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Plan to test Liberian schoolchildren for drugs blocked

October 17th, 2025

By Moses Kollie Garzeawu

Monrovia, Liberia, Africa

Liberia's Education Ministry has blocked controversial plans to introduce mandatory drug testing in all of the country's schools.

Speaking to local media, the interim head of the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA), Fitzgerald Biago, said school testing would help address the growing problem of drug abuse.

The announcement sparked a mixed response. Some thought it would help tackle the scourge of drugs, while others saw it as an invasion of privacy, or feared it would cost too much.

Last year, President Joseph Boakai declared drug and substance abuse a national emergency and a recent EU-backed report estimated that one in five young Liberians take drugs.

However, the Education Ministry said it was not aware of any plans to test students and added that such a decision needed to be based on concrete evidence and properly thought through.

Assistant minister in charge of students Sona Toure-Sesay told the BBC that this kind of plan required proper research. "Let's assume we are made aware of the proposed initiatives by the LDEA, it will require us to conduct research and review case studies from other countries where this has been successful," she said.  

Toure-Sesay also noted that testing could affect students. "What happens to students who test positive? What are the social services in place for them? Some of them might be bullied even after returning, and it may affect their overall educational performances."

She added that a multi-sectoral committee on drug and substance abuse had been set up, headed by the Health Ministry. Along with strengthening health clubs in schools, she said that this would help to reduce the prevalence of drugs among students.

President Boakai dismissed the leadership of the LDEA in August this year, and recently appointed Biago, a former senior police officer, as interim head of the agency.

Taken from:

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0mxz3x1lr7o  

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Smatphones are banned in Brazilian Schools

Brazil’s president has signed a law to limit smartphone use in schools, starting in February. This rule will apply to elementary and high schools across the country. Phones will only be allowed in emergencies, for educational activities, or for students with disabilities. The goal is to help students focus better and reduce distractions caused by phones.

Officials explained that children are using the internet at younger ages, which makes it harder for parents to monitor them. Limiting smartphones at school can help students concentrate on studying. A recent survey found that nearly two-thirds of Brazilians support banning smartphones in schools, and over threequarters believe these devices are harmful for kids.

Some families and students agree with the move, saying it will encourage more interaction and help classmates focus better. However, others believe it won’t solve all school issues, like bullying and harassment.

As of 2023, about two-thirds of Brazilian schools already limit smartphone use, while 28% ban them completely. Some states, such as Rio de Janeiro and Goias, have passed local laws restricting phones in schools, but enforcement has been challenging. In Sao Paulo, discussions are ongoing about banning phones in both public and private schools.

Globally, concerns ______________ smartphone use ______________ children have led to similar measures. Countries ______________ China, France, and parts of the U.S. have introduced restrictions to reduce distractions and protect children’s mental health. A report ______________ UNESCO found that one in four countries has already limited smartphone use in schools.

Adapted from: https://en.islcollective.com

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Palestinians in Gaza Reflect on One Year of Israel’s War With Hamas Oct. 7, 2024

The war has killed tens of thousands and devastated entire cities, leaving many in Gaza without a home and fueling a humanitarian catastrophe.

By Bilal Shbair and Hiba Yazbek Reporting from the Gaza Strip and Jerusalem.

Last October, Fadi Abu Kheir of southern Gaza had big plans. He was going to be engaged to the woman he loved. After they got married, he said, they would move in together, into an apartment that he spent years building.

“Now,” Mr. Abu Kheir, 24, said, “I am clueless about my future. I cannot even think how I can adapt to life postwar.”

It has been a year since the Hamas-led terrorist attacks impelled Israel to launch a retaliatory offensive in Gaza. For Mr. Abu Kheir — and, indeed, for Palestinians across the enclave — every day since, he said, has teemed with “sadness, depression and fury.”

The war has killed over 41,000 people, according to Gazan health officials, and devastated entire neighborhoods and cities, leaving hundreds of thousands without a home and fueling a humanitarian catastrophe.

More than 2 million people lived in the strip before the conflict. No one has been unaffected.

“We were so happy before this war,” said Maisaa al-Naffar, 20, of Khan Younis, breaking into tears as she recalled her first few weeks as a newlywed before the war began. She added: “I am not the person I used to be.”

Nine months pregnant, she is sheltering in a tent in southern Gaza.

“I miss my old life. I miss the days when we used to have fun or laugh at even the smallest things.

I miss my life when we had enough healthy food and snacks,”

Ms. al-Naffar said. “Today, everything has become a hell, full of dust and darkness.” 

Throughout the enclave, similar stories abound. For Mr. Abu Kheir, the image from the war that lingers is that of a naked, lifeless woman lying in the street, blown out of a house that had been bombarded, he said. The conflict has killed two of his best friends, and displaced him and his family, he said. It also destroyed the apartment he was building, in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. The war, he said, has “destroyed my dreams.”