Africa-Press – Liberia. <\/strong><\/span>For years, James Sackie, a father of three, has depended on charcoal production as his primary source of income, but the health risks associated with the trade have begun to worry him.<\/p>\nThe 48-year-old, who lives in one of the poorest districts in Montserrado County, had spent the last three months spending hours inhaling smoke, which is often toxic when producing charcoal.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have spent years producing charcoal for a living,\u201d says Sackie, as his hands bear a bundle of freshly made charcoal, his voice tinged with desperation. \u201cBut it is the health risk that worries me.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is against the background of the lower profit margin despite the risk involved for charcoal producers. Life is getting harder, and I’m worried about what the future holds for me and my family.\u201d<\/p>\n
Charcoal, which is the most used cooking fuel in Liberia, is not just a vital economic activity for Sackie, who lives in Barh Town, Todee District, but for thousands of Liberians as well, including his workmate Joseph Ford.<\/p>\n
Todee, which is one of the oldest and poorest rural districts in Montserrado County, is notorious for its limited economic opportunities, forcing many into the charcoal trade, whose entire production line is fraught with hazards and health risks.<\/p>\n
The smoke emitted during the carbonization process contains toxic chemicals and particulate matter that can cause respiratory problems, eye irritation, and long-term health issues.<\/p>\n
Workers often lack protective equipment, such as masks or gloves, exacerbating their exposure to harmful fumes and increasing the risk of injuries from handling burning wood.<\/p>\n
But the quest for survival keeps Sackie and many others, who are worried about their health, in business. According to a 2019 World Bank report, about 337,000 metric tons of charcoal \u2014 worth US$46 million \u2014 was sold in 2018.<\/p>\n
Montserrado, the report noted, consumed the bulk of the 337,000 metric tons that year \u2014 accounting for over 65 percent of total demand, more than ten times greater than any other county.<\/p>\n
The charcoal industry, according to the World Bank, also saw significant demand in Margibi, Bong, Nimba, Grand Bassa, and Bomi counties, respectively. The industry overall is expected to keep growing as the population has a strong desire for charcoal, which is cheaper than other imported fuels.<\/p>\n
The nature of the industry, despite its health and environmental risks, has pushed Sackie and workmate Ford to spend L$30,000 \u2014 nearly twice what they used to spend before to produce 169 bags of charcoal \u2014 which may bring in about L$50,700 when all is sold.<\/p>\n
A bag of Sackie\u2019s and Ford\u2019s charcoal will be sold for L$300 in Barh Town. However, when it is transported to the nation\u2019s capital, Monrovia, and its environs, the price ranges from L$700 to L$900, depending on the location.<\/p>\n
The lucrativeness of the industries also comes with health risks for many of the impoverished Librarians who are involved in the production of charcoal.<\/p>\n
“The toll on the health of charcoal producers is grave,\u201d experts say. \u201cThe toxic fumes emitted during the combustion of wood in open-air kilns contain harmful substances that can cause irreversible health damage and even premature death.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe long-term exposure to these pollutants can lead to chronic respiratory diseases, heart problems, and even developmental issues in children. The health risks are not only confined to those who engage in the production but also extend to their families and communities.<\/p>\n
The situation in Barh Town, which relies heavily on charcoal production for economic activities, is exacerbated by the lack of protective equipment.<\/p>\n
Many charcoal producers toil without proper masks or ventilation, leaving them highly vulnerable to the harmful particulate matter and gasses released during the process.<\/p>\n
Charcoal workers, who are predominantly men and women from impoverished rural communities, have to spend hours cutting down trees; splitting them into firewood, and stacking them in makeshift kilns.<\/p>\n
The kilns are then carefully covered with mud to trap heat \u2014 allowing the wood to burn partially and transforming it into that dark, chalky charcoal.<\/p>\n
The stacked kilns must be constantly monitored in the process and maintained during the burning process \u2014 which can take up to several weeks. This involves Sackie and Ford sometimes being exposed to the elements while trying to ensure the quality and protection of their product.<\/p>\n
For Ford, the health risk is the price they have to pay for living in a poor and neglected community. He says while he and many others are aware that the smoke during the charcoal production period is dangerous, they have no choice but to survive.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat can we do? This is our only means of survival,\u201d Ford noted as he gazed at the vast expanse of charcoal that now dominates the Barh Town landscape.<\/p>\n
\u201cLife itself is hard but in Todee, it is four times harder and there is limited opportunity to get out of the shackles of poverty.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is not what many of us here in Todee dream of, but our hands are tied to do the odd jobs for survival,\u201d Ford says. \u201cWe cannot sit down and do nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n
The transition to safer practices isn\u2019t without challenges as charcoal producers like Tomas Kennedy, who has been in the business for seven years, lack the cash to buy protective equipment which is needed to reduce his exposure to industry health risks.<\/p>\n
Kennedy, like many others who produce the charcoal, does not make much money from the trade as the wholesale buyer who have the liberty to sell at any price of their choice in urban markets, where the demand for the product is perpetually high.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are not begging for handouts but alternative livelihood opportunities so we can break from the cycle of destruction,\u201d says Kennedy, whose view is echoed by many in Barh Town.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re faced with a stark reality \u2014 but this is our only means of survival. It\u2019s a challenging path, but we are committed to finding sustainable solutions.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need training, alternative income sources, and incentives to help us shift to safer methods,\u201d Kennedy added. \u201cOr else, we will continue to be exposed to smoke.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, the head of the National Charcoal Union of Liberia, Richard Dorbor, has slammed calls for alternative livelihood.<\/p>\n
Dorbor noted that while the Union supports sustainable charcoal production, it cannot call on Liberians, many of whom are poor, to abandon charcoal production.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are not stopping anyone from seeking alternatives but what we are mainly focusing on is sustainable charcoal production for our people,\u201d he said. \u201cOur people deserve to live and survive and Charcoal production is one of the mediums.\u201d<\/p>\n
Beyond the physical strain and health risks, charcoal production also poses significant environmental concerns.<\/p>\n
Liberia\u2019s forests, spanning more than 3 million hectares, is also a global diversity hotspot, albeit at risk in part due to charcoal production.<\/p>\n
The 2018-2019 National Forest Inventory estimates that Liberia\u2019s forest makes up more than two-thirds of the country\u2019s land area and covers 6.69 million hectares, equivalent to twice the size of Belgium.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs you burn charcoal, you have CO2 going into the atmosphere, which causes the earth to get warmer,\u201d says Dr. Eugene Shannon, former Minister of Lands, Mines, and Energy, now President of the Natural Resources Development Corporation.<\/p>\n
\u201c<\/b>We are trying to keep the temperature at 1.5 degrees census. Charcoal goes along with deforestation but people do so to take care of themselves, send their children to school, and, in the process, they do not consider the environmental effect,\u201d Shannon says.<\/p>\n
Experts have cautioned that if charcoal production continues on its current trend, the country may lose most of its forest in the process. This would happen despite Liberia being a signatory to the 2021 United Nations Conference of Parties (COP), Declaration on Forests and Land Use \u2014 pledging to \u201chalt and reverse forest loss and land degradation\u201d by 2030.<\/p>\n
Liberia and the rest of the 127 signatories account for about 90% of global tree cover and 85% of the world\u2019s primary tropical forests, including the nine top countries in terms of forest area.<\/p>\n
But two years later, trees are still being cut down in Liberia as poverty remains seriously high among Liberians. The World Bank estimates that 50 percent of Liberians live below the poverty line and a sizable number live in extreme poverty.<\/p>\n
This puts Sackie and many others in Barh Town at a crossroads \u2014 looking at the weight of poverty and the challenge of forging a sustainable path ahead.<\/p>\n
For More News And Analysis About Liberia<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"TINA S. MEHNPAINE Africa-Press – Liberia. For years, James Sackie, a father of three, has depended on charcoal production as his primary source of income, but the health risks associated with the trade have begun to worry him. The 48-year-old, who lives in one of the poorest districts in Montserrado County, had spent the last […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":42537,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,3],"tags":[233,237,234],"class_list":["post-42538","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-community","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-liberia","tag-liberia"],"yoast_head":"\n
Liberia: The Silent Health Impact of Charcoal Production - Liberia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Liberia: The Silent Health Impact of Charcoal Production\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"TINA S. MEHNPAINE Africa-Press – Liberia. For years, James Sackie, a father of three, has depended on charcoal production as his primary source of income, but the health risks associated with the trade have begun to worry him. The 48-year-old, who lives in one of the poorest districts in Montserrado County, had spent the last […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Liberia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-08-23T12:09:42+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-08-23T12:25:14+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Liberia: The Silent Health Impact of Charcoal Production\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-08-23T12:09:42+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-08-23T12:25:14+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production\"},\"wordCount\":1412,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/liberia\/sites\/37\/2023\/08\/sm_1692780720.946734.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-Liberia\",\"Liberia\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"community\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production\",\"name\":\"Liberia: The Silent Health Impact of Charcoal Production - Liberia\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/liberia\/sites\/37\/2023\/08\/sm_1692780720.946734.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-08-23T12:09:42+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-08-23T12:25:14+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/liberia\/sites\/37\/2023\/08\/sm_1692780720.946734.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/liberia\/sites\/37\/2023\/08\/sm_1692780720.946734.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":630,\"caption\":\"Liberia: The Silent Health Impact of Charcoal Production\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Liberia: The Silent Health Impact of Charcoal Production\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/\",\"name\":\"Liberia\",\"description\":\"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\",\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"cfeditoren\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Liberia: The Silent Health Impact of Charcoal Production - Liberia","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Liberia: The Silent Health Impact of Charcoal Production","og_description":"TINA S. MEHNPAINE Africa-Press – Liberia. For years, James Sackie, a father of three, has depended on charcoal production as his primary source of income, but the health risks associated with the trade have begun to worry him. The 48-year-old, who lives in one of the poorest districts in Montserrado County, had spent the last […]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production","og_site_name":"Liberia","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa","article_published_time":"2023-08-23T12:09:42+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-08-23T12:25:14+00:00","author":"cfeditoren","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"cfeditoren","Est. reading time":"7 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production"},"author":{"name":"cfeditoren","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"headline":"Liberia: The Silent Health Impact of Charcoal Production","datePublished":"2023-08-23T12:09:42+00:00","dateModified":"2023-08-23T12:25:14+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production"},"wordCount":1412,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/liberia\/sites\/37\/2023\/08\/sm_1692780720.946734.jpg","keywords":["Africa Press","Africa Press-Liberia","Liberia"],"articleSection":["all news","community"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production","name":"Liberia: The Silent Health Impact of Charcoal Production - Liberia","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/liberia\/sites\/37\/2023\/08\/sm_1692780720.946734.jpg","datePublished":"2023-08-23T12:09:42+00:00","dateModified":"2023-08-23T12:25:14+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/liberia\/sites\/37\/2023\/08\/sm_1692780720.946734.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/liberia\/sites\/37\/2023\/08\/sm_1692780720.946734.jpg","width":1200,"height":630,"caption":"Liberia: The Silent Health Impact of Charcoal Production"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-the-silent-health-impact-of-charcoal-production#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Liberia: The Silent Health Impact of Charcoal Production"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/","name":"Liberia","description":"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb","name":"cfeditoren","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"cfeditoren"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42538","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/84"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42538"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42538\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/42537"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42538"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42538"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42538"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}