Summary
• The Promotion of Women’s Empowerment and Rights Program concluded after five years of supporting women’s leadership, economic empowerment, and protection from sexual and gender-based violence across six counties.
• Program data showed more than 16,000 direct participants were reached, 412 survivors accessed justice services, and 156 communities benefited from interventions including savings groups, climate-smart agriculture, and livelihood programs.
• Partners and government officials called for sustained investment in women-led organizations, warning that gains made under the program could be difficult to maintain without continued support.
By: Siaway T. Miapue: siawaytmiapue@gmail.com
Monrovia — A five-year women’s empowerment program implemented by Kvinna till Kvinna, a Swedish women’s rights organization with an office in Liberia, has concluded, with partners urging continued investment in women’s leadership, economic empowerment, and protection from sexual and gender-based violence.
The Promotion of Women’s Empowerment and Rights Program, funded by the Government of Sweden through the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, worked across six counties — Montserrado, Sinoe, Grand Bassa, Bong, Nimba, and Margibi — focusing on strengthening women’s economic resilience and participation in decision-making.
The program operated in a country where women continue to face significant barriers to economic participation, political leadership, and protection from violence, according to the Liberia Country Gender Equality Profile 2025, an evidence-based report commissioned by the Government of Liberia through the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection with support from United Nations Women, the African Development Bank, the European Union, and the Government of Sweden.
At a close-out event in Monrovia, government officials, civil society organizations, development partners, and beneficiaries reflected on the program’s achievements while warning that progress could stall without sustained investment in women-led initiatives.
Presenting results from the program, Mabel Kear, Program Manager of the Promotion of Women’s Empowerment and Rights Program at Kvinna till Kvinna, said the initiative focused on building women’s financial resilience and economic leadership through Village Savings and Loan Associations, community-based savings groups where women pool funds, provide small loans to one another, and build small businesses.
She said the program also introduced livelihood interventions, including an innovative plastic waste-to-income model that enabled women to convert plastic waste into reusable products, combining income generation with environmental sustainability.
Other components included land rights awareness and support for climate-smart agriculture initiatives aimed at strengthening women’s long-term economic security and participation in community decision-making.
“The women in this room spent more than five years working in their communities to make change in Liberia,” Kear said. “The program was called POWER because it reflects the challenges women face to ensure they are represented, participating, and making meaningful contributions to decisions affecting their communities and country.”
Program data presented at the event showed that the initiative reached more than 16,000 direct participants across 156 communities, supported 412 survivors in accessing justice services, and engaged 120 men as male champions promoting gender equality and support for women’s rights.
Speaking on behalf of implementing partners, Esther S. Davis Yango, Executive Director of the Women NGOs Secretariat of Liberia, described the program as a platform that strengthened women’s leadership and improved community responses to sexual and gender-based violence.
She said women’s participation in savings groups and livelihood programs improved household income and increased their role in financial decision-making.
The program also supported coordination between the Ministries of Justice, Health, and Gender, Children and Social Protection through the distribution of 3,000 reporting books intended to improve documentation, referral systems, and accountability in handling cases of violence.
Despite these gains, Yango warned that violence against women and girls, economic inequality, and barriers to political participation remain significant challenges, calling for continued investment in women-led and grassroots organizations.
Representing the Swedish Embassy in Liberia, Karl Backeus, Ambassador of Sweden to Liberia, said women’s organizations have played a central role in Liberia’s post-conflict recovery, supporting peacebuilding, human rights advocacy, and services for survivors of violence.
He noted that while both the program and Sweden’s embassy operations in Monrovia are coming to an end, the impact of the partnership would continue.
