Liberia
People Helped in 2020: 454,723
Liberia suffered greatly during the 14 year civil war that tore the country apart. Despite the formal end of hostilities with the Accra Peace Agreement of 2003, the effects of this protracted, devastating conflict can still be seen today as Liberians grapple with a legacy of destroyed infrastructure, widespread poverty, and very poor living conditions. Healthcare systems are also struggling to recover and the Ebola epidemic of 2014 proved that the system was still too weak.
In Liberia, 1.6 million people are hungry. Among children under five years old, 30% are stunted and 3% are acutely malnourished. Fewer than 10% of Liberians have access to safely-managed drinking water and sanitation services. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated vulnerabilities across the country, including impacts on food security, depreciating prices, and fuel shortages.
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In 2020, Action Against Hunger worked to strengthen health systems and services. We improved the quality of prenatal, postnatal, and neonatal and obstetric emergency care by increasing the management of childhood illnesses and providing childcare services and family planning. Our teams also provided psychological and psychosocial care and support for women and girls in emotional distress. We also continued its national health advocacy efforts.
Our team strengthened nutrition interventions in Liberia, targeting children under five, pregnant and breastfeeding women, and caregivers of children under two. In addition to providing training to healthcare staff, we carried out mass nutrition screenings for children under five and led activities about local, diverse food awareness.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we supported 60 health facilities with equipment and training to improve infection prevention and control, case management, and continuity of primary healthcare services. We reached more than 600,000 people with vital information and resources to protect themselves against the virus by training community health assistants and providing hygiene kits to 4,000 families.