Monrovia — The Founder and Executive Director of Naymote Partners for Democratic Development, Eddie D. Jarwolo, has called on the Liberian government to adopt a long-term national development plan, warning that the country cannot achieve sustainable development through short five- or six-year plans tied to individual administrations.
By J.H. Webster Clayeh (0886729972)[email protected]
Speaking Wednesday during an interactive dialogue at the Center for the Exchange of Intellectual Opinions (CEIO) in Monrovia, Mr. Jarwolo said Liberia’s development efforts have been weakened by the continuous introduction of new development agendas by successive governments.
“Every government has their own development plan, which is wrong. The development plan got to cross 25 to 30 years—make it long,” Jarwolo said. “To develop that, the opposition parties got to participate, the civil society, everybody got to participate.”
Mr. Jarwolo, a seasoned leadership development expert and democracy advocate with over two decades of experience in civic engagement, grassroots organizing, and democratic governance, emphasized that national development should not be driven by partisan interests.
According to him, a credible long-term development framework must be inclusive and involve representatives from all sectors of society, including opposition political parties, civil society organizations, youth groups, and other key stakeholders.
He further criticized the tendency of politicians to make ambitious campaign promises only to abandon or water them down once in office.
“We can’t keep having election after election, and when people come to power, they frustrate our people,” he said, noting that this cycle often leads to public disappointment and mistrust in leadership.
Mr. Jarwolo questioned the sustainability of Liberia’s current approach to development planning, citing past and present government agendas.
“What is the vision of Liberia? CDC came with the PAPD, the Unity Party came with the ARREST Agenda. After six years, it finishes. We cannot develop this country like this—we need a long-term plan,” he stressed.
The dialogue was held as part of the President Meter Community Engagement, organized by Naymote Partners for Democratic Development. The forum brought together youth leaders, university students, civil society actors, and other stakeholders to critically examine the President Meter One-Year Performance Report on the ARREST Agenda.
According to Naymote, the engagement aims to deepen participants’ understanding of the report’s findings, including completed interventions, progress made, implementation gaps, unmet commitments, and reform areas requiring urgent attention under the ARREST Agenda.
