The President of the Republic of Liberia, His Excellency Dr. George Manneh Weah, has by Proclamation declared Thursday, August 24, 2023 as National Flag Day, to be observed throughout the Republic as a national holiday.
The Proclamation is in consonance with an Act approved on October 25, 1915 by the National Legislature of the Republic of Liberia declaring the 24th day of August of each year as “National Flag Day”, to be observed as a National Holiday in Liberia.
The day is commemorated annually by citizens of the Republic in testimony of their allegiance and loyalty to the National Ensign, which is an embodiment of the nation’s existence as a sovereign entity and to encourage national pride and patriotism.
The Proclamation further orders citizens and foreign residents within the borders of Liberia to give prominence to the observance of the event throughout the Republic by flying the national ensign from each dwelling and public building.
The Proclamation also stated that this year’s celebration, which is expected to be executed by the Ministry of Education, will include sporting activities involving schools across the nation on Wednesday, August 23, 2023 at the Invincible Sports Park, while an in-door program commemorating the day will be held at the Centennial Memorial Pavilion, Ashmun Street, commencing at 10 o’clock ante meridiem on Thursday, August 24, 2023.
According to a Foreign Ministry release, this year’s National Flag Day will be celebrated under the national theme, “The Lone Star: A Symbol of Unity and Nationalism”. Wantoe Teah Wantoe, a women’s and children rights advocate, has been designated as the National Orator for the Flag Day program.
The Proclamation also orders that government offices as well as public and business houses remain closed during the observance.
The Proclamation further recounted that the national flag was designed and produced by a committee of ladies led by Susannah Lewis, who were talented and visionary citizens of the Republic at the time.
The release noted that the making of the National Flag of the Republic of Liberia was a historic event of great significance for Liberia as Africa’s pacesetter in the struggle for self-determination and inspiration to future African states.
The release noted that the national ensign of the Republic of Liberia is a visible evidence of the country’s sovereignty and independence as well as a symbol of pride and dignity within the comity of nations.
The Liberian flag consists of six red stripes and five alternating white stripes, totaling eleven stripes, each representing one of the eleven signers of the Declaration of Independence; the blue field, in the upper left corner of a rectangular form with a single white star in the center of the blue field, depicting Liberia as the then only independent state on the continent of Africa; the color red symbolizes the blood of those who died in the struggle for independence; the color white indicates the purity of mind of all our fore bearers toward each other; and the blue for the dark continent of Africa, as it was then depicted, the Proclamation further declared.
