The Liberian civil war of the last 14 years caused untold sorrow and devastation. But that was not all. It disrupted the economic lives of the people, particularly women who are traditionally regarded in Liberia as caretakers of homes and families. Most Liberian women and girls have no means or skills to live independent and modest lives. Long years of political neglect and decades of fratricidal conflicts have left them wholly dependent on external assistance, a situation that underpins the tidal wave of prostitution seething in the country.

The unfolding socioeconomic climate in the country spells doom for Liberian womanhood in particular and the nation in general. With the national government impaired and incapable of resolving the enormous challenges of post-war rehabilitation, it is clear that the woes of war, particularly for women and girls, will become worse in years to come if nothing is done to help these war-afflicted persons to recover.

Due to war, only a few women and girls are able to be economically independent. Their recovery efforts are limited by their lack of basic skills and resources. Some are involved in selling various commodities, including foodstuffs, used clothes and other goods that their limited funds can buy, but these activities have had little positive impact on their lives.

The women and girls in the Peace Island Community are one group of Liberian females enduring difficult conditions in their efforts to rehabilitate their lives. Many recently returned from various locations around Monrovia, Liberia’s capital, and other places in the West African region where they had fled in fear of their lives. Some are returning as heads of their families, while others find themselves in exceptionally difficult circumstances. A few are engaged in small businesses.

Peace Island itself is a slum community in Monrovia, and the bulk of the people who live there are poor. They live in dilapidated houses, drink from open wells and rarely eat a decent meal. Most of the inhabitants, particularly children, scavenge for food, and women bear the brunt of supporting their families.

Having witnessed the pitiful living conditions of women and children on Peace Island, Better Future, Inc., a local nonprofit, nongovernmental and development organization, is proposing to use a micro-loan program to empower targeted individuals financially and technically so that they can make their own lives worth living.