I. Community Empowerment:
Our intent: To create platforms to alleviate rural poverty and help them secure access to and participate in decision-making on matters relevant to their communities and livelihoods.
ii. National Context: It is observed that the main causes of rural poverty in Liberia and by implication, rural communities of the MRU Countries continue to be hurting economic systems; civil and inter-tribal conflicts; climate change; and environmental degradation via mining, logging, human settlement, and farming activities. These factors unavoidably do lead to social and political instability, civil strife and massive population dislocation thus placing constraints people’s productive activities and livelihoods. The 14 year civil war in Liberia for instance, occasioned the comprehensive destruction of the Country’s infrastructure, internal population displacement; closure of companies, trade and commerce; the social fabric of the country was left hurting. Same is the experience in Sierra Leone, Guinea and La Cote ‘Ivoire. From the global perspective, the World Bank indicates that over the last 30 years poverty rates are 20 percent points higher in countries confronted by repeated incidences of violence. Consequently it reports that substantive regional economic progress has substantively slugged due to the depth of the poverty these countries, including Liberia, are experiencing. This experience is an outcome multiples factors such low level of rural productivity, limited growth opportunities, the deplorable rural infrastructure, illiterate and unskilled youth. Rural women left to bear bulk of the burden while rural youth migrate to the cities. Within this Strategic Plan life cycle, CEEF support or help to create and strengthen rural women and rural youth led income generating innovations and initiatives, CEEF will continue to engage with its donor and collaborating partners to support rural women entrepreneurship, cooperatives and work toward building manufacturing local agriculture products.
II. Eradication of Gender-Based Violence:
i. Our intent: To move rural community leaders to take responsibility to protect women and girls against sexual and gender based violence, and promote gender equity.
ii. National Context: From the Liberian context as the global perspective the legislation frameworks allowing increased women’s political participation and representation in governments and agencies notwithstanding, on the overall, women are grossly under-represented in social, political and economic life; they are yet being discriminated on account of traditional beliefs and cultural attributes. Overcoming Gender inequality will remain elusive as long as cultural, social and economic barring limits are not strategically disallowed. The worst end of the equation is lack of the criminal justice system that is free of inefficiency and corruption; this want of a system make women extremely vulnerable to acts of violence, especially in the context of armed conflict. From a traditional outlook, Liberia is essentially a patriarchy society wherein men continue to be predominant holders of roles and rules of political power, social and economic privileges and the rights to land and the control of property. However, post-war Liberian is an evolving society that is presenting opportunities for social change. A myriad of civil society institutions have emerged and strategic law reforms and justices system that accounts for women and children rights and protection have been introduced. CEEF and other partners are working with rural community based organization to advocate for gender equality and against abuse; empowering communities for economic and political participation. In this strategic period, CEEF will seek advance programs designed to raise awareness for community level land rights and land use; women political and economic participation.
III. Leadership Development:
i. Our intent: Strengthening democratic good governance and leadership skills of community and local leaders in rural communities in Liberia bordering rural communities of the Manor River Union Countries. ii. National Context: In order to have a wholesome society it is everyone‟s business. However, for everyone to be involved and create the expected society there has to be individuals who play the leadership role. To be effective in such an endeavor, the leadership practitioners have to obtain the required competencies. Thus, the fourteen year civil crisis did not only demolish the social fabric of the nation, but created competency deficit in various sector of the society. One of such sector is the education system in the nation that is characterized by brain drain. Due to the brain drain, most individuals who are in leadership role in Liberia do not have the required knowledge and skill to discharge their position responsibilities. Leadership competencies are skills and behaviors that contribute to superior performance. By using a competency-based approach to leadership, organizations can be in a position identify and develop their next generation of leaders. The CEEF Leadership program focus is on building leaders and would be leaders „competencies and skills that will promotes strategic contemporary leadership style.
