Monrovia, Liberia - The President of the Republic, Dr. George Manneh Weah, has expressed strong opposition to military takeover in Burkina Faso, condemning the dissolution of the democratically-elected President, Roch Marc Christian Kaboré

Addressing an Extraordinary Summit of the Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS on Friday, January 28, 2022 by virtual, President Weah reiterated Liberia’s policy of absolute zero tolerance for coup d’etats and called on the military authorities in Burkina Faso to, without delay, restore the duly elected President to power and return the country to constitutional, democratic order.

“Liberia also recommends the use of multi-track diplomacy to address the grievances of stakeholders in preventing coup d'états in our region,” he said, urging Member States to redouble their efforts in supporting the ECOWAS Fund for Combating Terrorism in the ECOWAS Region.

In his virtual statement to his colleagues, Dr. Weah intimated: “In order to address the recurrent coups in our region, Liberia wishes to echo its previous recommendation to the Authority of Heads of State and Government to urgently revise the ECOWAS Supplementary Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance by including initiative-taking mechanisms for engaging stakeholders, including the military, in situations where ECOWAS Early Warning Mechanisms clearly predict future disruptions of the political and security situation in our Member States.”

He told ECOWAS leaders that the protracted, endogenous factors of terrorism and militant insurgencies in Burkina Faso obviously caused the collapse of the security condition in the country, and made this situation inevitable.

“To address this peculiar situation,” the Liberian Chief Executive said, “the Authority may wish to include in its current strategy based on application of the ECOWAS Supplementary Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance, the ECOWAS conflict prevention mechanism of engaging relevant stake holders in preventive diplomacy where conflicts are brewing to stem the trend of coup d'états in the region.”

Considering the situation to have been triggered by terrorism and other security impasses, President Weah urged ECOWAS Authority to consider the provision of humanitarian support to the vulnerable groups that have been affected by the declining security in Burkina Faso.

He also implored ECOWAS Authority to impose sanctions on military authorities for disrupting the democratic and constitutional processes in Burkina Faso, as provided by the ECOWAS Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance.

‘In addition to the appointment of an ECOWAS Facilitator for Burkina Faso, the recently constituted ECOWAS Council of the Wise should be deployed, as soon as possible, to engage in back-channel discussions with the stakeholders in addressing their grievances for the swift return to constitutional and democratic orders," President Weah suggested further.

He recalled that it was the second time since 2015 that the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government is convening an Extraordinary Summit to address the political situation in Burkina Faso.

The first was the 2015 attempted coup triggered by transitional grievances by the Presidential Guard, who subsequently installed the National Council for Democracy (CND) Government.

The Liberian Leader thanked the Chair of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of Ghana, for what he called "his pro-activeness” in swiftly convening this Virtual Summit on our fraternal Member State of Burkina Faso.

Burkina Faso last week experienced a putsch that overthrew the democratically elected Government of President Roch Marc Christian Kaboré.

(UNESCO-PARIS, FRANCE-November 15, 2021) Education Minister Professor D. Ansu Sonii says Liberia's long standing membership with UNESCO and other international organizations shows testaments of the country's firm commitment to the principle of multilateralism and the protection and promoting of girls and women education.

Speaking at the 41^st Session of UNESCO General Conference and the 75^th Anniversary of UNESCO which runs from November 9^th -24^th, 2021 taking place in Paris, France, Professor Sonii emphasized the need for more attention to placed on education for all but with specific emphasis on education for girls and women.

“Nothing else does it better than Education in all of its forms, Culture in all of its glory, Science in all of its inventions, which taken together have a single purpose, to ensure peace and stability in the world. For these reasons all Nations, developed and developing, have taken to education as the principal prerequisite upon which development agendas are set”.

Minister Sonii said Liberia like many other countries have heard the call to action in accelerating the education processes of its citizens and residents, in particular Girls education, adding that as of 2021 the Government of Liberia has introduced special incentive to improve girls enrolment, retention and completion. In that regard, the Minister noted that the gaps at all levels between boys and girls have substantially narrowed.

Professor Sonii believes that by our collective efforts in addressing the underperformance of education systems in the developing world, we will be in a better position to overcome the evils of unemployment, poverty and inequality and undesirable migration. Additionally, Liberia supports the initiative of soccer in schools which we believe reconciles nations and sustain peace.

The Liberian Education Minister says Liberia requested that the Historic Providence Island, the site on which the first group of settlers of former slaves settled, which ultimately led to the founding of the Liberian state be declared a World Heritage Site. He said the historic Providence Island being the epicenter of the Liberia Story, founded with bravery in the midst of colonialism and land grabs all across Africa in that Century needs recognition as the Nation which championed most of the ambitions that led to the wave of independence for self- determination across the African continent in the 1900s.

The 75^th Anniversary of the UNESCO brought together over Some 28 heads of state and government gathered.

In his video message, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres praised the role of UNESCO in promoting dialogue and mutual understanding.

"At a time of great inequalities, environmental crisis, polarization and the global pandemic, UNESCO's role is more critical than ever to restore trust and solidarity, to ensure greater access to education for all, promote cultural diversity and steer technological progress for the greater good," the UN boss said.

The work carried out by UNESCO proves its importance in "a more networked, inclusive and effective multilateralism that delivers tangible benefits for people across the world," he said.

The newly-re-elected Director-General of UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay said that the UN agency was established "based on a strong conviction ... that peace should be established upon the foundation of the intellectual and moral solidarity of humanity.

Madam Azoulay highlighted the role of UNESCO, noting it played as an "essential tool" during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Monrovia, Liberia - The President of Liberia, His Excellency Dr. George Manneh Weah has challenged leaders of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), to take seriously the issue of adherence to constitutional term limits to avoid political and security upheavals in the sub-region. 

President Weah asserted that if the manipulation of constitutional terms is sternly discouraged by ECOWAS, the region could be spared the agony of military coups.  

“While we are condemning these military coups, we must also muster the courage to look into what is triggering these unconstitutional takeovers. Could it be that we are not honoring our political commitments to respect the term limits of our various constitutions,” the Liberian Leader queried. 

Addressing the extraordinary summit of the Authority of Heads of State and Government held virtually on Wednesday, September 8, 2021 to discuss the situation in neighboring Guinea and Mali, the President reminded his colleagues of Liberia’s zero-tolerance for military coups, recounting how Liberia is still reeling from such unconstitutional ascendency to power. 

President Weah said Liberia as a notable member of the United Nations, African Union and ECOWAS aligns its position on Guinea and Mali to the position of these multilateral bodies that support ECOWAS’ Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance.   

He however called for a more coordinated and all-embracing mediation strategy for Guinea saying the inclusion of all the major stakeholders is paramount so as not to repeat the missteps of Mali. 

President Weah then offered Liberia’s willingness to be a part of the ECOWAS Mediation Team for Guinea saying Liberia is well placed to be included given the socio-cultural relations and geographic proximity that both countries share. 

Meanwhile, ECOWAS has unequivocally reiterated its condemnation of the coup and will immediately dispatch a high-level mediation team to Conakry to examine the political, social, and humanitarian situations.  

ECOWAS also called for the immediate and unconditional release of President Alpha Conde and all others detained in relation to the military takeover. 

The Regional Bloc cautioned the Coup Leaders of the CNRD that they will be held individually and collectively responsible for the safety and well-being of President Conde and others who are also detained. 

Guinea has now been immediately suspended from the regional body and all its subsidiaries, pending the restoration of democratic rule to that West African Nation.

Dr. Weah was joined at the Extraordinary ECOWAS Summit by Ministers: Dee-Maxwell Saah Kemayah (Foreign Affairs), Nathaniel Farlo McGill (State for Presidential Affairs), Samuel D. Tweah, Jr. (Finance and Development Planning), Ledgerhood Julius Rennie (Information Culture and Tourism) and Mawine Diggs (Commerce and Industry).