The European Union Commission has rescued Liberia by signing a grant agreement totaling US$21 million, following the United States Government’s cut in foreign aid.
By Lewis S. Teh
Monrovia, Liberia, March 5, 2025—In fulfillment of promises made to Liberia amid the current USAID aid cut, the European Union Commission and the Government of Liberia have signed two key financing agreements totaling US$21 million.
The agreement for the Spotlight Initiative and Support Measures is said to be valued at US$21 million.
According to the EU, the Support Measures program is valued at US$7.3 million and consists of two key components.
The EU says the Cooperation Facility aims to enhance the national aid development coordination mechanism to maximize the impact and effectiveness of EU-supported development programs here by empowering various CSOs and NGOs and recognizing them as the backbone of a thriving democratic society.
The Spotlight Initiative (2.0) is a US$13.6 million program aimed at eliminating all forms of violence against women and girls.
Accordingly, the EU said the program will be implemented by UN Women, UNFPA, and UNDP and is expected to be carried out in eight of Liberia’s fifteen counties, including Bong, Grand Bassa, Cape Mount, Grand Gedeh, Lofa, Maryland, Montserrado, and Nimba, with some intervention around legislation, institutional capacity, and coordination of services.
Remarking at the official signing ceremony on Tuesday, March 4, 2025, at the Ministry of Finance in Monrovia, Erica Gerretsen, Director for Human Development Migration, Governance and Peace at the EU, said the agreement’s signing will boost the government’s efforts in mitigating violence against women and girls.
“So the signing of this financing agreement today is a signal that we are a reliable partner to Liberia that we are maintaining our commitment to gender equality and to fighting gender-based violence, but more broadly, a strong commitment from the EU to work with Liberia as a trusted partner and to continue reinforcing our relationship moving forward”, Madam Gerretsen.
She narrates that the first phase is a support measures program that will help the EU support Liberia in strengthening the coordination mechanisms to implement EU cooperation while also supporting the country’s CSOs and fiscal Society organizations.
It will also contribute to increasing accountability as well as visibility of EU cooperation in Liberia, she says.
She notes that the European Union and its member states support Liberia on average by $100 million per year. Other EU countries involved are Ireland, Sweden, France, and Germany.
At the same time, the EU envoy adds that the second program signed on Tuesday is for a total amount of 13 million euros, which is approximately 14 million US dollars. For that program, “I would like to really thank and recognize the presence of the Minister of Gender this morning here in the room, as well as the UN system.
According to her, the Spotlight Initiative is a worldwide initiative that the EU started with the UN system. The purpose is to work with the EU on fighting gender-based violence around the world. “We had the first initiative, Spotlight One, which was launched back in 2017, for which Liberia has also been a beneficiary.
“Violence against women and girls happens everywhere in every country; it’s not something specific to Liberia; this is something that is happening everywhere in the world.”
Liberia’s Finance and Development Planning Minister, Augustine K. Ngafuan, terms the signing of the $20 million grant as a new day for the country, which is experiencing interesting times.
He recalls as far back as 2015, when the Sustainable Development Goals were agreed by the world, saying the central team that came out was, leave no one behind. 2030 SDGs, leave no one behind.
Minister Ngafuan notes that that was the commitment of the world to look at the vulnerable, to look at the poor, to look at the weak and shut in, to look at victims of gender-based violence, to look at the sisters, to look at our daughters.
“Leave no one behind. As I said on Friday, that concept of leaving no one behind is also a race because it has been left behind.” Editing by Jonathan Browne
