MONROVIA – FrontPageAfrica has gathered that Liberian foreign mission workers across the globe have been left stranded by the Liberian government for six to eight months without paying their rent, cost-of-living adjustments, and even salaries.
By Lennart Dodoo, [email protected]
While this has slowed down activities at these embassies like the Liberian Embassy in Washington D.C., most of the staff are still sacrificing by being punctual at work and ensuring that the embassy remains operational.
A Liberian diplomat who spoke to FrontPageAfrica on condition of anonymity said staff from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs assigned at the embassy have not received their rent and even salary for the past eight months, while press attaches at various embassies across the globe have not received theirs for the past five months.
“In countries like America, these people don’t joke with their rent, so imagine the foreign workers there going five to eight months without receiving money from their government for rent. There is no life insurance and here, when you send your children to school, the government compels us to have insurance for our children,” the diplomat lamented.
Another diplomat who spoke to FrontPageAfrica wondered why the past government would boast of leaving over US$40 million for the new government when its employees around the world were being left heavily indebted.
“The Weah administration left US$40m for President Boakai to start with, but what was the essence when you were owing people in foreign missions who also have family obligations. Our rent is overdue, some of us here are being rescued here by family and friends. We’ve been sacrificing, but how long would we continue like this?” the diplomat said.
At her confirmation hearing earlier this month, the new Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sara Beysolow Nyanti, vowed to ensure the holistic rebranding of Liberia’s foreign relations to attract economic, social, and political benefits for the nation and its citizens.
According to her, the relationship with traditional allies and international bodies will be strengthened to yield sustainable transformational actions to move the country forward.
She named strategic Foreign Service and relations, rebranding Liberia, safeguarding identity, creating an enabling environment for investment, capacity building, and staff welfare as her key vision. She said though the challenges remain huge, she would use her experience while working for the international body to help ensure that Liberia remains a partner to foreign nations, international, and regional bodies, instead of being a beggar. Madam Nyanti stressed that her skills in negotiation would help assess and build relationships with countries to transform Liberia.
