The thriving, lively rural town of Totota, Bong County will never be the same, according to women beneficiaries of the Totota Peace Hut. “This town is growing and changing in terms of mentoring and improving the attitude, skills, and public-speaking confidence of women so we can reach to that height we all aspire to acquire in life,” said Annie G. Saah, 53, member of the peace hut and Chairlady of the One Voice Group.
“Our peace hut in Totota has helped in improving the lives of women and young girls. Through this peace hut, women and girls have gained valuable skills in literacy, computer training, group and individual farming, village savings and loan scheme as well as conflict resolution and mediation outreach at household and community-levels, and I am one such example. I have my individual potatoes garden, my house-side bag garden together with a group farm. We use the proceeds for our children’s tuition and other family needs,” added Annie G. Saah.
Annie, Miatta Borbor, and nearly 50 other women meet at the peace hut on a weekly basis to support one another in peacebuilding, literacy, computer skills, petty business management, and small-scale farming. “Thanks to UN Women, Plan International, Orange Foundation, and the Peacebuilding Fund for their support in giving women the skills they need to become marketable and active contributors not just to our families but also to the community of Totota,” said Miatta Borbor, a member of One Voice Group at the peace hut.
True to Annie and Miatta’s words on the empowerment of women, in November 2024, during an indoor programme at Totota Peace Hut in Bong County, visiting Peacebuilding Commission Chair and Sweden’s Ambassador to the UN in New York, Amb. Nicola Clase and delegation witnessed a life-changing moment. Three formerly illiterate women – Mary Sheriff, Gbentelo Kennedy, and Oretha Jallah – proudly demonstrated their peace hut-acquired literacy skills by writing their names and telephone numbers on paper to the admiration of the visitors. The audience applauded them for their literacy achievements. Ma Mary Sandiman, Chairlady of Totota Peace Hut, emphasized the need to continue the peace hut: “This peace hut must continue here so more women can learn to read and write and to enhance women’s unity so women themselves can drive the change they need.”
The vegetable gardens, small businesses, the conflict mediation roles, and the computer training have all had tremendous impact on women beneficiaries by enabling them to earn money, support their households, participate in public and community discussions, and enhance peaceful co-existence among people. Rev Fahnlon A. Mulbah, Coordinator of the Orange Digital Center (ODC) within the Totota Peace Hut, underscored the life-improving results of the peace hut and the ODC on young women. “Computer literacy is a globally required skills area especially for women and girls to earn income and advertise their work on phone and on a computer.” He disclosed that Grace Pope, a resident of Totota, acquired digital skills in the application of cell phone for business and started advertizing and doing Orange Mobile Money, and then relocated to Monrovia where she’s living and working.
The empowerment and results-oriented achievements at the Totota Peace Hut was made possible through the seamless collaboration among UN Women, Plan International, Government of Liberia, Orange Foundation, and other partners with funding from the UN Peacebuilding Fund. Each organization lent its own comparative advantage, garnered resources, and provided backstopping and technical inputs to make the peace hut functional and effective.
Peace huts across Liberia have become a useful model for driving rural women’s collective empowerment. According to UN Women, the women of Liberia gained national and international acclaim as champions of peace through their mass action campaign that pressured warring factions to agree to a peace settlement in 2003. As part of this effort, the women, under the banner “Liberian Women Mass Action for Peace”, launched the Peace Hut model in 2004 to provide a space for community women to discuss issues of peace, including ongoing community and domestic violence. Since then, the Peace Huts have evolved into a multi-faceted platform that promotes gender equality and the empowerment of women especially in rural communities.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of UN Women – Africa.