INTRODUCTION

The United Methodist Church in Norway and its sister church The United Methodist Church in Liberia have cooperated in different mission activities during many years. Among other things, The United Methodist Church in Norway has sent several missionaries to Liberia and has supported various mission and social activities carried out by The United Methodist Church in Liberia. The two churches decided in 2006 to mutually carry out a feasibility study to see if and how there could be possibilities to extend the cooperation. The feasibility study concluded with a positive recommendation and in 2007 a mutual programme planning was started.

This Program, as approved, has been implemented over ten years beginning from 2008to present; and has now impacting the lives of more than a quarter of a million people in areas of water and sanitation, capacity development, health, economic empowerment and agriculture development. These achievements were made under the three broad categories of the program to include Income Generating Activities; Training and Education in Broad Terms and infrastructure and basic services. The program has been implemented in thirteen of the fifteen counties of Liberia using the Partnership in Development (PID) Tool.

The programme planning has been undertaken with active participation of Bishop Rev. Dr. John G. Innis AND RESIDENT BISHOP REV. SAMUEL J. QUIRE, JR. of The United Methodist Church in Liberia, a number of the District Superintendents of the church as well as lay leaders of the church in Liberia. The United Methodist Church in Norway also immensely contributed through her General Secretary, Reverend Tove Odland,  Rev. Ovind Aske  and  the Program Advisor, Anne Ng Forster.

The programme planning was facilitated by Mr. Nils Atle Krokeide from Jethro Consultant.

The program started as a single program office called Community Development Program (CODEVPRO) with two staff. In 2010 another humanitarian organization from Norway, Mission Alliance joined and the program was elevated to a department status called the Department of Community Services, (DCS) with a Director, Associate Director and Program focus person, and other additional staffers.  The Mission Alliance program code named Community Integrated Education Program (CIEP) started in 2010 with focus on creating access to holistic education in the three counties in Liberia; Grand Bassa, Margibi and Rivercess Counties; through the construction of schools, teacher housing and an agriculture intervention for self-sustainability of the schools. This program has been implemented for two and half project cycles for now in Grand Bassa, Margibi, Rivercess, Lofa, Bong and Nimba respectively.  This program is currently focusing on Water Sanitation and Hygiene, Education, health and capacity building. All of these activities are aligned with the Government of developmental agenda and global Sustainable Development Goal (SDG). In 2013, another program named the Giving Hope to a Child of Norway also joined the department with sole purpose of reaching out to vulnerable children, orphan, Ebola victims, and single parent with school supplements/supplies ranging from uniforms, footwear, book bags, copybooks and school fees or tuition payment. This program is catering to more seven hundred students in four schools in Bong, Margibi, Bassa Counties.