Following a competitive bidding process in April 2024, the Center for Security Studies and Development (CENSSAD) hired Genius Solutions Group (GSG) to conduct a survey to identify and understand the barriers to women’s participation in Liberia’s reconciliation and peace-building processes. The survey was part of a larger project supported by the German Federal Foreign Office Funds through the Zivik Funding Program titled “Amplifying Local Women Voices: Understanding and Breaking Down Barriers to Women Participation in the Liberian Reconciliation and Peace Building Processes.”
Genius Solutions Group is a Liberian-owned entity with headquarters in the United States and offices in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Uganda. It has conducted an array of surveys for a variety of private and political organizations across Liberia.
The CENSSAD survey sought insights from women living in six of Liberia’s fifteen counties (Lofa, Sinoe, Nimba, Grand Gedeh, Rivercess, and Grand Cape Mount) specifically to highlight the challenges women face in participating in Liberia’s reconciliation process or whether they have an interest in doing so at all. Based on the data from the survey, this report provides actionable recommendations to enhance women’s involvement in these crucial processes.
ABOUT CENSSAD
Established in 2014, the Center for Security Studies and Development (CENSSAD) is a strategic institution that promotes security sector governance and enhances civil-security relations. CENSSAD’s efforts contribute to long-term socio-economic and political stability in Liberia. Recognizing the interconnectedness of development and security, CENSSAD’s initiatives transcend national borders to address the challenges faced by the West African sub-region.
CENSSAD is committed to being a catalyst for security analysis and a facilitator for sector governance, civil-military relations, and democratic governance. The organization is focused on advancing human rights, promoting the rule of law, and fostering peace and conflict resolution. By striving for an efficient security sector accountable to the people, CENSSAD underscores the essential connection between security, development, and the rule of law as fundamental prerequisites for sustainable peace.
CENSSAD operates across several vital thematic areas to achieve its goals, including security and justice, advocacy and awareness-building, conflict and peace-building, and promoting human rights and development. Through its work in these areas, CENSSAD envisions a vibrant, democratically governed, transformed Liberia that ensures holistic security, peace, and human rights for all its citizens.