– Calls for reform, a decade after Madam Sirleaf’s controversial comment
By Jerromie S. Walters
Ganta, Nimba County – Addressing the launch of the Joint National Education Stakeholders Retreat over the weekend, House Speaker J. Fonati Koffa emphasized the urgent need for a reevaluation of Liberia’s educational priorities, particularly the overwhelming focus on tertiary education. His remarks came as part of a broader discussion aimed at transforming the country’s educational landscape to better serve its youth and meet the demands of the modern workforce.
Liberia’s education system has long been a focal point of national discourse, reflecting the country’s complex history and its aspirations for a brighter future. After decades of civil conflict, which severely disrupted educational infrastructure and access, Liberia faces significant challenges in rebuilding and reforming its education sector.
According to EduRank, an independent metric-based ranking of 14,131 universities from 183 countries, the University of Liberia ranked 1st in Liberia, 5445th in the global 2024 rating, and scored in 46 research topics. The University of Liberia ranking is based on 3 factors: research output (EduRank’s index has 618 academic publications and 11,102 citations attributed to the university), non-academic reputation, and the impact of 19 notable alumni.
This shows that other universities in Liberia are ranked far below the position of the University of Liberia on the world ranking. Considering this and several other factors, the Speaker of the 55th Legislature appears curious about the proliferation of tertiary institutions and how they are ensuring that students are adequately prepared for the job market.
“I tend to think that we are too focused on Tertiary education. We are too focused on creating bachelor’s, and master’s degree holders and now even I’m hearing instances of PHD. Unfortunately, we have not taken good stock to understand and assess the abilities of people to whom we are giving degrees.”
In 2013, former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf branded Liberia’s education system “a mess” requiring a complete overhaul, days after all 25,000 high school students who sat the University of Liberia’s (UL) entrance exams failed. “The students’ failure did not come from the university, but rather from the schools that prepared them. The result is alarming,” Sirleaf said in a statement. “It tells me that the educational system is a mess.”
Decades later, the third most powerful man in the state has also raised similar concerns, but in a different manner. Speaker Koffa raised critical questions regarding the capabilities of graduates in comparison to their peers in the sub-region. “Moreover, every day, new tertiary educational institutions are being licensed and are popping up. Have we assessed the capabilities of our graduates against their colleagues and their counterparts in the sub-region and other parts is my first question. So when you look at being transformative, the first place you have to look is where we are. Are all of the students that are graduating [First let’s start at the bachelor’s degree level], sold they even be in college?” he asked.
He further highlighted the challenges faced by employers in Liberia, expressing frustration over the skills gap that often leaves them with graduates who struggle with basic tasks. He says many employers have resorted to performing essential tasks themselves to ensure quality work, underlining a significant disconnect between education and employability.
“Those of us who are employers from the receiving end, are you sending to us people who can read and write? Can we rely on them to compile our reports? [Can they] compose a letter that we can just sign off on? Many of us, despite having graduates in our offices, tend to do our own work, if [we] you want quality work. So the first thing we have to do is [to] really assess ourselves and not kid ourselves on what is the state of our educational sector today.” Speaker Koffa stated.
At the occasion over the weekend, the House Speaker also addressed the foundational issues in primary education, particularly in rural areas where many students receive less than half a year of schooling. He pointed out that a policy implemented years ago, which involved retiring teachers without adequate replacements, has led to the closure of numerous schools.
His words: “On the formative and performative levels [Kindergarten and elementary schools, in the rural areas most of our students spend less than half a year in school. We came with a policy some years ago and started retiring teachers without replacing them [and] that caused a lot of schools in the rural areas to be closed. Up to now many of those teachers have not been replaced by the Ministry of Education.”
Moreover, he stressed the importance of entrance exams that effectively filter for the best and brightest students, suggesting that many young people may be better suited for vocational and technical education rather than traditional academic paths. “Entrance exams must be of such that it’s recruiting only the best and brightest. Because if the foundation levels of a lot of our young people, maybe a lot of them belong in vocational and technical education. A country after decades of war reforming its educational sector will not be focusing so much on bachelor’s degrees and master’s degrees and now PhD. It will be focusing on the technical and vocational institutions,” Koffa asserted.
The system
Liberia’s education system has been shaped by a tumultuous history, including a prolonged civil war from 1989 to 2003 that devastated schools and displaced millions of students. The aftermath left a legacy of underfunded institutions, inadequate facilities, and a shortage of qualified teachers. Although the government has made strides in rebuilding the system since the end of the conflict, many challenges remain.
Despite improvements in enrollment rates, particularly at the primary level, access to quality education remains uneven across urban and rural areas. Many children, especially in remote regions, face barriers such as a lack of nearby schools, and economic constraints that force them into child labor instead of classrooms. According to recent statistics, Liberia still has one of the highest rates of out-of-school children in West Africa.
The quality of education in Liberia is another pressing concern. Many schools lack essential resources, including textbooks, teaching materials, and trained educators. A significant number of teachers are unqualified or underqualified, leading to a substandard learning environment. This situation is exacerbated by large class sizes, with some classrooms accommodating more than 50 students, making individualized attention nearly impossible.
The curriculum in many schools does not adequately prepare students for the demands of the modern workforce. There is a pressing need for educational content that emphasizes critical thinking, problem-solving, and technical skills, particularly in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Additionally, vocational training programs remain underdeveloped, limiting students’ options for practical skills acquisition.
Moreover, many schools operate in dilapidated buildings, lacking basic amenities such as clean water, sanitation facilities, and electricity. This not only affects the learning experience but also poses health risks to students. The government’s efforts to rehabilitate and construct new school facilities have been hampered by budget constraints and competing national priorities.
