Liberian Vice President Jewel Howard Taylor has named salary harmonization in government, road infrastructure, the tuition free policy at public universities and colleges and the payment of WASSCE fees for all 12th graders in the country as major achievements for the Weah led goverment.
Speaking in an interview with Kingsley Ighobor, a public information officer for the United Nations and Managing Editor at the Africa Renewal, VP Taylor said the first goal is entrenching democracy.
According to madam Taylor, after taking the baton of power in 2018 the government has conducted many elections including bi-elections and the 2020 senatorial election. The legal processes which attend contested elections have been successfully and peacefully followed up by the Supreme Court.
Responding to a question asked by Mr. Ighobor, “What are the top three achievements of your government so far?” The Liberian VP noted that they carried out a process of harmonization that allowed the government to significantly reduce the wage bill by eliminating ghost names. Implementing a biometric identification card eliminated discrepancies for all government employees. According to the VP, they have redirected excess finances to other critical areas.
She also named the tuition-free policy for public universities and colleges announced by President Weah in 2019 and the payment by the government of all regional testing fees for WASSCE (West African Senior School Certificate Examination) have provided huge reliefs for parents. The scheme will increase school enrollments and literacy rates.
She at the same time named infrastructural development as another major achievement of the goverment. She is quoted as saying, “A former Minister of Works once said that the road to development begins with the development of the roads. This is so true for us.”
She said the government is rehabilitating existing roads (feeder and main highways) and expanding the road network. We plan to ensure that all capital cities in Liberia are connected by paved roads, especially in the southeastern corridor.
Madam Taylor expressed her gratitude to Liberia’s international partners who are supporting the goverment achieve its goals.
