PeaceGen Liberia Convenes Youth Peace and Security Conference in Ganta, Adopts Nimba Resolution
By: Laymah Kollie
GANTA CITY, Nimba County — Young leaders from five counties have called for greater youth involvement in decisions on peace, security and national development, as PeaceGen Liberia, through its Generation for Peace Project, held a one-day Liberia Youth, Peace and Security Conference 2026 in Ganta City on Monday, September 21.
The conference brought together young women, youth leaders, community representatives, government officials, civil society actors and development partners to chart the way forward on Liberia’s Youth, Peace and Security agenda.
Held under the theme “Advancing Youth Leadership for Peace: Strengthening the Implementation of Liberia’s National Action Plan on Youth, Peace and Security,” the event was organized by the National Young Women Political Council of Liberia (NYWPCL) in partnership with PeaceGen implementing partners, the Liberia Coalition on Youth, Peace and Security (LCYPS), the Ministry of Youth and Sports, the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, and the Liberia Peacebuilding Office. It was funded by the European Union and co-funded by the Embassy of Ireland.
It marked the first gathering of its kind held in Nimba County — a deliberate choice, organizers said, given the county’s history as a transit point during Liberia’s years of conflict.
Delegates from Montserrado, Nimba, Bong, Bomi and Sinoe counties took part in discussions covering youth leadership, conflict prevention, community peacebuilding, transitional justice, and the implementation of the national Youth, Peace and Security plan.
Calls for Youth Inclusion
Zoltan Szalai, Chargé d’Affaires of the European Union Delegation to Liberia, said young people should have a direct role in decisions that affect their future. “The time has come for young women and men not only to be heard, but to shape decisions and lead action for peace,” he said, adding that the conference could help translate Liberia’s National Action Plan on Youth, Peace and Security into action, particularly in rural and conflict-affected communities.
Laura Targbeh Korvah, President of the National Young Women Political Council of Liberia, said the Nimba venue carried symbolic weight for the country’s youth peace movement. “For too long, young women and youth have watched decisions about our future being made without us in the room,” she said. “This conference is a turning point — it is our generation stepping forward, not as bystanders, but as leaders in building the peace we all deserve. Nimba’s history reminds us where we have been; this conference shows the world where we are going.”
Abdullah Oldpa Bility, Co-Chair of the Liberia Coalition on Youth, Peace and Security, said implementation of the national action plan must receive as much attention as its adoption. “The YPS agenda gives young people a platform for our voices to be heard and our contributions to be recognized and legitimized,” he said, urging stakeholders to move the agenda beyond policy documents and into communities. “It’s a youth agenda, and young people should be empowered to lead its implementation. There is nothing for youth without youth.”
Esther S. Davis Yango, Executive Director of the Women NGOs Secretariat of Liberia (WONGOSOL), said lasting peace cannot be achieved without the full and meaningful participation of young people, especially young women. She called on stakeholders to stop treating youth merely as beneficiaries of peacebuilding programs and instead recognize them as leaders and partners. Speaking also on behalf of the Kvinna till Kvinna Foundation and other PeaceGen partners, Yango called for stronger implementation of both Liberia’s Youth, Peace and Security and Women, Peace and Security agendas, and urged government to create more opportunities for young people and women in peace and security decision-making, support youth- and women-led peacebuilding efforts, strengthen early warning systems, and expand transitional justice education.
Outcome of the Conference
The conference’s central outcome was the expected adoption of the Nimba Resolution on Youth, Peace and Security, which outlines commitments and recommendations from young people and other participants to guide implementation of the national action plan going forward.
Beyond the resolution, participants agreed on a set of shared priorities: expanding direct youth participation in peace and security decision-making at both community and national levels; deepening implementation of the National Action Plan on Youth, Peace and Security in rural and conflict-affected areas; strengthening community-based early warning systems; and broadening access to transitional justice education, particularly for young women.
Organizers and partners framed the Ganta conference as a turning point for Liberia’s youth peace movement — moving the Youth, Peace and Security agenda from a policy document toward community-level action, with young people positioned not as beneficiaries but as leaders and partners in sustaining peace.
About The Author
