The President of the Republic, H.E. Dr. George Manneh Weah, has constituted a special Steering Committee to plan and execute appropriate activities to commemorate the bicentennial celebration for the settlement of freed slaves from the United States of America, thus leading to the founding of the Republic in 1822.
Liberia was established in 1822 by the American Colonization Society (ACS) for the purpose of returning freed slaves from the United States of America to Africa, and concurrently, next year, 2022, will mark 200 years since the nation was established.
In setting up the special Steering Committee, President Weah acknowledged that the year 2022 marks the bicentennial of a movement that began on February 6, 1820, leading to the repatriation of freed slaves from the United States of America to the shores of West Africa, now called Liberia.
He said, “The year is of high symbolic significance as it commemorates 200 years since the first group of freed slaves touched down on what came to be known as the Providence Island.”
President Weah will formally launch the bicentennial program for Africans and friends of Liberia in the diaspora to reunite with Liberia.
“The festival will be a year-long event commencing January 2022 through December 2022,” the President said in the statement announcing the Committee.
The Liberia-Bicentennial Celebration Steering Committee will be chaired by the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism (MICAT), while the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and the Monrovia City Corporation (MCC) serve as First and Second chairs, respectively.
Members of the Committee include the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning (MFDP), Ministry of Justice (MOJ), Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MCI), Ministry of Agriculture (MOA), Ministry of Gender Children and Social Protection (MGCSP), General Services Agency (GSA), Liberia Immigration Service (LIS), Liberia National Police (LNP), National Social Security and Welfare Corporation (NASSCORP), National Port Authority (NPA), Liberia Petroleum Refinery Company (LPRC), Liberia Maritime Authority (LMA), Liberia Airport Authority (LAA) and Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA).
According to the Liberian Leader, the Ministry of State for Presidential Affairs will coordinate between the Steering Committee and the President, while the Committee will also be supported by a Technical Secretariat to ensure deliverables are met timely and efficiently.