Mayor Koijee Speaks At Biden Submit on Democracy -Unveils Commitments To Urban Democracy, Development

MONROVIA – As the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) Government hits its fifth anniversary, some of its officials are going sleepless, always stepping forward and exploring the wild world to cultivate and domesticate global practices and networks towards national transformation and greater democracy. Amongst them is one of the regime’s youthful officials, the Lord Mayor of the City of Monrovia, Jefferson Tamba Koijee, who recently attended the Joseph Biden Summit of Democracy in the United States where he showcased—with much wit and articulation—Liberia’s steady strides in fighting poverty and protecting civil liberties and democracy. THE ANALYST reports.   

The City Mayor of Monrovia, Mr. Jefferson Koijee, in Katowice, Poland, from 25-30 June 2022 attended an international forum organized by the President of the United States, Mr. Joseph Biden.

The young Mayor spoke at length on the best practices for advancing the theme of “Transforming Our Cities for a Better Urban Future” ensuring the best Democratic and municipal practices in the context of the US government’s commitment to democracy, peace, and stability in the world over.

Mayor Koijee used the occasion to his thoughts on how cities continue to play important role in promoting democracy worldwide and also reaffirmed our commitment to the Global Declaration of Mayors for Democracy.

“We highlighted how our city is implementing frameworks and strategies that will advance the Sustainable Development Goals through the promotion of democratic institutions,” he noted, and added: “We were opportune to be invited and to share our perspectives on sustaining democracy at this year’s US President Joseph Biden Summit of Democracy, a Program of the US State Department.”

Moderating the a panel discussion as which time Mr. Koijee made the remarks was Mr. Kevin Nelson, Urban Governance Lead, on Democracy, Human Rights and Governance Center, US Agency for International Development (USAID).

The panel discussion prioritized cities that strengthen their democratic commitments and how local governments are delivering on their public policies to increase transparency and accountability, address corruption, and provide critical municipal services.

With hundreds of sessions, this was the only Democracy Forum at the 11th World Urban Forum held in Poland that was organized by the US State Department.

The session served as an implementation-geared discussion on how cities and mayors can promote democracy and the Sustainable Development Goals by focusing on accountability, transparency, and good governance.

Coordinated with a session at the Brussels Forum, this session also emphasized on the launch of the Global Declaration of Mayors for Democracy, a “Declaration” which remains an integral output of the Biden Administration.

It was a networking session that provided an opportunity for participants to discuss the aim of the Declaration and explored strategies that cities and local governments are undertaking to provide municipal services in a manner that is comprehensive, equitable, and focused on strengthening democratic values.

It can be recalled on on December 9-10, 2021, President Biden held the first of two Summits for Democracy, which brought together leaders from government, civil society and the private sector in a shared effort to set forth an affirmative agenda for democratic renewal and to tackle the greatest threats that are faced by democracies today through collective action. He intimated that “Democracy doesn’t happen by accident”.

“We have to defend it, fight for it, strengthen it, renew it,” he said.

 WUF11 2022 took place in Katowice, Poland, from 25-30 June 2022. The event attracted a total of 17,003 attendees, with 10,799 participants from 155 countries attending in person.

Approximately three-quarters of the gender-balanced participants came from Europe, while participants for Africa and Asia accounted for 7.5% and 8.7% respectively.

The panelists included Mayor Jefferson T. Koijee, Mayor, City of Monrovia, Liberia,

And Claudia Lopez, Mayor, City of Bogota, Columbia.

Others were Danny Ricchetti, Director, Intergovernmental Affairs, US Department of State; Nicole Lowery, Office of the Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights, US Department of State; Gary Bland, Senior Technical Advisor, Democracy, Human Rights and Governance Center, USAID (virtual), and Jose Alvarez Munoz, UCLG.