For parents struggling to afford copybooks, shoes, bags and other school essentials, getting a child back into the classroom can place another strain on already stretched household budgets.
Across southeastern Liberia, the CYTO Movement is seeking to ease some of that burden, distributing thousands of educational materials to children in Grand Gedeh, Sinoe, Maryland, River Gee and Grand Kru counties as part of a five-county back-to-school drive.
Led by its Chief Executive Officer, Cytarus Grace Dahn, the movement says the initiative is targeting children whose parents or guardians cannot afford some of the basic materials needed for school.
According to Dahn, the supplies were provided through the Ministry of State for Presidential Affairs under President Joseph Nyuma Boakai's back-to-school initiative.
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The materials include school bags, copybooks, pens, pencils, sneakers and jackets. CYTO said the consignment includes approximately 5,000 copybooks, 5,000 pairs of sneakers and a combined 5,000 jackets and reflective jackets.
Dahn said the intervention is intended to reduce the financial pressure on struggling families while helping children return to school better prepared.
More Than 800 Children Reached in Grand Kru
In Barclayville, Grand Kru County, more than 800 students, predominantly girls, received school materials, according to a Sept. 21 report by journalist James Myking Suah of Grand Kru TV.
CYTO National Chairperson Tommy Wesseh said the distribution primarily targeted children from nursery through third grade.
Seven schools were reached, including George Toe Washington Elementary School, Assembly of God Mission School and Pentecostal Foundation School. Beneficiaries received school bags, copybooks, shoes and other educational materials.
The intervention also extended beyond schools, with elders and young people in Flohken receiving clothing and footwear.
Wesseh thanked the Office of the President for supporting the initiative and acknowledged local education authorities and community members for cooperating with the distribution team.
He also responded to questions surrounding school bags bearing President Boakai's image.
According to Wesseh, the President's image was placed on the bags to acknowledge his support for the program and was not intended to solicit political support from beneficiaries.
Maryland Schools Benefit as Dahn Raises Rural Education Concerns
In Maryland County, CYTO distributed materials to selected schools in Harper and engaged residents in Pleebo.
Beneficiary schools included Cape Palmas High School, Harper Demonstration School, East Harper High School, John Hillary Tubman High School, S.E. Gibson Kindergarten and Elementary School, Big Town Public School and Samuel H. Marriem School.
Dahn said the assistance was particularly intended for students from households facing financial difficulties.
But during the team's engagement in Pleebo, Dahn said she encountered a problem that school bags and shoes alone could not solve.
According to her, some children she met were unable to read words printed on a shirt, an experience she said raised concerns about learning outcomes in rural communities.
Dahn used the experience to call on President Boakai and the Ministry of Education to give greater attention to learning conditions outside Monrovia and other major population centers.
Her concern highlighted what she described as a broader challenge: providing children with educational materials must be accompanied by quality teaching and stronger learning support if students are to make meaningful academic progress.
The CYTO team also distributed reflective jackets to motorcyclists in Maryland County.
The broader southeastern tour included stops in Grand Gedeh and River Gee, with the movement reporting that its school supplies distribution concluded in River Gee.
From Political Mobilization to Community Assistance
Dahn said CYTO was established in 2023 and has since grown to about 1,206 members across seven counties.
She said the organization emerged from a group of young people she mobilized to support Boakai during the 2023 elections.
Following the elections, Dahn said she began exploring ways to help some of those young people pursue education, vocational opportunities and sustainable livelihoods.
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Some members, she said, received assistance to attend school, while others were provided financial support to establish small businesses.
Wesseh said CYTO has also helped young Liberians gain access to scholarships at vocational training institutions and universities.
Dahn said the organization is now seeking to broaden its work beyond its political origins by focusing on humanitarian and community-based assistance for Liberians in need.
She said CYTO is willing to collaborate with individuals, organizations and government institutions interested in supporting vulnerable communities.
Dahn traveled with other CYTO officials and Edward Lahai of Congo Town for the southeastern distribution exercise, which was planned as a five-day tour of the five counties.
For the children reached, the intervention provided some of the basic materials needed to begin another school year. For their parents and guardians, CYTO says the assistance offers some relief from the financial burden associated with preparing children for school.
Dahn said the movement hopes to secure additional support to expand the initiative and reach more children and communities across Liberia.
