– Awards $30,000 in Grants
By Jerromie S. Walters
Monrovia, Liberia – The Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa (GPFA), a registered NGO founded in 2012 by Nobel Peace Laureate Leymah Gbowee, has awarded a total of $30,000 in grants to three community-based organizations (CBOs) leading the fight against Liberia’s growing drug epidemic. Each of the three CBOs—Zogo WeCare, Coffee With Jojo, and the Center for Rehabilitation and Reintegration—received $10,000.
Zogo We Care & Coffee With Jojob– grants were formally awarded on Monday, August 11, 2025, while the Center for Rehabilitation and Reintegration – received funding last week. The amount will sum to $40,000 in the coming days as another CBO, St. Benedict Home is expected to receive its funds. The support, initiated under the Sentheyee Fund, is part of a $20 million grant from the Melinda Gates Foundation. The grants aim to strengthen grassroots efforts to address drug abuse, rehabilitation, and reintegration in Liberia.
The endeavor follows a massive anti-drug march on August 7, 2025, when hundreds of Liberians called on the government to take urgent action against the country’s worsening drug crisis. In an interview with WomenVoices on Monday, Madam Leymah Gbowee, the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, emphasized the need for sustained action beyond protests. “Today, we rolled out $30,000 to three community-based organizations. One of the things that I have been asking myself is what’s next after the march? What can we do to support the efforts?”
Trust in Grassroots Change-Makers:
Madam Gbowee expressed strong confidence in the selected CBOs, citing their proven track records and dedication. “We decided that we will target these three groups that have been in the tranches of the fight against drug addiction in Liberia to give them this first round of grants of ten thousand each,” she explained.
“The organizations are organisations that we trust and we know. Even the ones that we have not worked with, like the Center for Rehabilitation and Coffee with Jojo, we recognize that they (Coffee with Jojo specifically) have been in the forefront of this for a long time. We are doing trust-based philanthropy with those groups that we have not worked with, knowing that their work speaks for itself,” Madam Gbowee said.
Drug use among Liberian youth remains a critical issue, with studies indicating that 20% (2 in 10) of young people in the country are using narcotics. The crisis deepened in 2024–2025, when the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA) seized 9,651.23 kg of illegal drugs—worth over $4.9 million (LRD 949 million)—in nationwide operations. The synthetic drug Kush represented the largest confiscation: 5,494.50 kg, valued at $2.3 million (LRD 405.5 million).
With this, Madam Gbowee framed the funding as a lifeline for those seeking recovery. “It’s my hope that the funds will be used to cater to someone who wants to get out but doesn’t have the means.” The Nobel Peace Prize winner emphasized that grassroots support for rehabilitation is critical in Liberia’s fight against drug addiction.
The prominent Liberian woman also stressed the ripple effect of individual impact. “What we have given to these groups is a drop in the ocean. But I am one person who believes in small, small. I am one person who believes in doing something instead of nothing. I am one person who believes that if you touch one person you’ve touched an entire family and by extension an entire community. Little by little, beyond awareness, beyond the protest, if we are able to support different groups, I think this is the best way to go.”
Meanwhile, Madam Gbowee is anticipating extending the gesture to more CBOs, if her foundation gets more resources. “Hopefully as we raise more money and as we get more money, we will reach out to other groups in the country who are doing such works:” She noted, “Earlier on this month we gave ten thousand to the Center for Rehabilitation runned by Senator Dillon and his people so in total we have done forty thousand dollars to four groups around drugs rehabilitation.”
Hailing the initiative:
From her end, Bong County District #6 Representative Moima Briggs-Mensah commended the Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa (GPFA) for its grant initiative and described it as a crucial intervention that will deliver tangible impact. Rep. Briggs-Mensah expressed confidence in the initiative’s potential, stating, “It’s a good thing and that is why I have been here and I know that money will make an impact.”
The Lawmaker rallied other stakeholders to join the fight by contributing additional resources to expand the program’s reach. “We appreciate her for what she has done and we are looking forward to having more people around doing such a thing so, Madam Gbowee, thank you and as a representative to the people, being here to witness such a gesture is laudable and we appreciate her efforts.”
Like Representative Briggs-Mensah, Madam Naomi Tulay-Solanke, the Executive Director of the Community Healthcare Initiative (CHI), hailed the grant as a rare and selfless act in Liberia’s strained aid environment. “I see this action (grant) as a selfless move because more often when we have access to resources we don’t think about those who are already doing the work. We feel that since we have access to the resources we can just go into the community and start to work immediately.”
CHI is a middleman between the Gbowee Peace Foundation and the benefiting organizations on the Sentheyee Fund. Madam Solanke pledged to collaborate closely with fellow grantees to ensure transparency and accountability. “For CHI, my organization, I have been opportune to receive the funding from the Sentheyee Fund. I am going to receive the money and work along with these organizations and ensure that it is used for the intended purpose.”
With major donors like USAID scaling back funding in Liberia, Madam Tulay-Solanke emphasized the essence of the GPFA grants. “I just want to tell them that you don’t see this often because in the aid world. We write proposals, we apply for grants. We call. We sit interviews and still we don’t have access to any funding. For you to be seated at home and someone calls you and says come, this work that you are doing I recognize it and I am going to give you money to continue, it’s a lot. You don’t see it easily,” she said. Madam Solanke further urged recipients to use the funds judiciously.
From War-Torn Liberia to Peace Icon:
Born on February 1, 1972, in Monrovia, Liberia, Madam Leymah Roberta Gbowee’s life transformed when civil war erupted in 1989. The conflict forced the then-17-year-old to shed her childhood overnight. Gbowee mobilized Christian women to demand peace through the Women in Peacebuilding Network (WIPNET). Her visionary leadership reached across religious divides when she partnered with Muslim women to form the historic interfaith coalition Women of Liberia Mass Action for Peace. Their courageous nonviolent protests and sex strike became legendary, ultimately helping end Liberia’s devastating civil war in 2003.
Gbowee’s 2011 Nobel Peace Prize recognition catapulted her local activism onto the global stage. She channeled this prestige into establishing the Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa, dedicated to nurturing Liberia and West Africa’s future peacebuilders and democratic leaders through education and empowerment initiatives.
