Africa-Press – Liberia. The Ministry of Education has deployed 200 data collectors across Liberia for the 2025 Annual School Census.
The initiative aims to gather accurate and timely data to inform education policies, support planning, and enhance service delivery in the sector.
According to the ministry, the data collectors include District Education Officers (DEOs), County Education Officers (CEOs), and technical staff of the Ministry of Education. These individuals are currently active in all 125 education districts across the nation.
Speaking Thursday at the Ministry of Information’s regular press briefing, the Deputy Minister for Planning, Research, and Development at the Ministry of Education, Hon. Samuel Toe, disclosed that the census officially commenced on July 16, 2025, following earlier setbacks due to funding cuts from international partners.
Minister Toe explained that although the adult school census was launched in November 2024, its implementation faced delays due to the withdrawal of donor support. Over the past seven months, however, the ministry and its partners worked to restructure the strategy, mobilize new resources, and resume the data collection effort.
He emphasized that data is being collected using tablets, allowing for real-time digital entry and immediate submission to central offices. Within just six days of deployment, he noted 10 percent of school data had already been submitted.
Counties showing the strongest reporting include Grand Gedeh and Grand Kru, each with 52 percent of their data collected, followed by Bomi with 51 percent, River Gee with 54 percent, and both Gbarpolu and Maryland at 47 percent. Montserrado County, however, has recorded the lowest reporting rate so far.
“This is significant because, for more than three years, we have not collected national school statistics. Without accurate and current data, our decisions are not properly guided. This census will close a critical information gap in the sector,” Minister Toe stated.
He added that the data will support equitable distribution of resources, identify urgent educational needs, inform the 2026 national education budget, and guide key policy decisions to improve sector performance.
Chapter 8 of the Education Reform Act of 2011 mandates that all institutions under the Ministry of Education, including those under the Ministry of Youth and Sports for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), report educational statistics annually and maintain proper statutory records.
The census will capture information such as student enrollment, attendance, academic performance, suspensions, dropout rates, school fees, and incidents of gender-based violence.
To ensure a smooth process, the ministry conducted a series of preparatory activities. Between April 17 and May 2, it held coaching and mentoring sessions were held for school principals and registrars. A training-of-trainers workshop was conducted from June 23 to 27, followed by additional training for District Education Officers from July 1 to 3.
The data collection phase, which began on July 16, will continue until August 8. Data cleaning, validation, and analysis will follow from August 8 to 24, with a final report expected by August 31, 2025.
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