ActionAid, Partners Launch First County-Based Feminist Movement in Gbarma, Gbarpolu County
More than three hundred residents, local leaders, government officials, youth representatives, and delegates from the Embassy of Sweden gathered in Gbarma District, Gbarpolu County, for the official launch of the county’s first district-based feminist movement is a turning point for women aimed at advancing women’s rights, leadership, and community participation.
The newly launched Gbarma District Feminist Movement brings together nearly 100 women from grassroots women’s groups, rural communities, farming cooperatives, and other local structures across the district. The women were trained and empowered under the Just and Equal Communities (JEC) Project implemented by ActionAid Liberia and partners.
After participating in movement-building trainings in 2025, members of the movement committed themselves to standing in solidarity for women’s rights, including sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR), leadership participation, decision-making, and speaking out against patriarchy and harmful traditional practices in Gbarpolu County.
The launch marked a major milestone in the county, with local authorities pledging full support to ensure the movement succeeds and women’s rights are protected and promoted.
The initiative aligns with ActionAid Liberia’s Priority One agenda, which seeks to address structural and systemic gender-based violence against women, girls, and marginalized groups. The priority focuses on increasing the agency of women and girls to challenge violence, harmful traditional practices, and inequality through advocacy, awareness, and policy reform.
Delivering remarks at the ceremony, ActionAid Liberia Country Director Elizabeth Gbah Johnson praised the women of Gbarpolu for transforming years of training and awareness into a grassroots movement capable of driving change across the county.
“You have demonstrated what ActionAid is all about, and I am so proud of you,” she told the audience. “Changing minds is not easy. It is a process, and this movement is the result of that process.”
Johnson reflected on the early days of the initiative, noting that many people once questioned the value of repeated trainings, but today the women of Gbarpolu have proven the impact of empowerment and sustained engagement.
“We are happy to say that even if ActionAid leaves in June, the women of Gbarpolu can continue this work because you are already taking ownership and engaging your leaders,” she said.
According to Johnson, meetings held with the County Council and local authorities revealed how effectively the women had learned to articulate community challenges and advocate for solutions.
“They spoke with passion, confidence, and leadership,” she said. “That is what decentralization and good governance look like.”
She further emphasized that feminism should not be viewed only through the lens of formal education, stressing that rural women also have the right to organize, lead, and advocate for respect and participation in decision-making processes.
Johnson recounted emotional reactions from representatives of the Swedish Embassy who visited Parker Town and witnessed the impact women have made through livelihood initiatives and community organizing under the JEC Project.
“The Embassy saw your work and they were deeply moved,” she said. “What you have started will continue if you remain united and continue working with young people, men, elders, and community leaders.”
Also speaking at the event, ActionAid Liberia Program Coordinator and lead for the JEC Project, Willet Salue, praised the unity and determination demonstrated by the women of Gbarpolu.
“Today I am proud because this did not start big,” she said. “It started with a small meeting where women from different districts came together and decided to put their differences aside.”
Salue noted that the formation of the movement was not imposed by ActionAid but was instead initiated by the women themselves after recognizing the importance of collective advocacy and solidarity.
“We only shared knowledge with you, but you saw the need to continue,” she told the women. “This movement is the only way your voices will truly be heard, so never allow anyone to divide you.”
She encouraged the women to remain organized and engaged in county affairs, emphasizing that a united movement would ensure women are consulted on major development decisions, including mineral agreements, political leadership, and community governance.
Accepting the movement’s position statement, Gbarpolu County Superintendent Hon. Sam Zinnah publicly pledged his administration’s support to the feminist movement and women’s empowerment efforts across the county.
“It is a big day not only for women, but for men as well,” Superintendent Zinnah stated. “Seeing women unite to work for the good of the district, county, and country is something we fully support.”
The superintendent praised the economic empowerment initiatives being carried out by women in Parker Town, particularly the production of Liberian country cloths. He said his administration hopes to expand the initiative across Gbarpolu and eventually establish a county-based production network capable of creating jobs and generating income.
“This should not remain only in Parker Town,” he said. “It should become a county project where women from Gbarma, Belleh, Kongba, Bopolu, and Bokomu can all participate and create opportunities for themselves.”
Zinnah disclosed that the County Council has already allocated funding in the 2026 county budget to support the art school and sustain the impact created through the work of ActionAid Liberia, Domafeign, and the Embassy of Sweden.
“The Swedish people used their taxpayers’ money to support us,” he said. “Now we must continue this work ourselves because Gbarpolu is rich in resources and capable of developing its people.”
The superintendent also acknowledged the positive impact the JEC Project has had on women, girls, former practitioners of female genital mutilation (FGM), and survivors who now