Oxfam's work in Liberia in depth

In Liberia, Oxfam's focus is on livelihoods, water and sanitation and gender equality.

The context

Liberia emerged from 14 years of civil war in October 2003. Since the election of the new government during multi-party elections in 2005, the Government of Liberia has focused on re-establishing the foundations to rebuild the economy.  Poverty is wide-ranging across the country – over 80% of the population live below the poverty line on less than US$1.25 a day. Poverty in Liberia is also linked to access and use of land for agricultural uses, access to health, nutrition, water and sanitation facilities. According to Liberia’s Poverty Reduction Strategy, safe drinking water coverage and access to sanitary facilities across the country are just 25% and 14% respectively. 

Women and children have been the most affected by poverty and have higher rates of illiteracy and unemployment. Despite this, women produce about 60% of agricultural products and carry out 80% of trading activities in rural areas. Gender-based violence is a problem in Liberia, many women and girls still facing almost the same level of violence they experienced during the civil war.

Reconstruction in Liberia is well underway; however the challenges to livelihoods are enormous. Indicators of human development covering employment, income gender equality are among the lowest in the world.

How is Oxfam helping?

Oxfam has made a strategic shift from humanitarian assistance to focusing on long-term development programmes in Liberia. Our focus is on sustainable livelihoods mainly for poor women in urban and rural areas and public health for improved health and access to clean and safe water and sanitation.

Public health

The public health situation in Liberia is precarious. The effects of the civil war are still being felt, particularly in the urban slums and rural communities. Access to basic services like water and sanitation is still very low, posing looming public health threats and risks. Poor infrastructure, disorganised community social systems and weak and dysfunctional national institutional systems all negatively impact on public health services. 

The country has experienced consistent cholera outbreaks in the past with isolated cases still being reported in some hotspot communities. Oxfam’s public health strategy is to work in partnership with Liberian water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) ministries and other partners in improving both institutional and technical capacities for effective leadership, co-ordination and monitoring of water, sanitation and hygiene promotion activities and mitigation of the effects of public health emergencies.

Currently, Oxfam is the lead agency of the international WASH Consortium in Liberia, funded by DFID, ECHO and Irish Aid. The Consortium is comprised of Oxfam, Tearfund, Concern Universal, Solidarités and Action Contre La Faim (ACF).  The strategy for the consortium is to support the Liberian government in meeting its water, sanitation and hygiene targets. The consortium model has proved to be an effective means to deliver safe water, sanitation and hygiene to poor underserved communities.

Oxfam’s public health programme focuses on direct support and sustainability of basic WASH services combined with institutional capacity-building at central and county levels. We also lobby for more and better resourcing for the sector, as well as ensuring that contingency planning forms an integral part of our public health programme strategy.

Our public health work has contributed to reduced levels of morbidity by facilitating increased access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene initiatives for poor communities. Through our participatory hygiene promotion activities communities have responded and are taking charge of their own hygiene and exhibiting good hygiene practices.

We have contributed to strengthening the capacity of the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare both at national and county level. At national level the Ministry has become more proactive, responsive and effective in its planning and monitoring of the delivery of environmental health. There are also County Health Teams in place in eight counties with requisite staff to deliver hygiene promotion activities. Through the support and mentorship of our programme staff in the counties they are planning, co-ordinating and implementing effective participatory hygiene promotion initiatives as well as harmonising the activities of all stakeholders in the water, sanitation and hygiene sectors. This has ensured increased collaboration and synergy and already produced a visible impact.

Oxfam’s public health programme has played an important role in the establishment of the only public national water laboratory for water testing to guarantee that water supplied is safe for population use.

Livelihoods

Despite contributing significantly to agriculture in terms of time and labour, women comprise the majority of those living in poverty. Throughout Liberia, women face challenges related to access to land, credit and extension services and markets. Besides these they have high illiteracy rates, poor representation in decision-making bodies, and are objects of discriminatory attitudes with heavy domestic responsibilities.  The result is that women occupy the lowest end of the supply chain and are the most affected by food and income insecurity and the impact of climate change. 

The majority of people living in extreme poverty in Liberia depend on production, processing and trading of food crops and handicrafts for their livelihoods. Food security remains a challenge with critical implications for peace and security, economic revitalisation and poverty reduction.

Most of the poor women and men are located in the urban slums as well as the rural areas and they are confronted with, and suffer from, chronic food insecurity. Their vulnerability, poverty and food insecurity will be worsened by climate change.

Oxfam’s livelihoods programme seeks to ensure:

• Improved security of income and food for poor men and women
• Greater resilience and capacity of poor men and women to cope with shocks from climate or economic changes
• Positive changes in the involvement of men and women in value chains
• Positive changes in policies and investments that contribute to improvements in livelihoods

Through our livelihoods work, over 1,000 members of poor and vulnerable families have experienced an increase in their incomes through short-term employment and income earning opportunities. With the increased income they were able to meet their food requirements. There is evidence from our reviews and assessments that most of the families were able to send their children to school for the first time as a result of the income received.

Women have also become drivers of economic change through the establishment of two women based enterprises managed within a co-operative framework. At least 150 women have established their enterprises and are producing and marketing goods for income. Their technical and managerial capacities have been improved and they are currently driving and championing their businesses.

Gender, protection and education

In all our work we recognise vulnerabilities experienced by some categories of people, particularly girls and women, and how that impacts and perpetuates exploitation and abuse. Gender inequality is the greatest barrier to poverty reduction in Liberia. Women are under-represented in decision-making and in accessing and controlling strategic resources in their communities. We are investing great efforts to address these issues in our programmes through building staff and partners’ capacities.

Even though education is no longer a core programme area of Oxfam in Liberia, where possible, and in situations where we are able to raise funds, we will promote campaigning efforts to support poor people’s rights and access to education. In this framework we will support campaigning for girls’ education and accountability of education delivery.

 

Last updated: April 2010