Liberia: Pres. Boakai Takes Clean Cities Initiative to 12 Cities and Schieffelin Township in Nationwide Rollout

Deputy Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, Bill McGill Jones, on Saturday launched the initiative on behalf of President Joseph Nyuma Boakai Sr in Gbarnga, describing the intervention as part of the administration’s broader commitment to improving living conditions in Liberian communities while providing young people with opportunities to contribute to national development

MONROVIA – The Government of Liberia has simultaneously taken its Presidential Clean Cities Initiative to 12 cities and the Township of Schieffelin, marking a significant step in its efforts to address the country’s persistent sanitation challenges while creating short-term employment opportunities for more than 1,250 young people.

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***By Selma Lomax, [email protected] ***

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The regional launch, coordinated across participating locations in eight counties, represents the government’s effort to move beyond isolated sanitation exercises and establish a more organized, community-driven approach to environmental cleanliness, waste management, and the maintenance of public spaces.

Deputy Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, Bill McGill Jones, on Saturday launched the initiative on behalf of President Joseph Nyuma Boakai Sr in Gbarnga, describing the intervention as part of the administration’s broader commitment to improving living conditions in Liberian communities while providing young people with opportunities to contribute to national development.

The simultaneous rollout covered participating communities in Montserrado, Nimba, Bong, Lofa, Grand Bassa, Margibi, Bomi, and Grand Gedeh counties.

Under Phase One, the initiative is designed to reach 14 cities and one township, with 1,250 young people and 30 community-based organizations expected to participate in sanitation activities and environmental awareness campaigns.

The participating locations include Monrovia and Paynesville in Montserrado County; Ganta, Sanniquellie, and Tappita in Nimba County; Gbarnga and Totota in Bong County; Foyah and Voinjama in Lofa County; Buchanan in Grand Bassa County; Kakata City, Unification City, and Schieffelin Township in Margibi County; Tubmanburg in Bomi County; and Zwedru in Grand Gedeh County.

The regional rollout is intended to establish a coordinated national response to sanitation challenges that have continued to affect urban communities, particularly in areas experiencing increasing commercial activities, population growth, and pressure on existing waste management facilities.

Speaking during the launch, Deputy Minister Jones said the initiative was championed by President Boakai to ensure that sanitation becomes a shared responsibility between government institutions and the communities they serve.

He explained that the administration recognizes that improving the appearance and environmental conditions of Liberian cities requires more than occasional cleaning exercises, emphasizing the need for sustained community participation, organized sanitation activities, and public awareness.

According to Jones, the government wants to encourage a culture in which residents take greater responsibility for their surroundings rather than depending entirely on local authorities and government institutions to address sanitation problems.

He said the initiative was therefore designed to bring together young people, community-based organizations, local authorities, and residents to identify environmental concerns and work collectively toward addressing them.

Jones noted that the involvement of young people is particularly important because they represent a significant segment of Liberia’s population and can play a central role in promoting behavioral changes within their communities.

He said the government believes that engaging young people in productive community activities would not only help address unemployment but also strengthen their sense of civic responsibility and participation in national development.

The Deputy Minister stressed that the initiative should not be viewed merely as a temporary employment arrangement but as an intervention intended to produce visible improvements in participating communities.

He urged beneficiaries to approach their assignments with discipline, dedication, and a strong sense of responsibility, noting that the success of the program would ultimately be measured by the improvements it brings to public spaces and the attitudes it helps cultivate among residents.

Jones further emphasized that the government expects participating young people to become advocates for environmental cleanliness by encouraging residents to dispose of garbage responsibly, protect public spaces, and cooperate with sanitation authorities.

He maintained that government resources alone would not be sufficient to address the country’s sanitation challenges if citizens continued practices that contribute to environmental pollution.

The Deputy Minister also called on community leaders and local authorities to provide the necessary support to beneficiaries, arguing that cooperation at the local level would be essential to achieving the objectives of the initiative.

Under the first phase, the government has established several measurable targets intended to guide implementation and assess the performance of the program across the participating locations.

One of the central objectives is to provide structured short-term employment opportunities for 1,250 unemployed young Liberians, with at least 40 percent of the beneficiaries expected to be women.

The inclusion of women in the program is intended to ensure that young females also benefit from employment opportunities created through the government’s environmental intervention.

Beyond employment, the initiative targets the cleaning and maintenance of at least 120 public spaces and 100 drainage systems across the participating cities and township.

These activities are expected to focus on areas where accumulated garbage, blocked drainage facilities, and poor waste disposal practices have affected environmental conditions and the general appearance of communities.

The program also seeks to support the disposal of at least 2,000 metric tons of solid waste during the first phase.

This target represents one of the initiative’s major operational objectives, as the removal and proper disposal of accumulated waste remain central to improving sanitation conditions in many Liberian communities.

The government is also targeting at least 500,000 people through public awareness campaigns designed to encourage responsible waste disposal and greater community participation in environmental protection.

Through these campaigns, beneficiaries and community-based organizations are expected to educate residents about the consequences of indiscriminate garbage disposal, the importance of maintaining drainage systems, and the need to protect public spaces.

The engagement of 30 community-based organizations as implementing partners is another important component of the initiative.

These organizations are expected to work with local authorities and participating communities to coordinate sanitation activities, mobilize residents, and support the implementation of environmental awareness programs.

Their involvement is intended to strengthen local ownership and ensure that the initiative is not limited to activities directed from central government institutions.

By working with organizations already operating within communities, the government hopes to improve coordination, encourage public participation, and establish stronger connections between sanitation workers and the residents they serve.

The initiative also places emphasis on the relationship between environmental cleanliness and public health. In several Liberian communities, the improper disposal of solid waste has contributed to blocked drainage systems, stagnant water, environmental pollution, and unsanitary conditions that can expose residents to preventable health risks.

During heavy rainfall, garbage accumulated in drainage channels can obstruct water flow, increasing the risk of flooding in residential and commercial areas.

The government believes that improving sanitation practices and encouraging residents to take greater responsibility for their surroundings can help reduce some of these environmental problems.

However, the initiative’s objectives extend beyond removing garbage from streets and public spaces. It also aims to shift public attitudes toward sanitation by framing environmental cleanliness as a collective responsibility.

The simultaneous rollout across the eight counties is particularly significant because it places communities with different sanitation needs under a common national intervention.