BY: SHALLON S. GONLOR |
shallonsgonlor@gmail.com
NIMBA COUNTY, Liberia — Liberian journalist and education advocate David M. Tahn has welcomed the Government of Liberia’s decision, through the Ministry of Education, to make public education free from Kindergarten through Grade 6 beginning with the 2026/2027 academic year.
In an open letter dated August 18, 2026, and addressed to Education Minister Dr. Jarso Maley Jallah, Tahn said the removal of tuition, registration, project, and other school-related fees is an important step toward ensuring that children from poor and vulnerable families can enroll in and remain in school.
However, he cautioned that eliminating fees should not mark the end of Liberia’s education reform efforts.
Tahn urged the government to accompany the policy with greater investment in public school infrastructure, teacher salaries and welfare, professional training, learning materials, sanitation, school financing, monitoring and accountability.
He expressed concern about the condition of many public schools in Nimba County and other parts of Liberia, citing deteriorating classrooms, roofs, floors, doors, windows, desks, blackboards, toilets and water facilities.
He also highlighted the heavy reliance on volunteer teachers in some communities, where schools reportedly have only a few government-paid teachers serving large numbers of students.
Tahn called for an emergency nationwide assessment and rehabilitation program covering all 15 counties, with priority given to unsafe and severely dilapidated schools.
He recommended improvements to classrooms, roofs, furniture, teaching facilities, drinking-water systems, sanitation, accessibility for children with disabilities and other essential infrastructure.
The education advocate also called for a comprehensive review of teachers’ salaries, incentives and working conditions, particularly for teachers serving in rural and hard-to-reach communities.
He further urged the Ministry of Education to decentralize teacher training and provide regular professional development opportunities for educators outside Monrovia, including those in Nimba, Grand Gedeh, River Gee, Maryland, Sinoe, Grand Kru, Gbarpolu and Lofa counties.
Tahn also recommended stronger monitoring and evaluation of public schools, including regular reporting on enrollment, teacher attendance and qualifications, infrastructure, learning materials, sanitation, student attendance, dropout rates, learning outcomes and school safety.
He called for nationwide inspections of public and private schools to ensure compliance with national education standards, arguing that schools posing serious risks to students should be rehabilitated or temporarily closed while affected students are provided with safe alternative learning environments.
According to Tahn, free education should mean more than simply eliminating school fees.
He said children should be able to enter school without financial discrimination, learn in safe classrooms, receive instruction from qualified and motivated teachers, access learning materials and sanitation facilities, and acquire the knowledge and skills necessary for their future.
Tahn also encouraged the government to use the No Registration Fees policy as an opportunity to develop a broader national education investment package combining free access, school rehabilitation, teacher welfare, teacher training, learning materials, school feeding, monitoring, evaluation and accountability.
Tahn called for a rapid assessment of public schools across the country before the opening of the 2026/2027 academic year.
He urged the Ministry, through the County Education Office and other relevant authorities, to identify schools facing urgent infrastructure needs, teacher shortages, inadequate furniture, lack of safe drinking water and sanitation, overcrowding and other serious challenges.
Tahn commended Minister Jallah and the Ministry of Education for removing financial barriers but urged the government to ensure that the policy translates into meaningful improvements in the quality of education.
“Education is not merely about putting children into classrooms,” Tahn wrote. “It is about giving them the knowledge, skills, values and opportunities necessary to build a better Liberia.”
He called on the government, education authorities, teachers, parents, civil society organizations, development partners and local communities to work together to ensure that the free education policy becomes a pathway to quality, safe, inclusive and accountable education for every Liberian child.
It can be recalled that the Government of Liberia, through the Ministry of Education, recently announced that public education will be free for students from Kindergarten through Grade 6 beginning with the 2026–2027 academic year.
Under the policy, parents and guardians of students enrolled in public primary schools will not be required to pay tuition, registration fees, project fees, or other mandatory school charges.
The policy is intended to reduce financial barriers to education and ensure that children, particularly those from low-income and vulnerable households, can enroll in and remain in school.
The initiative applies to government-run public schools and is expected to benefit students across Liberia’s 15 counties.
The policy is designed to support the government’s broader objective of expanding access to basic education, increasing enrollment and improving school retention.
The removal of school fees also places greater responsibility on the government to ensure that public schools receive adequate and timely funding to operate effectively.
Key areas requiring government support include teaching and learning materials, desks and chairs, school maintenance, sanitation, water facilities and other essential operational needs.
Education stakeholders have emphasized that free education should go beyond eliminating fees and must be accompanied by safe classrooms, qualified and motivated teachers, adequate learning materials and suitable school infrastructure.
Rural and hard-to-reach communities may require particular attention because some schools face teacher shortages, overcrowding, deteriorating infrastructure and limited educational resources.
The successful implementation of the policy will require coordination among the Ministry of Education, county education authorities, school administrators, teachers, parents and local communities.
The government is also expected to strengthen school monitoring, evaluation and accountability to ensure that increased enrollment is matched by improvements in educational quality.
Education stakeholders have called for greater investment in school rehabilitation, teacher recruitment and welfare, professional development, textbooks, learning materials, water and sanitation, school feeding and accountability mechanisms.
Ultimately, the success of the policy should be measured not only by the number of children entering school without paying fees, but also by whether students attend regularly, learn effectively, complete their education and acquire the skills needed for national development.
The free education policy therefore represents an opportunity for Liberia to reduce poverty-related barriers to education while strengthening the quality, accessibility and sustainability of the country’s basic education system.
