C. Cyvette M. Gibson

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Mayor Gibson in office at the Paynesville City Hall Mayor Gibson.png
Mayor Gibson in office at the Paynesville City Hall

Cyvette M. Gibson is the tenth Mayor of Paynesville, Liberia. Gibson has been a community advocate for years, working over the past 17 years in women's empowerment, legal, and city administration in Liberia and the United States. She was appointed as acting Mayor on November 14, 2012; the youngest mayor in the country. Gibson has focused her administration on improving and empowering communities in Paynesville by providing infrastructure, education, access to employment and entrepreneurship, and basic services such as water, energy, sanitation, housing, health, and safety.

Contents

Early life and education

C. Cyvette M. Gibson was born in Dakar, Senegal on December 2, 1974. She is the first daughter of Liberian natives Yvette Chesson-Wureh and Chauncy M. Gibson. Her grandfather was Attorney General Joseph J.F. Chesson, who was executed by firing squad during the 1980 Liberian coup d'état. [1] While living on the Old Road, Sinkor Monrovia, Liberia, she acquired early education at the Bright Functional on Benson Street in Monrovia, the School of Prime Systems, the Coca-Cola Factory in Paynesville, and the Joseph Jerkins Roberts Memorial Institute in Monrovia. Due to events surrounding the coup d'état of 1980, she and her mother fled into exile.[ citation needed ]

Mayor Gibson attended the College of North West London, majoring in Social Science in 1995. She also acquired certificates in Public Speaking, Critical Reading and Writing, International studies, and Literacy and Information technology between 1994 and 1995, and Paralegal training at West Law Paralegal in 2005.[ citation needed ]

Political career

Cyvette Gibson served as chief of office at the Monrovia City Corporation under the administration of then Mayor Mary Broh. During this time, it was reported that Gibson insulted journalists reporting on claims of human rights abuses by the mayor. [2]

Gibson was appointed as acting Mayor of the city of Paynesville, Liberia on November 14, 2012. She was the youngest mayor in the country when appointed by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf to the position. [3]

Waste issues have dominated much of her tenure as Mayor of the city. While she has pushed many different trash initiatives, some of these have been criticized by citizen groups for not addressing the problem. [4] Much of the focus has been on the commercial center of the Monrovia region, known as Red Light Market. [5] In April 2014, she called for greater attention to waste issues from the Liberia Marketing Association. [6] With limited funding, she was able to enlist the support of many residents of the city (including drug addicts and the homeless) to clean up Red Light. [4] While she focused significant attention on health during the West African Ebola virus epidemic, she turned again to waste issues afterward with a significant grant from the World Bank. [7]

Gibson organized efforts throughout the city to deal with the Ebola outbreak in the country. She used community leaders throughout the city to educate and identify potential Ebola victims. [4] These efforts were assisted by UNICEF. At the height of the outbreak, she was one of seven officials who were excluded from a blanket dismissal of officials by President Johnson-Sirleaf. [8]

Since the outbreak, she has continued the focus on waste, sanitation, and education in the city. In addition, major efforts have been undertaken on development of the Dupont Road area of the city. A 2016 editorial in FrontPage Africa singled her efforts out as "transforming a once failed city." [9]

Paynesville's partnerships

A well being opened by Mayor Gibson in Paynesville Water Ceremony.jpg
A well being opened by Mayor Gibson in Paynesville

The City of Paynesville in its efforts towards a clean and developed city, [10] has joined the 100 Resilient Cities network. [11]

Paynesville under the leadership of Mayor Gibson also established sister city relationship with the City of Paynesville, Minnesota (USA) and the City of Bagcilar, Istanbul (Turkey).

Achievements

Mayor Gibson reads to students at the T-Five Academy Junior & Senior High School Student session.jpg
Mayor Gibson reads to students at the T-Five Academy Junior & Senior High School

Awards

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liberia</span> Country in West Africa

Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean to its south and southwest. It has a population of around 5 million and covers an area of 43,000 square miles (111,369 km2). English is the official language, but over 20 indigenous languages are spoken, reflecting the country's ethnic and cultural diversity. The country's capital and largest city is Monrovia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monrovia</span> Capital, chief port, and the largest city of Liberia

Monrovia is the capital city of the West African country of Liberia. Founded in 1822, it is located on Cape Mesurado on the Atlantic coast and as of the 2008 census had 1,010,970 residents, home to 29% of Liberia’s total population. As the nation's primate city, Monrovia is the country's economic, financial and cultural center; its economy is primarily centered on its harbor and its role as the seat of Liberian government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kru people</span> Ethnic group in West Africa

The Kru, Kroo, Krou or Kuru are a West African ethnic group who are indigenous to western Ivory Coast and eastern Liberia. They migrated and settled along various points of the West African coast, notably Freetown, Sierra Leone, but also the Ivorian and Nigerian coasts. The Kru people are a large ethnic group that is made up of several sub-ethnic groups in Liberia and Ivory Coast. These tribes include Bété, Bassa, Krumen, Guéré, Grebo, Klao, Dida, Krahn people and, Jabo people. The Kru people were more valuable as traders and sailors on slave ships than as slave labor. To ensure their status as “freemen,” they initiated the practice of tattooing their foreheads and the bridge of their nose with indigo dye to distinguish them from slave labor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paynesville, Liberia</span> Place in Montserrado County, Liberia

Paynesville is a suburb east of Monrovia, Liberia. It is geographically larger than the city of Monrovia and is expanding eastward along the Robertsfield Highway and northeastward beyond Red Light Market, one of the largest market areas in Liberia. Paynesville is often considered a part of the Greater Monrovia area. It was the location of the Paynesville Omega Transmitter, the highest structure of Africa, until the tower's demolition in 2011. The Liberia Broadcasting System is also located in Paynesville. The Liberian Judo Federation is based in Paynesville.

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The Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium which is part of the Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex in Paynesville, Liberia, a suburb of the country's capital, Monrovia. Built in 1986, it is used mostly for football matches and has an athletics track, though it has also been used for a reggae concert, political rallies, IDP refuge, and Ebola treatment. The largest stadium in Liberia, its spectator capacity is 22,000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roberts International Airport</span> Commercial airport near Monrovia, Liberia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary Broh</span> Liberian politician

Mary Tanyonoh Broh is the former mayor of Monrovia, the capital city of Liberia. She first served the Liberian government in March 2006 as the Special Projects Coordinator for President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf's executive staff. In 2007, she was promoted to direct the Passport Bureau in a successful attempt to curtail and eliminate corruption and bribery within the division. In 2008, Broh became the Deputy Director of the National Port Authority. In February 2009, she was selected to serve as Acting Mayor of Monrovia in place of the previous mayor, Ophelia Hoff Saytumah, in the President's effort to legitimize the Monrovia City Corporation's (MCC) administrative and financial management. Although Broh was seated in February 2009 by appointment, rather than by the usual democratic election process, she was not officially confirmed by the Liberian Senate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amara Mohamed Konneh</span> Liberian politician

Amara M. Konneh a Liberian national with more than 25 years of experience in humanitarian, private sector, government, and international development work, is a Senior Advisor on Partnerships and Regional Integration covering Africa for the World Bank. In this role, he advises the World Bank on regional economic integration to create economic hubs for value chains and helps build strategic partnerships with Africa's regional economic commissions. Prior to that, he served as Lead Advisor for the Bank's engagements in countries affected by fragility, conflict, violence, and forced displacement with emphasis on Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, and Nigeria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ebola virus epidemic in Liberia</span> Health disaster in Africa

An epidemic of Ebola virus disease occurred in Liberia from 2014 to 2015, along with the neighbouring countries of Guinea and Sierra Leone. The first cases of virus were reported by late March 2014. The Ebola virus, a biosafety level four pathogen, is an RNA virus discovered in 1976.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West African Ebola virus epidemic timeline</span>

This article covers the timeline of the 2014 Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa and its outbreaks elsewhere. Flag icons denote the first announcements of confirmed cases by the respective nation-states, their first deaths, and their first secondary transmissions, as well as relevant sessions and announcements of agencies such as the World Health Organization (WHO), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and NGOs such as Doctors Without Borders; medical evacuations, visa restrictions, border closures, quarantines, court rulings, and possible cases of zoonosis are also included.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Environmental issues in Liberia</span>

Environmental issues in Liberia include the deforestation of tropical rainforest, the hunting of endangered species for bushmeat, the pollution of rivers and coastal waters from industrial run-off and raw sewage, and the burning and dumping of household waste.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenya–Liberia relations</span> Bilateral relations

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deborah R. Malac</span> American diplomat

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The Press Union of Liberia was founded on September 30, 1964, by a group of independent journalists. It serves as an umbrella organization for media professionals and institutions to advocate for press freedom and the legal protection of journalists.

The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Monrovia, Liberia.

A political scandal in Liberia developed in 2014 after the arrest of a group of South Korean businessmen and seizure of US$247,500 from them by the National Security Agency, a national level internal security agency of Liberia.

Events in the year 2016 in Liberia.

Events in the year 2014 in Liberia.

Events in the year 2013 in Liberia.

References

  1. ↑ Yates, David A. (22 April 2015). "God Gives Us Chance to Right Wrongs of the Past". Liberian Observer. Retrieved 15 January 2017.
  2. ↑ Quiah, Priscilla J. (28 June 2012). "Liberia: Mary Broh Linked to Human Rights Abuses". AllAfrica. Retrieved 15 January 2017.
  3. ↑ "Give the new generation a voice". The Star (South Africa). 3 December 2015.
  4. 1 2 3 McTernan, Billie Adwoa. "Monrovia Mayor led Life and Death Battle Against Ebola". The Journalist. Retrieved 15 January 2017.
  5. ↑ "Paynesville Mayor Extolled for 'Excellent' Performance". AllAfrica. Retrieved 15 January 2017.
  6. ↑ Karmo, Henry (17 April 2014). "Paynesville Pollution: City Demands Action over Garbage". FrontPageAfrica. AllAfrica. Retrieved 15 January 2017.
  7. ↑ Rustin, Susanna (12 October 2016). "Can cities be feminist? Inside the global rise of female mayors". The Guardian.
  8. ↑ Weedee-Conway, Emmanuel (1 September 2014). "Who Are the Dismissed Officials? - Public Demands Explanation From Gov't". Heritage. AllAfrica. Retrieved 15 January 2017.
  9. ↑ "Dramatic Improvements in Paynesville City Deserve Commendation". FrontPage Africa. Archived from the original on 9 January 2017. Retrieved 15 January 2017.
  10. ↑ "Cleanest PCC Community Award Offered". Newspaper. 2015-01-11 – via www.liberianobserver.com.
  11. ↑ "City of Paynesville in Liberia Joins 100 Resilient Cities Worldwide". FrontPage Africa. Archived from the original on 19 October 2016. Retrieved 15 January 2017.
  12. ↑ McTernan, Billie Adwoa; Smith, Patrick (2015-04-21). "Cyvette Gibson and Paynesville's anti-Ebola revolution". The Africa Report.
  13. ↑ FPA Reporter (2015-05-04). "RECOVERY PLAN: PAYNESVILLE MAYOR DISCUSS POST EBOLA". Front Page Africa. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2015-11-13.
  14. ↑ ""Operation Stop Ebola"..." Paynesville City Corporation. 2014-12-04 – via Facebook.
  15. ↑ "Interview with Peter Graaff, Acting Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER)". United Nations News. 2015-06-04.
  16. ↑ Yates, David (13 September 2015). "Hundreds Benefit from PCC's 3rd Annual Health Fair". Daily Observer. Retrieved 15 January 2017.
  17. ↑ "PCC Hosts Science Fair Competition;SDA High School Wins". Capitol Times. 25 November 2016. Archived from the original on 16 January 2017. Retrieved 15 January 2017.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  18. ↑ Worzi, Alvin. "PCC Mayor Inducted President of Association of Mayors of Liberia". Liberian Observer.
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