Liberia’s President Asked to Resign
Liberian opposition officials have asked President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, who’s also the continent’s first elected female leader, to resign, the BBC reports. The call was made after a report from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission said Johnson-Sirleaf should be barred from office because of her past support of former President Charles Taylor (who is now facing war crimes charges). “The presidency has been brought to public disrepute,” one opposition official said. The report’s recommendation could become law if Liberian lawmakers vote to implement them. And this is possible, since the opposition currently has the majority in Parliament. The country’s information minister says Liberians already knew about Johnson-Sirleaf’s past support of Taylor before they elected her. “They decided to reconcile with her, and they elected her president by popular vote,” he told the BBC. The president has expressed regret for supporting Taylor 20 years ago, saying she had been “fooled.” “I feel it in my conscience. I feel it every day,” she said.
 

Turks and Caicos Economy is Suffering
Alleged government corruption is behind the Turks and Caicos flailing economy, reports the BBC. The territory is due to return to British rule later this year, but investors are hesitant to put money back into the island’s once-healthy economy. Part of their hesitation could be due to the constant legal battles associated with British governance. Last year, a commission discovered extensive corruption in the island’s government under the leadership of former Premier Michael Misick. The economy is reliant on the real estate and finance industries, which have been suffering, the BBC reports. Since February of 2008 and February of this year, bank deposits have plummeted by an astonishing $288 million. Real estate sales have also suffered, going down 70 percent within the last year.

Did Liberia Charity Workers Steal $1 Million in Aid?
An official from World Vision, a U.S. based charity, claims that over 90 percent of aid sent to Liberia was lost due to fraud, reports the BBC. Workers are believed to have stolen more than $1 million in aid, the group’s Vice-President George Ward, told the news service. Three World Vision workers have been charged in connection to the fraud. They have been charged with 12 counts, including theft, fraud, lying to investigators and witness tampering, reports the news service. The group allegedly sold donated food in markets and hung on to the profits and used charity resources to build themselves homes. The charity was tipped off about the fraud in 2007, two years after it allegedly began. That year, World Vision sent auditors to the Liberian towns that supposedly received aid. According to Ward, they found only 9 percent of the food aid had gone to the needy. And, according to The Associated Press, 34 of the towns didn’t exist. In wake of such scandal, Ward promises that the organization has taken steps to prevent such fraud from taking place in the future. “We can guarantee that we make every effort to ensure that every dollar, every pound sterling, every euro contributed to World Vision is sued in the best possible way and we have an excellent track record in that regard,” he told the BBC. 
 

World Bank to Lend Haiti $121 Million
Last week, the World Bank approved a $121 million four-year lending plan for Haiti, reports Reuters. The money will go towards helping the nation’s struggling economy and assisting with the recovery effort from last year’s devastating tropical storms. “With this new strategy, we are supporting Haiti’s own efforts to put the difficult events of last year firmly behind it, and return to a path toward longer term growth and development,” a World Bank official told Reuters. “The country faces great opportunities, as well as huge challenges, and it needs strong and sustained support from the World Bank Group and other international partners.” The International Finance Corporation, a World Bank Group, tapped the agricultural and textile manufacturing sectors as areas for possible growth in Haiti.

Liberian President Ellen Johnson, on a book tour for her book “This Child Will Be Great,” stopped by The Daily Show With Jon Stewart. She talked about her journey to become Africa’s first elected woman president but also took time to crown the popular TV show host an African chief. Watch the video.