The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP) has officially launched a campaign aimed at eradicating child street peddling under the banner “Operation Zero Children Street Peddling.” The initiative is part of the Ministry’s flagship Save the Future project and seeks the immediate removal of minors from street vending across major urban areas, beginning with Montserrado County.
This operation follows months of sustained public awareness campaigns, stakeholder dialogues, and community outreach programs aimed at educating parents, guardians, and local institutions about the dangers and legal implications of involving children in street trading.
Despite earlier progress in reducing child street vending, officials have noted a troubling resurgence, particularly in high-traffic urban zones. Children continue to be seen weaving between vehicles and loitering at intersections—selling water, candies, and other items—often during school hours and late into the evening. The Ministry says this practice poses significant risks to children’s health, safety, and development, and violates their fundamental rights to protection and education.
On Friday, July 25, in collaboration with the Liberia National Police, the Ministry deployed social workers and enforcement officers to known hotspots including Bypass, Vamoma Junction, and the 9th through 20th Street corridors in Monrovia. The operation led to the interception of more than 50 children engaged in street selling.
The rescued children were transported to the WACP Juvenile Unit, where they are receiving temporary care, psychosocial support, and safety assessments. Meanwhile, their parents and guardians were summoned and required to sign formal Commitment Bonds, pledging not to return their children to the streets. Failure to comply with this pledge, the Ministry warned, will result in legal consequences under Liberia’s existing child protection laws.
Public reaction to the operation has been overwhelmingly supportive. Onlookers across the affected communities expressed gratitude and approval as enforcement teams conducted the removals. Several children revealed to social workers that they were coerced into street vending by parents or caregivers, while many of the confronted adults expressed remorse and pledged to change their behavior.
Speaking to reporters, Mr. Alex Divine, lead of the Save the Future project, noted that this week would see increased enforcement activity across key locations in Montserrado County. “This is a special one-month operation, but it is part of a broader five-year national agenda to end child street selling and exploitation,” Divine said.
The Save the Future initiative was developed in response to a 2022 joint study by UNICEF and MoGCSP, which found that more than 366,000 children in Liberia were living or working under hazardous street conditions. Since its formal rollout in 2024, the initiative has reached over 6,000 children, providing shelter, school enrollment, and family reunification services across Montserrado’s four operational zones.
The Ministry issued a strong warning to all parents, caregivers, and community leaders to cease exposing children to exploitative labor, particularly street selling. It reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring that every Liberian child grows up in a safe, dignified, and supportive environment.
In a statement from the Ministry’s Communication Unit, officials urged collective action. “We call on all citizens, community leaders, civil society groups, and local authorities to join this campaign against child street selling. Protecting our children is a national duty.”
The operation is expected to expand to other counties in subsequent phases of the Save the Future project as the Ministry scales up its efforts to protect vulnerable children and restore their rights to education, safety, and care.
