Days after doctors and nurses at ELWA Hospital staged a protest over unpaid benefits and poor working conditions, Liberia’s Minister of Health, Dr. Louise M. Kpoto, has reassured the government’s commitment to improving the welfare of health workers across the country. Speaking Wednesday, October 8, 2025, Dr. Kpoto emphasized that no health facility should experience disruption in service delivery due to administrative or financial bottlenecks, assuring that the Ministry is working with relevant authorities to address the concerns raised by health workers.
Kpoto’s statement comes as medical professionals continue to express frustration over salary arrears, unpaid benefits, and delayed remittances to social security, issues that have fueled unrest within the sector. The Minister called for calm, urging health workers to remain patient as government accelerates efforts to resolve the challenges confronting the healthcare system.
The health sector in Liberia faced a troubling event on Monday, October 6, 2025, as workers at the ELWA Hospital neglected their duties to protest for overdue benefits. This time, doctors and nurses staged a protest demanding the immediate payment of long-overdue benefits and arrears allegedly owed to them by the hospital administration. The protesting health workers accused the hospital’s management of deducting contributions for the National Social Security and Welfare Corporation (NASSCORP) from their salaries but failing to remit these funds.
“We’re suffering here,” lamented one protester, calling the situation unfair and disheartening. The workers pointed out those arrears from the COVID-19 response remain unpaid, and persistent salary delays, alongside discrepancies in pay, have exacerbated their financial hardship.
In conversations with reporters, the workers highlighted several issues, including poor working conditions, lack of reliable transportation—such as buses and ambulances—and an overall unsafe environment for both staff and patients. They noted that these challenges undermine the hospital’s ability to provide effective healthcare services. Previous engagements with the hospital management have reportedly not resulted in any improvements, leading to the current protest.
“We have been patient for years, but nothing is changing. We can no longer remain silent,” stated one nurse. The demonstration attracted dozens of staff members who gathered peacefully in the hospital compound, holding placards and voicing their frustrations over years of neglect.
