MONROVIA: Liberia’s Deputy Finance and Development Planning Minister for Economic Management, Dr. DehpueZuo says the ARREST agenda of President Boakia is optimistic to take Liberia to the Finish line of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) following the World Bank Liberia Poverty Assessment report.
Dr. Dehpue Zuo made the disclosure during the launched of World Bank Liberia Poverty Assessment report on Monday March 18, 2024, under the Theme: Towards a more inclusive Liberia at the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Ministerial Complex Oldest Congo Town.
The objective of the report according to the bank poverty assessment is a core diagnostic of it. Its purpose is to assess the level and cause of poverty in a country and recommend strategies to reduce poverty and promote share prosperity on a livable planet.
The Bank’s Board of Directors requests poverty assessment to be undertaken every five years in countries to help inform and shape the country partnership framework (CPF).
Poverty in Liberia remains a formidable challenge, with over half of the population still living below the poverty line.
Dr.. Zuo who proxy for Finance and Development Planning Minister Boima S. Kamara said in International Development, one key point is to reduce poverty, and that Liberia is captured under this agenda. He noted that in Liberia, being a resource country, the people are still experiencing high level of poverty; therefore Liberia is a contradiction to the rest of world in term of development.
He also thanked the World Bank for the report, and said it will be a resource tool for the successful implementation of the government’s ARREST program.
For her part, the World Bank Country Manager to Liberia, Ms. Georgia Wallen said the 2020 Liberia Poverty Assessment comes at an important time for Liberia – a moment of transition marking the early days of the new Administration with six years left for delivering on Liberia’s Vision 2030 and the target date for the Sustainable Development Goals.
According to her, the Poverty Assessment report is looking to crucial years ahead and can be valuable input for the new National Development Strategy and the Bank’s new Country Partnership Framework.
However, the launch of the report comes as Liberia transitions from one administration to another, and also from one development agenda – the Pro Poor Agenda for Prosperity and Development (PAPD) to the ARREST agenda – an acronym representing Agriculture, Roads, Rule of Law, Education, Sanitation, and Tourism.
She noted that while the findings of the Poverty Assessment are stark and sobering, the report will be useful for driving intensified action to address the worsening situation of poverty facing millions of Liberians — particularly the most vulnerable.
“The World Bank and the Government of Liberia share a common ambition, rooted in the Bank’s mission to end extreme poverty and promote shared prosperity on a livable planet’’ she explains.
The report captured that after decades of relative peace, more than half of Liberia’s population still lives in poverty, reflecting the scars of a devastating civil conflict and Ebola crisis.
It noted that due to the concentration of pervasive poverty in rural areas, the poorest areas concentrate in the country’s interior. It added that areas in and around Monrovia are some of the least poor in the country.
The Launch, held at the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Ministerial Complex, was attended by Liberia Deputy Minister for Economic Management, Dr. DehpueZuo, World Bank Country Manager to Liberia, Ms. Georgia Wallen, UN Resident Coordinator, Ms. Christine N. Umutoni, National Coordinator for Social Protection, Mr. Aurelius Butler, Foreign Missions, Government officials, and development partners, amongst others.
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