YEIB-MANCO Chief Sando Urges Lofa to Invest in Education as Eight Students He Sponsors Graduate

Published: November 10, 2026

MONROVIA — Joseph Fatorma Sando, chief executive of the Youth Entrepreneurship and Investment Bank Management Company, has urged people from Lofa County, especially Kolahun District, to invest deliberately in educating the district’s young people. He made the call as eight students he sponsors completed professional development programs at GONET Academy.

“If we, the kinsmen of Lofa, especially Kolahun, want to see real transformation, we must prioritize and invest deliberately in the educational sojourn of our future leaders. No amount of wealth is greater than an educated child,” Sando said.

He spoke at a celebration for the graduates at his home on Old Road in Sinkor. The eight are enrolled at universities including the African Methodist Episcopal University, United Methodist University, Cuttington University, and the University of Liberia. They graduated from GONET Academy’s Continuous Professional Development class of 2026 and are supported by the Sando Educational Scholarship Program for students from Kolahun and the wider Lofa County.

Korpo Sevelee completed public relations and media strategy. Mohammed A. Kabbah, Prosper E. Flomo, and Sarifena M. Soribah completed effective communication and public speaking. Bendu M. Kamara completed human resources management. Famata J. Kanneh and M. Samuel Jallah completed entrepreneurship and business management. Boakai A. Kamara earned a diploma in monitoring and evaluation.

Sando said education is the most lasting legacy that parents and leaders in Kolahun can leave the next generation. He said the district has produced talented, resilient and enterprising people who can compete at home and abroad, but that their potential will be realized only through collective investment in education.

“Let us sacrifice our last resources to educate our children. When you educate one child of Kolahun, you educate a whole generation of leaders. That is the spirit of YEIB,” he said.

He called the graduation of eight of his sponsored children at once a “rare blessing from God.” He thanked GONET Academy’s faculty and administration and the graduates for their discipline and resilience. He urged parents across Lofa and throughout Liberia to support their children’s education even during hard economic times.

Sando also said he is concerned that the cultural values he says have long held Liberian families and communities together are eroding. He said education opens doors, but culture and discipline sustain a person. He urged young people to stay rooted in their identity and in respect for elders, integrity, hard work and communal values.

“Education without discipline is empty. Culture without values is lost. We must bring back the discipline that our forefathers taught us. That is what keeps a family, a community and a nation together,” he said.

He urged the graduates to stay humble and disciplined, to use their training to create jobs and build businesses, and to give back to Kolahun.

James Francis Davis, a senior international consultant at the African Development Bank, congratulated the graduates. He said Sando’s commitment to young people aligns with the vision of the Youth Entrepreneurship and Investment Bank, which supports youth-led businesses throughout Liberia. He called the scholarship program a model for other Liberians to emulate.

GONET Academy offers practical, career-oriented and entrepreneurship training for university students and young professionals. The ceremony ended with prayers for the graduates, the presentation of certificates and a family gathering.