Tehran’s reach into Africa, Asia and beyond is as much a security concern as Europe or the Middle East. Ambassador Nathan Sales, speaking at the…
The fallout for the More Than Me (MTM) organization, based in the United States but operating in Liberia, has led to swift changes following the release last week of new investigative reporting by ProPublica and Time on sexual abuse at the Monrovia MTM girls’ academy. The in-depth reporting by Finlay Young and…
A prominent Western charity that began its work to educate Liberian girls under former president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf finds itself under intense media scrutiny again, following accusations of sexual abuse at its school. The More Than Me (MTM) organization, based in the United States but operating in Monrovia, is the subject…
Many Liberians remained skeptical Thursday following the government’s quick reversal on the USD$103.4 million officials said was missing from the country’s central bank – but now isn’t. An official announcement in Monrovia on Tuesday was meant to assure citizens that the money, reported missing late last month, was accounted for…
Hundreds of Liberians took to the streets of Monrovia on Monday, demanding accountability for the USD$103.4 million that officials say has disappeared from the country’s central bank. Emmanuel Gonquoi, head of the Economic Freedom Fighters in Liberia (EFFL), and the COCUBOMB civil society organization (it stands for Concerned Citizens United…
Opposition politicians in Liberia are calling for a nationwide strike on Monday, demanding accountability for the USD$103.4 million that officials say has disappeared from the country’s central bank. Emmanuel Gonquoi is head of the Economic Freedom Fighters in Liberia (EFFL), which is modeled on the far-left EFF led by Julius…
The stunning story of Liberia’s missing money keeps getting worse, with government officials now saying that more than USD$103.4 million disappeared from its central bank. It’s a loss that’s been under investigation since August, and represents a jaw-dropping 5 percent of Liberia’s 2017 national GDP. That’s up from about $60…
For much of this summer, the topics of environmental crisis and climate change have exploded into the news cycles of the developed world with the same frightening alacrity as the floods and wildfires forcing the headlines. Storms and rain at the weekend have broken a historic heat wave in the…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
The global NGO Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has issued a statement saying it has been unable to confirm allegations that its logistics staff members working in Africa were commonly engaged in sexual misconduct, but takes the allegations seriously. The response Thursday followed a BBC report featuring interviews with former employees…
The European Union has signed a new Economic Cooperation Agreement with Liberia, and provided an initial €27 million in funding for the West African nation’s budget for the 2018-2019 fiscal year. The commitment follows President George Weah’s trip to attend the annual European Development Days (EDD) Summit, held this week…