Prevention and Response to Sexual Exploitation & Abuse in Liberia

1.0 Introduction
This note starts by describing the social, political
and humanitarian context within which SEA is
being addressed in Liberia. The economic and
social vulnerability in Liberian society widens
the power differential between the large number
of humanitarian workers in the country and the
beneficiaries of their assistance, making the
latter highly susceptible to SEA. The overall
vulnerability of a majority the population lends itself
to the development of conditions in which SEA
can flourish. As a result, the existence of SEA as
a form of GBV has been recognized as a national
problem and has been prioritized for action by the
President.
The ICN in Liberia has produced this paper to
showcase the significant progress that has been
made in prevention and response to SEA, to identify
challenges encountered and lessons learned and
to make recommendations for other countries to
take positive steps towards reducing the risks
and incidence of SEA. The Liberian context is
unique both in its enabling factors, which include
political will, existence of government coordination
networks, strong leadership from the ICN chair and
a dedicated post in the Resident Coordinator’s office
of the UN Country Team, as well as its challenges
including capacity constraints (human, logistical) at
the county level, waning humanitarian aid flows, and
cultural/sexual norms that can detract from effective
implementation of a national ‘zero tolerance’ policy.
While there remains much more progress to be
made, there is a need to document the experience
in Liberia as a case study, as a contribution to the
global efforts in addressing SEA.
This paper will first describe the political and
humanitarian environment in the country, which
provides the context for the various interventions
undertaken by the ICN. Next, the paper will
describe the coordination mechanisms used, the
interventions undertaken and tools developed
for prevention of SEA, and the methods of
monitoring and reporting. Each section will also
note successes and challenges. The paper ends
with a list of enabling and disabling factors, with
recommendations for countries that plan to utilize
this case study as a guide to best practices.
1.1 Social Context
The Government of Liberia, with help from its
partners, has made significant achievements
over the past two and a half years, moving the
nation along a path of recovery and rehabilitation.
However, given the extent of destruction from 14
years of civil strife, far too many Liberians remain
in a state of high vulnerability. Though enshrined
1
as basic rights for all, health care, safe water and
appropriate sanitation, shelter and education
remain out of reach for the majority of Liberians.
As an overall consequence of the civil conflict and
economic decline, Liberia today is amongst the
world’s least developed countries and the country’s
socio-economic indicators are amongst the worst.
Poverty in Liberia is pervasive, with an estimated
80 percent of all households suffering from income
poverty. Around three-quarters of the population
lives on less than US $1 per day and approximately
90 percent of the population is considered food
insecure.
Overall primary school enrollment is low; 37% of
girls are enrolled compared to 38% of boys. Net
high school enrollment is even lower (16% male
to 14% female). There is a large gender disparity
in adult literacy rates, 69% for men and 41% for
women.
Furthermore, women lack equal opportunities to
skills training and economic assistance, as well as
employment opportunities in both public and private
sectors. Considering that women lead many
Liberian households, this has a significant impact
on many families’ ability to cope.
There are high rates of sexual and gender-based
violence, particularly involving child victims, and
harmful traditional practices and beliefs that affect
the rights (including reproductive health rights) of
women and girls are prevalent. Rape is the number
one crime reported week after week in UN Crime
statistics, which reflect the national trend. Many
survivors of sexual violence and exploitation are
unwilling to look for medical or psycho-social
assistance, or to report the assault to the police
because of the associated stigma.
There is a fragile and barely functional justice
system, a lack of correctional facilities, and an
inexperienced newly recruited police force, which
lacks logistical necessities as well as community
trust. Within this context, effective response to
sexual gender based violence (SGBV), which
requires specialized knowledge and skills, poses
seemingly overwhelming challenges. Until law
enforcement and judicial institutions become fully
functional, protection issues will remain a serious
humanitarian concern in Liberia.
1.2 Government Response
The Government of Liberia (GOL) commitment to
address the high prevalence and endemic nature
of GBV, especially sexual gender based violence
(SGBV), is also reflected in its recently completed
Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS 2008-2012),