MONROVIA: Grand Bassa County Senator Nyonblee Karnga-Lawrence has vowed to use her position as Senate Pro-Tempore to prioritize women’s empowerment.
Senator Lawrence said Liberia has come a long way in respecting the rights of women and to have them around the table when it comes to political participation.
She made the pronouncements at program marking the Commemoration of International Women’s Day (IWD), held at the EJS Ministerial Complex in Congo Town on Friday, March 8, 2024.
Liberia joined the rest of the world to commemorate the 2024 edition of the International Women’s Day (IWD) under the global theme: “Invest in women: Accelerate Progress” and national theme: “Empower Her, Empower All.”
Speaking at the ceremony, Senator Lawrence thanked the women who stood and fought under rain and sun to restore peace to Liberia.
She also appreciated the International Women’s Day (IWD) global theme: “Empower One; Empower All.”
“When you educate a woman, you educate a nation. Another interpretation of that is when you empower one woman, she should leave the door opened for other women. When women are in power, there should be more women onboard,” Senator Lawrence said.
The President of the Liberia Senate urged Liberian women to forget about political affiliation and come together. “If we have a woman who can do it to the best, let’s give that recognition,” she stressed.
“We should appreciate one another and support everywoman, for when we say empowerment, where are the challenges? The Challenges are with the thousands of women who are not here today. The women in rural Liberia, I am happy that the Health Minister is here. If we can change that, then, we have empowered all,” she noted.
Senator Lawrence highlighted that the responsibility rests with leaders to change the story of the many challenges the women are faced with in Liberia.
She cautioned the Minister of Health that being a woman in that position, she should pay more attention to those places that need more help to have healthcare available.
Senator Lawrence: “So, I stand here as the President Pro-Tempore of the Liberian Senate, a position for women and there will be challenges because we have a very low revenue budget but we have to prioritize, because all of the issues that this country faced women suffer the most. If we have programs and decide that we will work to implement those programs in stages through the national budget we will begin to see the changes and the women will know that the country is going somewhere”.
Meanwhile, according to Senator Lawrence, the Government of President Joseph Nyuma Boakai is fighting for women empowerment and to support women issues.
She further called on the Ministers of Gender and Health to lineup programs for women.
He emphasized that for instance, if their 3million budget appears before the Senate, they should know what the money is intended for instead of guessing because it has happened many times.
She told the Ministers of Health and Gender that if they have tangible programs for example to build infrastructure in one of the villages in rural Liberia which will take three years than you have people who will be waiting for the place to see if it will finish and that is what they call program budget and that is what she is championing as the President Pro-Tempore at the Liberian Senate.
Moreover, Senator Lawrence joined all of the women to honor the First Lady of Liberia Madam Boakai for being an inspiration to her and all other women and also a silent fighter.
“I want to say to all of the women, I know how difficult it is especially for all of us and we have been working with a team supported by UN Women to come out with a database for women and we are happy that President Boakai is also using that database to position some of our women. We will continue to try,” she noted.
She called on the First and Second Lady of Liberia and all of the women in the Executive Mansion to continue to push for women equality in order to have more women on the table so that the issues of women can be addressed.
The IWD grew out of efforts in the early 20th century to promote women’s rights, with the first IWD gathering in 1911 supported by over a million people.
This is a moment for every woman regardless of political affiliation, tribal background, social and economic status.
The IWD creates an opportunity for women to come out and compel the world and its surroundings to recognize these inequalities as well as celebrate the achievement of women who have overcome these barriers.
The IWD celebration brought together women from various backgrounds who paraded the principal streets of Monrovia led by the Ministry of Gender and supported by head of government ministries and agencies including members of the donor community, Diplomatic Corps and civil society organizations.
Several ministers of government, international community, traditional women as well as the First and Second Lady of Liberia among others graced the occasions.
Contributed by: Linda Gbartie
