Revitalizing Education in Liberia with UNESCO’s Support

Revitalizing Education in Liberia with UNESCO’s Support

On Thursday, October 17, 2024, Liberia’s Minister of Education, Dr. Jarso Maley Jallah, met with UNESCO’s Assistant Director-General for Education, Stefania Giannini, to discuss the revitalization of Liberia’s education sector. This meeting marked a significant step forward, with Liberia demonstrating its commitment to improving the education system and moving away from business as usual.

During the meeting, the Minister emphasized three urgent areas where Liberia seeks UNESCO’s assistance:

1. Teacher and School Leaders Training, Including Special Education: The Minister highlighted the critical need for comprehensive training programs for both teachers and school leaders. Strengthening these areas is essential for improving educational quality and governance. Special emphasis was placed on the inclusion of special education, addressing the urgent need for specialized educators capable of supporting students with severe disabilities. Enhancing both pre-service and in-service teacher training, alongside leadership development, is key to creating a more effective and inclusive education system.

2. School Infrastructure Revitalization: The Minister emphasized the need to rebuild and modernize Liberia’s school infrastructure to create conducive learning environments. She stressed that well-maintained schools, inclusive learning spaces, and the provision of school meals are critical to improving student engagement and performance.

3. Digitalization of the Education System: To address issues of fraud and inefficiency in Liberia’s education sector, the Minister called for the digitalization of school systems across the country. Implementing digital tools would enhance transparency, streamline administrative processes, and improve overall management of the education system.

In response, the Assistant Director-General for Education assured the Minister that UNESCO has viable solutions for each of these challenges. Regarding teacher and school leadership training, UNESCO is prepared to support Liberia through its Teacher Task Force, with a focus on leadership development and specialized teacher training. UNESCO is set to launch a global initiative on school leadership at the upcoming Global Education Meeting (GEM) in Brazil, with Liberia proposed as a pilot country for this project. This would further enhance the capacity of school leaders and educators to drive positive change in Liberia’s schools.

The Minister also expressed her gratitude to UNESCO for supporting Liberia’s Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) strategy, recognizing TVET’s potential to drive innovation in agriculture, green education, and waste management. She underscored the importance of aligning TVET with the country’s economic needs, particularly through the integration of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence.

A central topic of discussion was Digital Transformation and Remote Learning. The Minister raised concerns about connectivity challenges in Liberia’s remote areas. UNESCO shared the example of Indonesia’s “Merdeka Belajar” (Emancipated Learning) program, which extended remote learning to isolated regions through mobile applications. The Minister expressed interest in adopting a similar approach in Liberia to reach underserved communities.

This meeting represents a crucial milestone in Liberia’s efforts to modernize its education system, with strong support from UNESCO to address the country’s most pressing challenges in teacher and school leadership training, infrastructure, and digital transformation.

For more factual and credible information regarding the Ministry of Education, please follow the MoE Facebook page, website: moeliberia.com or kindly call the MoE Hotline at 1416



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