Totota, Bong County – In a renewed push to finish Feminine Genital Mutilation (FGM) and different dangerous conventional practices, the Nationwide Campaigners In opposition to Dangerous Conventional Practices (NACAHP), in collaboration with Medica Liberia and the Neighborhood Well being Initiative (CHI), has launched a nationwide consciousness marketing campaign geared toward defending girls and women throughout Liberia.
Supported by UN Ladies, the Irish Embassy, and World Campaigners, the initiative—branded “Born Excellent, Keep Excellent”—was formally launched in Totota, Bong County, and prolonged to communities in Gbarpolu and Grand Cape Mount counties.
Held beneath the theme “Born Excellent, Keep Excellent,” the marketing campaign introduced collectively authorities officers, conventional and spiritual leaders, girls, and younger folks to confront practices that proceed to threaten the well being, dignity, and way forward for Liberian girls and women.
Following the launch in Totota, the marketing campaign caravan traveled to Palala, Gbarma, and Lofa Bridge in Bong, Gbarpolu, and Grand Cape Mount counties, respectively. The nationwide bus tour was designed to spark group dialogue and construct assist for the passage of the Ladies and Ladies Safety Act of 2025, at present earlier than the Home of Representatives.
At every cease, campaigners engaged residents in open discussions on the risks of FGM, the safety of ladies’s and women’ rights, and the necessity to change dangerous traditions with optimistic cultural values.
Marketing campaign Staff Head Aisha Kamara mentioned the initiative seeks to bolster the message that ladies and women are full and precious as they’re. “The Born Excellent Bus Tour reminds girls and women to remain good simply as they have been born,” Kamara mentioned.
She added that the marketing campaign goals to empower Liberian women to pursue schooling and management moderately than being constrained by practices that restrict their alternatives.
Lead Campaigner Marian G. Deah mentioned the attention drive is intently tied to ongoing legislative efforts. “This marketing campaign is meant to assist finish dangerous conventional practices by rising public understanding of the Ladies and Ladies Safety Act of 2025,” Deah defined.
In accordance with Deah, the invoice was submitted by President Joseph Nyuma Boakai following his dedication in New York to finish all types of dangerous practices towards girls and women in Liberia.
In Palala, Bong County, Tenth-grade dropout Obey Konah shared her expertise of being bullied for refusing to endure FGM. “Folks insulted me and pressured my mom to lift cash so I might undergo the method,” she recounted.
She mentioned the marketing campaign has strengthened her resolve. “I now know I don’t have to hurt my physique. I’m able to encourage my pals to remain good,” Konah mentioned.
In Gbarma, Gbarpolu County, agricultural technician Emmanuel Blamo urged girls and women to prioritize schooling and innovation over dangerous rituals. “These practices is not going to transfer our women ahead—information and alternative will,” he mentioned.
In the meantime, at Lofa Bridge in Grand Cape Mount County, Madam Sando T. Daffa, Vice President of the Rural Ladies, famous that some communities would want time to seek the advice of elders and conventional leaders earlier than taking a unified stance towards the practices.
Regardless of these challenges, organizers say the Born Excellent Bus Tour marks a big step ahead in Liberia’s struggle towards FGM, as communities, conventional authorities, and authorities officers more and more decide to safeguarding the rights and future of ladies and women.
