The issue of unemployment in Liberia is a serious discussion that both past and present governments have sought to address. In fact it is one of the primary reasons new governments are elected from time to time, as most politicians would use job provision as the basis for their political campaign. Despite efforts locally and internationally to curb unemployment, Liberia still sits below the benchmark. Latest reports from the World Bank through the International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates Liberia’s unemployment rate at 2.939 % in 2023. From the data, it was also reported that in 2023, the youth unemployment rate in Liberia remained nearly unchanged with figures sitting around a worrisome 2.26 percent.
However, it appears that this situation is further worsened as hundreds of young people graduated every year to enter into a job a market that is relatively struggling, and this situation could probably escalate in 2024 with the University of Liberia being the latest to announce plans to graduate over 2,000 students in different professional disciplines for its upcoming 104th Commencement Convocation. In a release issued Sunday, August 25, 2024, the University of Liberia (UL) said of the 2,290 candidates who applied for graduation, the UL Business and Finance Office (BFO) cleared 2,122.
These candidates who are now cleared of financial obligations to the university by the BFO are now being processed in the final phase of the clearing exercise by the Office of Enrolment Services (OES). The release said on Tuesday, August 20, 2024, OES informed UL Relations that it had issued clearance to the first batch of 310 candidates, pending the concurrence of the University of Liberia Faculty Senate.
The head of the OES, Assistant Prof. Aaron Sengbeh, says the clearing process will continue Monday, August 26, 2024. Prof. Sengbeh said candidates have been celebrating the process. He disclosed that candidates from the class of 2022/2023 who have met the benchmark for graduation are being cleared for the 104th convocation ceremonies which are due to commence on 16 September 2024. So far, six of those cleared are set to graduate with cum laude.
According to the release, there are different categories of applicants seeking graduation. Category One candidates are those who earlier completed all their processes and were awaiting the commencement of the clearing process.
According to Asst. Prof. Sengbeh, the majority of the applicants are from undergraduate programs. He said, with the exception of the medical school, candidates from the undergraduate, professional, and graduate schools must settle all financial obligations before they are cleared.
After those in Category One are cleared, the OES is now working to clear the remaining candidates once they meet the benchmark. Giving a breakdown of the candidates per college, Asst. Prof. Sengbeh disclosed that 817 candidates from the College of Business and Public Administration have applied for graduation.
Of that number, 90 candidates have already met the benchmark and were cleared. The Amos C. Sawyer College of Social Sciences and Humanities has presented 348 applicants, 38 of whom were in Category One and were cleared.
The William V.S. Tubman College of Education presented 154 candidates, and 90 of them were cleared as category one candidates. Additionally, the Thomas Jefferson Richelieu Faulkner College of Science and Technology presented 267 candidates, 33 of whom have been cleared for graduation.
From the William R. Tolbert College of Agriculture and Forestry, 316 candidates were presented and 59 of them have been cleared for graduation. The College of Health Sciences presented 80 Category One candidates; 16 of them have been cleared.
David A. Straz-Sinje Technical and Vocational College in Grand Cape Mount County presented 27 candidates, four of whom have been cleared for graduation. The OES boss concluded his conversation with UL Relations by reminding all students who have met academic conditions for graduation, based on the updated electronic ledger in the Schoolink portal, to take advantage of the digitized process and apply for the 104th Commencement Convocation directly from within the e-portal.
In a related development, the Vice President for Academic Affairs, Prof. Dr. Agnes Reeves Taylor has implored all members of the UL family, particularly faculty, staff and candidates for graduation, to take note of the latest graduation timetable and plan accordingly. The 104th Commencement Convocation of the University of Liberia is scheduled to run from Monday, September 9, to Saturday, September 21, 2024 at its Fendall Campus in Louisiana, Montserrado County.
