Liberia Pledges $100K to Help Mali

Minister Ngafuan

The Government of Liberia has committed itself to contributing US$100,000.00 to recovery efforts in the West African State of Mali.

Government made the commitment at a one-day International Donor Conference for the Development of Mali. The conference was held under the theme: “Together For A New Mali”. It was held on Wednesday, May 15, 2013, in Brussels, Belgium.

Foreign Minister Augustine Ngafuan made the pledge on behalf of the government and people of Liberia when he delivered a special statement at the one-day gathering in Europe’s political capital. 

The Foreign Minister informed the gathering that “Liberia considers the threat to the peace of Mali as a threat to the peace of the entire West African region and looks forward to working with Mali and the international community to transition Mali fully from war to peace, democracy and sustainable development.”

He added that “this is why Liberia is contributing a platoon from its very small army to the peacekeeping efforts in Mali.”

Minister Ngafuan reminded the gathering about Liberia’s difficult past, and commended the international community for standing by the country during the war years. He said although Liberia is still grappling with the negative effects of its 14 years civil war and is seeking support for its Agenda for Economic Transformation, the country feels that the sisterly country of Mali is also deserving of strong and timely support for its Transitional Roadmap and its Plan for Sustainable Recovery.

“The convening of this International Donor Conference for the Development of Mali under the theme ‘Together For A New Mali’, co-chaired by H. E. José Manuel Barroso, president of the European Commission and the President of France, François Hollande, in close collaboration with Mali’s Interim President, Dioncounda Traore, is truly a commendable initiative”, the Foreign Minister remarked.

Minister Ngafuan recalled that a little over a year ago when the constitutional order of Mali was torpedoed and a large swathe of its territory occupied by individuals with terrorist credentials, the prospect for peace seemed rather bleak, but thanks to the tenacity and support of the international community, especially ECOWAS, under the able leadership of Ivorian President Alasane Outtara, the AU, the EU, the UN; and strong bilateral partners led by France, which contributed the largest number of troops to the stabilization effort, peace and stability have been largely restored to Mali we are now looking forward to the holding of democratic elections sometime this year.

About US$4.2 billion (3.3 billion Euros) was raised for recovery efforts in Mali at the conference that was attended by the Presidents of France, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Niger, Benin, Togo, Mauritania, the Vice President of Nigeria and a host of Foreign Ministers including the African Development Bank President Donald Kaberuka, the World Bank Managing Director and a host of other donors.

Liberia’s Ambassador to the European Union, Ambassador Francis T. Karpeh, and Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for European Affairs, Israel Davies, formed part of the Liberian delegation that was led by Foreign Minister Ngafuan.