Published: September 14, 2026
Gbarnga, Bong County — The Lutheran Church in Liberia has launched a drug rehabilitation and vocational training center in Suakoko District, Bong County, with about 30 young people undergoing rehabilitation for drug addiction.
The initiative is being implemented through the Lutheran Church in Liberia Trauma Healing and Reconciliation Program, which says the center is intended to help drug victims overcome addiction while equipping them with skills to become self-reliant after rehabilitation and reintegration into society.
Providing an overview of the program, LCL-THRP Director Reverend Philip L. Nushann said beneficiaries will receive training in carpentry, masonry, plumbing and electricity. He said all participants will be trained in the four disciplines to increase their chances of earning an independent livelihood after completing the program.
“All of them will be trained in the four disciplines to enable them to fend for themselves through an independent means after their rehabilitation and reintegration into society,” Reverend Nushann said.
According to Reverend Nushann, the Liberia Opportunity Industrialization Center’s Gbarnga Satellite recommended the instructors. He said the current beneficiaries were drawn from Grand Bassa County.
Reverend Nushann said the church, as a faith-based institution, believes it must complement government efforts to address Liberia’s growing drug crisis through rehabilitation and skills development. He said strict measures have been instituted to ensure that beneficiaries remain at the rehabilitation camp until they complete the program.
He added that the center will provide basic medical treatment to beneficiaries during their rehabilitation and expressed the church’s intention to expand the program to reach hundreds of people affected by drug addiction.
Reverend Nushann described young people as a major focus of national transformation and urged the beneficiaries to make a firm decision to abandon drug use and become productive citizens capable of contributing to Liberia’s development.
The launch was attended by Lutheran Church in Liberia Bishop Reverend Dr. Victor G. Padmore, representatives of the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency and members of the Bong County Health Team.
Bishop Padmore said the initiative is not the church’s first intervention, noting that the Lutheran Church has previously implemented two editions of the rehabilitation program in Monrovia.
He said the church remains committed to continuing the initiative after establishing the new rehabilitation center in Bong County. Every young person deserves dignity, and we are committed to providing this training to people who deserve to have it,” Bishop Padmore said.
Meanwhile, Liberia Opportunity Industrialization Center Gbarnga Satellite Manager Rachel Paye commended the Lutheran Church for taking what she described as a decisive step toward confronting a drug crisis that has left many families grieving.
Paye pledged her institution’s continued support and collaboration to ensure the success of the rehabilitation and vocational training program.
For their part, representatives of the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency in Bong County admonished the beneficiaries to exercise patience and remain committed as they work to overcome drug addiction.
They thanked the Lutheran Church for supporting and complementing government efforts to address Liberia’s growing drug crisis.
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