MONROVIA, Liberia — Liberia has launched a new Faith and Community Initiative (FCI) designed to strengthen collaboration between the health system and faith-based and community organisations.

The initiative was launched on September 29 by the Ministry of Health and the U.S. Government, in partnership with Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and other development partners. A three-day national workshop is being used to develop a country-specific framework for the programme.

The initiative is expected to support programmes covering maternal and child health, HIV, malaria, tuberculosis, nutrition and primary healthcare. CRS said the proposed model could include faith-based hospitals, community health service points and more than 750 churches and mosques working alongside government health structures.

Officials said the programme will be designed to strengthen existing national systems rather than create parallel structures. The workshop will focus on implementation, coordination, community engagement and long-term sustainability before the programme framework is finalised.