Monrovia, Liberia – Through more campaigning and monitoring, an organization called “InfoQuest” has launched its Gender-Sensitive Legislative Monitoring Project, which seeks to improve legislative accountability and responsiveness.
InfoQuest Acting Executive Director Ezekiel Allen, speaking on Thursday, February 27, 2025 in Monrovia, stated that the project, which started in January 2025, focuses on tracking legislative engagements that are gender-sensitive, tracking lawmakers’ responsiveness to issues related to gender, and encouraging civic engagement on gender-sensitive governance.
He said InfoQuest made great progress in the first month, including speaking with the Speaker’s Office and committee chairpersons, establishing official procedures for monitoring operations, and formally engaging with the Legislature.
A computerized framework for tracking legislative acts on gender-related legislation has been built, he said. In addition, two male and two female legislative monitors received training on gender-sensitive legislative monitoring, and they were given manual tracking tools that would eventually be incorporated into the digital system.
“The first monitoring session on January 30 showed significant gender disparities in legislative representation, with 43 male legislators present compared to only 6 female legislators,” Director Allen said.
According to him, the session also covered important legislative topics, such the Rivercess Community Development Act, which attempts to enhance community development but does not contain any measures specifically addressing women.
The Acting Director clarified that InfoQuest will offer suggestions to improve this bill’s gender sensitivity. Notwithstanding early achievements, obstacles have been presented by issues including restricted access to committee meetings.
He did, however, add that in order to increase monitoring possibilities, the organization is actively interacting with legislative leadership.
“Going forward, February activities that will continue into March will concentrate on advancing the gender-responsive legislative monitoring framework and enhancing legislative engagement through high-level meetings with key committee leaders,” he stated.
As part of its commitment to transparency and public engagement, InfoQuest maintained that it will provide regular press briefings to share updates and key findings from its monitoring activities. This program according to them aim to advance policy reforms that support equity in legislative processes and emphasizes the significance of gender-responsive governance in Liberia.
Reported by: Prince Saah
Contact: +231778239813
Email: saahprince119@gmail.com
