In Liberia, our elders tell "the child who loves school does not fear the rain." Education has always been one of the few ladders ordinary Liberians believe can lift families from struggle to hope. In many homes, education is not simply important; it is the dream parents hold onto when everything else feels uncertain.
That is why President George Weah's 2018 decision to introduce free tuition for undergraduate students at all public universities and colleges in Liberia was welcomed with enormous excitement. The policy removed tuition fees across public higher education institutions, including the University of Liberia and other state-run institutions, making higher education more accessible to thousands of students.
Parents rejoiced, students felt doors opening, and many saw the policy as a historic step toward expanding opportunity. For a country where families often make extraordinary sacrifices to keep children in school, it felt like a promise that no one would be denied higher education simply because they could not afford it. It was a bold and compassionate decision, and it was also politically popular.
However, beautiful ideas do not automatically become sustainable policies. Nearly eight years later, Liberia must ask an uncomfortable but necessary question: Was the free tuition policy designed primarily to strengthen higher education, or was it introduced more as a politically attractive response to public pressure and student frustrations at the time?
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This is not an argument against access. Far from it. I am a Liberian who walked from Vai Town to the University of Liberia campus almost daily in pursuit of an education, so I know what struggle feels like. I know what it means to chase education when resources are scarce. I know parents who sold produce, skipped meals, and stretched every dollar so their children could remain in school. Education is sacred in Liberia because many of us understand what it costs to obtain it.
That lived experience is precisely why we must be honest with ourselves today. Our public universities are under pressure. Buildings need repairs, laboratories need equipment, libraries need modernization, internet systems need improvement, and faculty need support and development. Universities cannot operate on promises alone. They require resources, and resources require sustainable financing.
Yet the policy removed a major revenue stream and expected institutions to absorb the burden. The result is a system trying to do more with less while operational demands continue to rise. That is why the recent comments by the President of the University of Liberia, arguing for an increase in fees to help sustain the university, are so important. When the head of the country's flagship public university openly acknowledges the need for additional fees, it is a clear sign that the current model is under financial strain. Sustainability is no longer a distant policy debate; it is now an institutional reality knocking loudly at the door.
There is another difficult truth that many people hesitate to discuss: sometimes free things are not valued as highly as sacrifices. That may sound harsh, but it deserves reflection. When support comes without expectations, what incentive exists for progress?
Some students remain at the university for years beyond the normal duration of their programs. At times, one jokes that if universities issued residency permits, some students might qualify before graduation. Humor aside, the issue is serious because prolonged enrollment places additional strain on already limited resources. Free tuition should create opportunity, not comfort zones.
My perspective on this issue is also shaped by personal experience. As a student at the University of Liberia, I benefited from financial aid. Students could apply for assistance, and if approved, tuition could be fully covered. However, there was accountability attached to that support. To remain eligible, students had to maintain a minimum GPA of 3.0.
That system recognized two important realities: access matters, but performance matters too.
The expectation was clear. Public support was an investment, and students were expected to demonstrate commitment and academic progress in return. The principle was simple: opportunity should come with responsibility.
Liberia, therefore, does not need to abandon free tuition; it needs to reform it. Students benefiting from free tuition should complete at least 12 credit hours per semester to remain eligible, and the policy should include a minimum GPA requirement of 2.5. While I maintained a 3.0 requirement under the financial aid model that supported me, I recognize that a nationwide policy serving a broader population may require a slightly lower threshold to balance access with accountability.
At the same time, Liberia should begin using the tuition policy more strategically. Our country urgently needs teachers, engineers, health professionals, agricultural specialists, information technology experts, and scientists because these fields directly support national development and workforce needs. Programs in these areas should receive full government support because they help build the human capital needed for national growth.
Programs that are not national priorities, for example, Political Science, could receive partial subsidies or, in some cases, no tuition support at all. This may sound controversial, but every country must decide where limited resources generate the greatest national return. Education policy should become development policy.
Reasonable time limits should also be introduced. A four-year degree should not quietly become a seven or eight-year journey funded indefinitely by public resources. The objective is not punishment; it is accountability, momentum, and sustainability because every dollar tied up in inefficiency is a dollar unavailable for classrooms, laboratories, internet access, faculty development, and student services.
Free tuition remains one of the most emotionally powerful education policies Liberia has introduced in recent history because it reflected compassion and a genuine desire to expand opportunity. However, compassion alone cannot sustain universities, and good intentions alone do not repair buildings, equip laboratories, or improve quality.
Liberia now has an opportunity to move beyond the politics of free tuition and build a smarter system that balances access with accountability and sustainability. The success of higher education should not be measured only by how many students enter the gates; it should also be measured by how many leave prepared to build the nation.
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About the Author
Dr. Chris Tokpah is the Associate Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness at Delaware County Community College in Pennsylvania, where he leads institutional research, evaluation, and accreditation activities. He is a Coach for Achieving the Dream and a Peer Evaluator for the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, providing technical guidance to colleges and participating in accreditation reviews.
Dr. Tokpah holds a Ph.D. in Evaluation and Measurement and an MBA with an emphasis in Management Information Systems from Kent State University, and a B.Sc. in Mathematics from the University of Liberia.
He has extensive experience leading research and evaluation projects sponsored by the World Bank, International Development Association, Geneva Global, United States Agency for International Development, and the African Development Bank. He is a co-owner of Center for Research, Evaluation, and Policy (CENREP), a Liberian consulting firm specializing in strategic planning, monitoring and evaluation, social science research, and training.
He is actively involved in development initiatives in Liberia and serves on boards supporting education and health services. Dr. Tokpah frequently writes on policy issues affecting Liberia. His writings are available at https://cenrepliberia.org/volunteer-work, and he can be reached at ctokpah@cenrepliberia.org.
