By Priyanka Pruthi

NIMBA COUNTY, Liberia, 24 June 2011 – Forty-year old Philippe Cheugui used to teach history and geography at a school in Danane, a town in western Côte d’Ivoire. He was a successful teacher and public spokesperson, an inspiration to many.

Today, he finds himself seeking refuge under a tarpaulin shelter in Liberia’s Bahn camp. He watches his wife cook beside the tent with despair and relief in his eyes. He knows they are fortunate to have survived.

Two girls choose crayons from a large bowl in a kindergarten class at St. Teresa Catholic School in the Mamba Point neighbourhood of Liberia’s capital, Monrovia.
©UNICEF/HQ07-2225/Pirozzi

NEW YORK, USA, 28 October 2008 – High-level talks about progress towards the Millennium Development Goals took place last month during the United Nations General Assembly. Special attention was paid to commitments and progress in some of the poorest African nations, particularly in the area of education.

Liberian Minister of Gender H.E. Vabah Gayflor (left) and World YWCA General Secretary Nyaradzai Gumbonzvanda take part in a UNICEF Radio discussion on gender equality in education.
© UNICEF/2008/Kamimura

By Gabrielle Galanek

NEW YORK, USA, 29 April 2008 – At the 52nd Session of the Commission on the Status of Women last month, global leaders met to discuss some of the most pressing issues facing women and girls today. The theme this year was financing for gender equality and empowerment of women.

© UNICEF/NYHQ2008-0680/Susan MarkiszUNICEF Executive Director Ann M. Veneman addresses UN Security Council members on the third anniversary of Security Council Resolution 1612.

By Yvette Bivigou

MONROVIA, Liberia, 27 February 2008 – UNICEF Executive Director Ann M. Veneman has just completed a visit here to gain firsthand insights into the situation of children in post-conflict Liberia.

By Adolphus Scott

MONROVIA, Liberia, 4 January 2008 – “I was big when I started school,” says Benetta Nyemah, a 15-year-old student who attends primary school here in the capital of Liberia. “During the war, my parents left Monrovia and we went into our village to hide. There was no school in the village, and we used to work on the farm all day.”