Published: January 19, 2026
SUAKOKO DISTRICT, Bong County — Across Liberia, maternal waiting homes are intended to serve as safe havens for pregnant women who live far from referral hospitals. These facilities play a critical role in reducing maternal and neonatal deaths by ensuring expectant mothers are close to skilled care as delivery approaches. However, in many parts of the country, such homes remain poorly equipped, underfunded, and neglected, placing women and newborns at avoidable risk.
At the Phebe Maternal Waiting Home in Bong County, these national challenges are starkly evident. The facility, which accommodates women referred for delivery at Phebe Hospital, continues to face serious difficulties years after public attention was first drawn to its deteriorating condition.
A recent visit to the waiting home revealed that it has remained without electricity for nearly four years, following the theft of electrical wires connected to about seven poles on New Year’s Eve in 2022. Since then, the home has remained in complete darkness throughout 2023, 2024, 2025, and now into 2026.
According to a source close to the facility, the lack of lighting has created persistent safety and health risks for both residents and staff. The waiting home is located in a bushy environment, exposing pregnant women to snakes and other dangerous animals, particularly at night. Staff and patients rely heavily on flashlights, and encounters with snakes along the pathway to the hospital are reported to be frequent.
“When the light was here, these dangers were reduced,” the source explained. “Now, in darkness, we see snakes almost every January during the dry season. Sometimes they are found inside the compound or near the doors.”
Promised Intervention Yet to Materialize
Following earlier media reports and growing public concern, Bong County leadership reportedly acknowledged the poor state of the facility. In July 2025, the Bong County Council allotted US$1,500 for the rehabilitation of the Phebe Maternal Waiting Home, with priority placed on restoring electricity.
However, despite this allotment, the funds have not been released.
Speaking to The Liberian Investigator via telephone, Bong County Finance Officer Silas Tokpa confirmed that the maternal waiting home, through the management of Phebe Hospital, has not received the US$1,500.
According to Tokpa, although the funds were approved during the County Council sitting in 2025, the hospital administration has not formally requisitioned the money, a required step for disbursement.
“The allotment was made, but the hospital management has not requisitioned for the funds,” Tokpa stated.
Similarly, when contacted by phone, Dr. Mini Risks, Medical Director of Phebe Hospital, confirmed that the administration has not received the 2025 allotment intended for renovation work at the maternal waiting home.
As a result, conditions at the facility remain unchanged, despite pregnant women continuing to stay there for weeks and in some cases months while awaiting delivery, the reporter observed.
Living Conditions and Daily Struggles
The waiting home accommodates pregnant women from across Bong County and neighboring counties, including Lofa, Gbarpolu, Nimba, and Grand Bassa. Many women arrive weeks before their expected delivery dates with very limited food supplies.
Residents are required to provide rice and make daily contributions toward soup. When these resources are exhausted before delivery, meeting basic nutritional needs becomes a serious challenge.
Despite these hardships, the facility is kept relatively clean through the personal sacrifices of staff and caretakers, who often purchase detergents and chlorine with their own money due to the absence of regular supplies. Several beds and window frames remain broken, with only partial repairs carried out by a group based in Gbarnga.
The home contains about seven rooms, most of which are actively in use. Overcrowding is common, reflecting increased demand for maternal waiting homes amid rising teenage pregnancy rates in rural Liberia.
High Patient Load, Limited Support
Annually, the Phebe Maternal Waiting Home receives between 180 and over 200 women, depending on the year. A significant number of cases involve adolescent girls, some between 13 and 15 years old, who face heightened risks during pregnancy and childbirth.
Complications such as prolonged labor and obstetric fistula are reported to be more common among younger mothers. While awareness efforts exist, sources attribute the persistence of teenage pregnancy to poverty, limited access to comprehensive sexual and reproductive health education, and weak community support systems across much of rural Liberia.
A Facility Constructed to Save Lives, Now Surviving on Goodwill
The Phebe Maternal Waiting Home was constructed in 2013 by Africare for the purpose of providing temporary accommodation for pregnant women referred from remote communities, ensuring they remain close to Phebe Hospital during the final stages of pregnancy to reduce maternal and neonatal deaths.
Since its construction and the start of operations in 2013, the facility has served as a critical bridge between rural communities and skilled maternal healthcare in central Liberia.
However, according to reports and sources close to the facility, the waiting home has largely survived on the goodwill of the former Africare Country Director and other well-meaning individuals, rather than sustained institutional support.
Community members, health advocates, and sources close to the facility are now appealing to the Bong County Council, lawmakers, and national health authorities to prioritize the rehabilitation of the Phebe Maternal Waiting Home and similar facilities across the country.
“This place serves our sisters, our daughters, and our mothers,” one source said. “Restoring electricity and improving conditions here will save lives and restore dignity to women during their most vulnerable time.”
As of now, the Phebe Maternal Waiting Home remains operational but plunged into darkness at night, relying largely on community goodwill and the resilience of its staff. Observers say its situation mirrors that of many maternal waiting homes across Liberia, where delayed interventions, inadequate funding, and weak follow-through continue to undermine maternal and newborn health outcomes.
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