Women Non-Governmental Organization Secretariat of Liberia (WONGOSOL) has highlighted the plight of civil society organizations (CSOs) in Liberia.
According to the Executive Director of WONGOSOL, Esther Davis Yango, they would like to express sincere appreciation to ActionAid Liberia for convening this important meeting with women-led movements and grassroots organizations in Liberia.
“We are particularly honored to welcome colleagues from ActionAid International to Liberia at the time when solidarity, collective action, and movement building are more important than ever,” Director Yango added.
She pointed out that, for decades, women-led organizations have been strategic actors in shaping Liberia’s democratic, governance and peace building landscape.
“We have organized, mobilized, advocated, mediated conflict, promoted accountability, strengthened social cohesion and worked relentlessly to ensure that Liberia remains an enabling environment where rights are protected, communities are heard, and government remain accountable to citizens” She asserted.
Director Yango stated that women’s movement have never waited for perfect conditions before acting, whether during conflict, public health emergencies, political transitions or community crises, noting that women have consistently stepped in where systems have failed.
She revealed that many women leaders and women-led organizations are literally using their personal resources to sustain interventions that should ordinarily receive institutional support.
She noted that across communities, women are using their money to transport survivors of gender-based violence to hospitals, police stations, safe homes, and courts.
“Women are paying out of their pocket for medications, food support, emergency transportation, psychosocial assistance, and referral because they cannot abandon survivors in the moments of crisis” Director Yango cited.
She disclosed that the global aid landscape is shifting rapidly, such as the closure of the USAID-supported opportunities and the ending of many programs previously supported through SIDA, which have created serious disruptions for women-led organizations and the feminist movement in Liberia.
She maintained that many organizations are now struggling to maintain staff to sustain community programing, support survivors or even keep their doors open.
“When women-led organizations weaken, community suffer, survivors lose access to support, local mediation mechanisms collapse, grassroots accountability diminishes, community trust erodes, civic engagement shrinks,” Director Yango explained.
She noted that development partners should recognized that women’s organizations are not merely implementers of projects but they are architects of peace, defenders of democracy, first responders in times of crisis, and custodians of community resilience.
She underscored the need for ActionAid International and ActionAid Liberia to encourage continued solidarity with local women-led movements and stronger investment in locally led responses.
Director Yango said the sustainability of civic action in Liberia depends significantly on whether women-led organizations are able to survive and thrive during this difficult period.
“As we reflect on movement building today, let us remember movements are strongest not when times are easy, but when communities choose solidarity over silence, courage over fear, and collective action over fragmentation,” she narrated.
She made the disclosure Tuesday at a CSO meeting with the Secretary General of ActionAid International, Arthur Larok, who has commenced a week-long working visit to Liberia and held talks with CSO leaders at a local hotel in Sinkor.
