The County is strongly committed to gender equity as a means to maintain peace, reduce poverty, enhance justice and promote development. Despite the progress since the end of the war, gender continues to play a decisive role in determining access to resources and services. Women and girls continue to have limited access to education, health services and judicial services, which has severely curtailed their participation in the forma l e conomy.

Women and gi r l s have been missing out on opportunities and participation in management and decision-making on a l l l e v e l s o f t h e society. This trend has contributed to f e m i n i z a t i o n o f poverty in the County, and in Liberia as a whole.

Sexual gender-based violence (SGBV) is blight on Liberian society and for many Liberian women and girls, the appalling violence they experienced during wartime still occur. Currently, rape is the most frequently reported serious crime in Liberia. In 2007, 38% of the protection cases reported by UNHCR/NRC monitors were SGBV related and reports from 2008 show similar trend. Domestic violence is endemic (26% of all reported protection cases) and Liberia has among the highest rates of teenage pregnancy in the world. Of the 545 protection incidents reported in the County during January-May 2008, 26% and 24% relate to SGBV and domestic violence respectively.

Destruction of institutions during the war affected all Liberians, but particularly limited women’s and girls’ access to education; today, the ratio of girls’ to boys’ enrolment is 95/100 at the primary level, decreasing to 75/100 in secondary schools, and twice as many women as men are illiterate. Despite the laws recognizing equality of the sexes, customary law and practices prevail, some of which are harmful to women and girls.

Customary law infringes on women’s and girls’ rights, including the right to property. The CDA lays the groundwork for the achievement of gender equity and women’s and girls’ empowerment, promoting equitable access to resources and benefits. Gender equity considerations will be incorporated in the development and implementation of the economic growth strategy, with the ultimate goal of promoting women’s economic empowerment. To build a more effective responsive and supportive legal, social and political environment, including all aspects of protection and access to justice, health care, and education, the CDA includes measures for the prevention of and response to GBV including addressing the roots of the crime and the promotion of increasing the number of women in national security institutions.

Toward the building of capacity, the County will support the mandate of the Ministry of Gender and Development (MoGD) to take the lead in implementing and monitoring the National Gender Policy, the PRS, and international conventions as well as to mainstream gender in legal, constitutional, and governance reforms. The County authorities are committed to ensuring that all monitoring data collected are disaggregated by age and sex, where applicable.