GPFA Concludes its “Don’t Touch My Peace.”

Every weekend, for the past three months, PeaceJammers thoroughly engaged over forty (40) violent-prone communities to sensitize first-time voters and community members about electoral violence. Inspired by the proverb, “it is best to sit on the old mat to plait the new one,” PeaceJammers leveraged engagement strategies from the Women of Liberia Mass Action for Peace campaign. 

On Fridays, PeaceJammers visited Mosques and read the campaign statement, which calls on Muslim leaders to prioritize peaceful election processes and dissuade their communities from participating in electoral violence. At the end of the Friday Prayers, PeaceJammers encouraged the Muslim community to sign on to GPFA/ PJLIB’s Peace Banner. The Peace Banner symbolizes reaffirmation to promoting and sustaining Liberia’s peace.

Read more here.

Student Enrichment Program

While learning continues for students in developed countries during this pandemic, Liberians cannot say the same. The lack of online learning methods and incentives to keep students engaged pose a significant challenge to their development.

Research shows that now more than ever, our students need holistic support and encouragement to thrive through this particular time.

At GPFA, we pride ourselves on providing quality education and leadership opportunities to our students. During this pandemic, our high school students benefit from a range of tutoring and psycho-social services through our Scholars Enrichment Program (SEP). SEP would not be possible without our university students' involvement as they spend hours ensuring that learning continues amid Coronavirus.

COVID-19 Awareness

To ensure that less-income communities' needs were adequately addressed, the Foundation, in partnership with the Segal Foundation, launched the third phase of its COAI campaign. This next     phase focused on media and print sensitization, capacity building to local organizations, providing food and clean drinking water to COVID-19 impacted community, and distributing sanitization materials to individuals, institutions, and homes within Montserrado and Margibi Counties.

CAPACITY BUILDING 

The Foundation identified ten (10) local non-profit organizations in Montserrado & Margibi counties undertaking similar Coronavirus outreach and awareness initiatives. We wanted to extend our reach in remote communities and support the work of these small non-profits. As such, we supported ten organizations with US$150 each. We presented nose-masks, soap, bumper stickers, and awareness flyers to aid in their outreach process in addition to the funds.

MEDIA & PRINT SENSITIZATION

As a means of disseminating the awareness messages to counties affected by Coronavirus, we partnered with ten radio stations in Montserrado & Margibi counties to play jingles about Coronavirus. These jingles were then translated into local Liberian dialects and were aired on same radio stations. We also conducted door to door outreach to distribute our print materials which illustrated ways to curb the spread of the virus. More than 1,000 bumper stickers, and flyers were distributed during this period.

 EMERGENCY FEEDING

The campaign targeted two of Liberia’s counties namely, Montserrado and Margibi. In Montserrado county, we targeted 5 communities namely, Brewerville, Virginia, Thinkers Village, Airfield, and Peace Island. Each community received 5 bags of rice along with 5 hand washing buckets, 5 cartons of soap, and 80 pieces of nose masks. We also supplied all the communities mentioned above with clean drinking and domestic use water. The distribution of clean drinking water extended to the Monrovia Prison Compound. Over 5,000 gallons of cooking water and 2,000 sacs of drinking water were supplied to the inmates. 

In Margibi county, Harbel, Fendell and Smell No Taste and in Montserrado county, Clay Ashland and Todee, 50 elderly persons in these communities received one bag of rice with one gallon of oil each. Thirty-eight (38) of GPFA's high school students also received assorted food items and over 95,000 Liberian Dollars to help their families during these challenging times. 

The campaign also assisted youth-led organizations in their outreach to COVID prone communities. 10 bags of rice each were given to Brighter Initiatives for Revitalization & Development, Concern Youth Initiative, Federation of Banjor Youth Group, totaling thirty bags of rice. 

Sustain the Peace

Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa (GPFA) Sustain the Peace Project is funded by the Women Peace & Humanitarian Fund (WPHF). This 18-month project, themed “Mobilizing Liberians to Address Political Violence Against Women," targets fifteen districts within Montserrado, Grand Gedeh, and Lofa counties.

In these three counties, GPFA is mobilizing young women and key stakeholders to increase the visibility and effectiveness of Liberian women's leadership regarding conflict prevention and responses to incidents of political and personal violence.

This Sustain the Peace project complements current peacebuilding work in targeted counties by identifying and training 150 women peace advocates as Peace Brigades. 15 Peace Desks have been established in 15 districts within these three counties.

Each district has a Peace Desk Officer who leads GPFA’s network of community leaders and Peace Brigades to respond to sexual and political violence in their communities. They are charged with tracking and reporting instances of violence against women and are serving as mediators and mentors of young women peacebuilders.

Read more here.

Don’t Touch My Peace Campaign

Launched on International Day of Peace, September 21, 2020, the violence-free elections campaign brings together over 600 PeaceJammers in three of Liberia's counties—Bong, Margibi, Montserrado— to address the gap in curbing political and electoral violence by placing young Liberians as frontliners in active peacebuilding activities through PeaceJam Liberia (PJLIB) Project.

Every weekend, PeaceJammers engage market places, churches, and mosques and encourage Liberia’s to prioritize peaceful elections. A Peace Message is read at every event in addition to the distribution of bumper stickers and the signing of our Peace Banner. Community members are encouraged to sign the banner, reaffirming their commitment to sustaining Liberia’s hard fought peace.

GPFA Joined Anti-Rape Campaign

GPFA joined hundreds of concerned Liberians at the End Rape in Liberia protest that calls on the Liberian government to see the stark rise in Sexual & Gender-Based Violence cases as a national emergency and a threat to the livelihood of Liberian children.

In the past seven months, since the advent of Coronavirus in Liberia, more than 950 cases of rape, assault, and sodomy have been registered. Children, as young as 3-year-old, fall smack in the category of victims.

It is incumbent upon all and everyone- young, old, civil societies, governmental institutions- to work together and put an end to the continuous war on women’s bodies.

COVID-19 Outreach

We are grateful for our partnership with USAID/Internews that has allowed GPFA to train ten female mobilizers to engage and support ten vulnerable communities within Margibi & Montserrado counties.

Since COVID-19 entered Liberia, GPFA has supported over sixty low-income communities through the provision of food supplies, clean drinking water: additionally, we distributed sanitation materials such as hand washing buckets, cartons of powder soap, and hygiene products.

The fight against COVID-19 must continue, and we must help vulnerable communities stay vigilant in the fight.