Monrovia – Over 200 persons, including students and teachers took part in a clean-up exercise in Monrovia at the weekend, as Liberia joined the international community to mark this year’s World Environmental Day. Members of two local civil society organisations, the Paramount Young Women Initiative (PAYOWI) and Girls for Change (GFC), and students and teachers from eight schools in Monrovia also joined in the walk, alongside staff from the Monrovia City Corporation (MCC), UN Women and the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL).

UNMIL Officer-in-Charge of Mission Support, Mr. Robert Hartley flagged off the exercise dubbed the “Zero Waste” Walk. “If we want to keep Liberia lovely, let’s keep it green, let’s keep it clean,” said Hartley.

The environmental campaign was jointly organized by UN Women, UNMIL and the MCC. Participants cleared litter from a section of the beach in Monrovia, starting from 12th Street and moving up 1st Street just off the coastline. The initiative was aimed at sensitizing and encouraging the local community to take interest in keeping Liberia clean.

UNMIL also donated bins to the City Corporation to help with the collection of solid waste. MCC Environment and Health Officer, Sennay Carlor III, received the bins on behalf of the community.