By Jimmy S. Shilue
In mineral-rich but underserved regions like Liberia’s Grand Gedeh County, a troubling dilemma is unfolding: a generation of youth is abandoning education in pursuit of fast cash from gold.
In this south-eastern county, the lure of artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) is rapidly outshining the promise of higher education. The clang of pickaxes is drowning out the classroom bell, and the consequences may be far-reaching for development, for peace, and for the very soul of the nation.
At the heart of the matter lies a stark choice: invest in human capital through education or extract quick gains from the earth. Artisanal mining, long practiced in Grand Gedeh since the 1940s, is no longer a supplementary activity for rural survival. It has become a dominant economic pursuit fuelled by poverty, desperation, and the collapse of formal employment structures.
With the shutdown of Putu Mining Company, which once subsidized Grand Gedeh County Community College (GGCCC) with $50,000 annually, the region lost not just jobs but also critical funding for education. This vacuum, exacerbated by weak state presence, poor infrastructure, and a fragile education system, has pushed many young people, particularly men—out of school and into mining sites such as Barteajam, CVI, and Bently. The reality is simple but tragic: survival has replaced aspiration.
The Gold Rush, the College Decline
Grand Gedeh County Community College, once envisioned as a beacon for post-war recovery and educational decentralization, now stands nearly deserted. Enrolment has sharply declined, even as the new college administration works to reduce tuition and re-engage students. Gold, with its immediate financial rewards, has proven far more attractive than grades, especially when formal education appears to offer few clear paths to employment or prosperity.
A 2021 Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) report estimated that the ASM sector directly employs about 100,000 miners and 500,000 diggers, supporting over a million people indirectly. In Grand Gedeh, these numbers represent the backbone of a fragile local economy and the drain of potential doctors, engineers, teachers, and leaders.
The perception is widespread: mining brings status, freedom, and fast money; school brings only delay and uncertainty. Peer influence, too, plays a role—young people are drawn into a social network where mining is normalized and even celebrated. But the costs are steep: school dropout, substance abuse, teenage pregnancy, and a rising tide of social dysfunction now afflict these mining communities. Drug use, prostitution, and environmental degradation are rampant. A 2016 study conducted by International Centre for Migration Policy and Development among returnees in Barteajam found that many young people were stuck in a cycle of survival, not progress.
Security Risks and Echoes of the Past
The stakes are not merely economic or educational, but they are national and existential. Liberia’s civil wars were, in part, financed by the illicit exploitation of gold, diamonds, and timber. Today, similar dynamics are re-emerging in Grand Gedeh and surrounding counties. Unregulated mining camps house thousands, including ex-combatants, regional migrants, and vulnerable youth. These camps, isolated, unmonitored, and economically vital—are fertile ground for exploitation by transnational criminal networks and opportunistic actors.
The gold sector is also linked to the drug trade. Heroin smuggling routes increasingly use Liberia as a transit hub. Some miners, known locally as “gold boys,” ingest narcotics to extend work hours. The lack of governance in these sectors not only undermines the rule of law but also threatens the fragile peace Liberia has fought hard to preserve.
Environmental destruction compounds the crisis. Forests are being cleared, rivers polluted, and the biodiversity of nearby protected areas like Sapo National Park is under siege. In Barteajam, roadways and agricultural land are eroding under the weight of unchecked mining operations.
The College Fights Back
In recent years, a new administration led by Dr. Eric Z.M. Gbotoe, at GGCCC has launched reforms to reverse the trend. Tuition has been reduced from $80 to $22.50, attracting over 200 students. The diaspora has stepped in with support: $9,000 for reviving the Nursing College, shipping containers of textbooks, and plans for a new sports complex. Partnerships with international educators, including Dr. Nelson from the U.S., signal a renewed commitment to quality.
But challenges remain. The curriculum is mismatched with local economic realities. Vocational and technical training is minimal. Infrastructure is lacking. The college is not yet seen as a viable alternative to the mines.
Meanwhile, many in Grand Gedeh feel politically abandoned. Former President George Weah, long believed to have ancestral ties to the county through Samuel K. Doe, received overwhelming support in past elections. Yet his administration, locals argue, delivered little in terms of schools, roads, or jobs. Disillusionment has bred political cynicism and deepened youth disengagement from public life.
The Real Gold Is in the Mind
If current trends continue, Grand Gedeh risks becoming a cautionary tale, a county that exchanged the enduring wealth of its people for the fleeting glitter of its soil. But this trajectory is not irreversible. Below are concrete recommendations to arrest the decline and rebuild a path toward education, opportunity, and peace.
Recommendations
Strengthen and Rebrand GGCCC as a Youth Magnet
• Recruit qualified, motivated faculty aligned with the college’s new vision.
• Launch mobile outreach programs to mining camps to identify and engage dropouts.
• Expand curriculum to include practical skills: agriculture, forestry, ICT, mining safety, and entrepreneurship.
• Partner with NGOs and donors to provide scholarships, school feeding programs, and transportation services.
• Establish satellite campuses in mining-intensive communities.
• Create evening and weekend classes for working youth and adult learners.
Make Education a Tangible Investment
• Establish internship and job placement programs for graduates.
• Work with development partners (AfDB, UNDP, WB) to create youth entrepreneurship and start-up grants.
• Reinforce the message that education leads to long-term independence—not just credentials.
• Highlight successful alumni as role models.
Introduce Conditional Cash Transfers and Incentives
• Implement “Cash for Education” schemes to offset mining income for poor households.
• Reorient scholarship schemes to prioritize merit and need over politics.
Reform Mining Oversight and Governance
• Collaborate with the Ministry of Mines and local leaders to formalize artisanal mining cooperatives.
• Mandate educational requirements or participation for youth in regulated mining zones.
• Channel a percentage of mining revenue into local education through County Development Funds.
Strengthen Civic Engagement and Local Accountability
• Encourage civic education and youth advocacy on education rights and political transparency.
• Demand that elected officials allocate meaningful budgets to youth and education.
• Strengthen the bridge between the diaspora and local development initiatives.
Conclusion
The crisis in Grand Gedeh is not just about gold or grades. It is about national priorities, broken promises, and the quiet abandonment of a generation. The county’s youth, once full of post-war promise, are now trading classrooms for gold pans, not because they lack ambition, but because they see no other path. The real wealth of Grand Gedeh lies not beneath the soil, but in the minds of its young people.
The time to act is now. Stakeholders, from national government to local leaders, civil society to the international community—must come together to reclaim education as a right, a priority, and a national investment. Let Grand Gedeh be the place where Liberia turns the corner, where the classroom becomes more valuable than the mine, and where the minds of its youth become the gold standard for national development. Our national government needs to invest in the youth and the educational sector to drive the AAID. Dropout rates in Liberian education, particularly in rural and poor areas, remain a concern.
