NATIONAL NEWS
KAKATA CITY – At the 74th Commencement Convocation of the Booker Washington Institute (BWI), Senate President Pro-Tempore Nyonblee Karnga-Lawrence delivered a powerful call to action, urging the Class of 2026 to recognize that Liberia’s future will not be “downloaded,” but constructed by skilled hands.
Addressing a packed audience of graduates, faculty, parents, and invited guests at the institution’s historic campus in Kakata, Margibi County, Karnga-Lawrence declared that Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) is no longer a “second option,” but the backbone of Liberia’s economic survival.
By: Kabina S. Kabah – kabinaskabah98@gmail.com
In her keynote address, she stressed that while academic degrees remain important, Liberia’s immediate development priorities — from road construction to food security — demand practical expertise.
“Liberia’s development will not be built by theory alone,” she said. “It will be built by those who can design, weld, install, repair, cultivate, construct, and innovate.”
The Senate Pro-Tempore identified key sectors in urgent need of domestic technical capacity. In infrastructure, she pointed to the demand for engineers and heavy-equipment operators. In agriculture, she highlighted the need for technicians to drive agro-processing and value addition. She also emphasized opportunities in renewable energy, electrical systems management, and the digital economy, where coders and ICT professionals are increasingly essential.
Addressing global technological shifts, Karnga-Lawrence weighed in on the growing influence of Artificial Intelligence (AI), acknowledging its transformative impact while reassuring graduates that digital tools cannot replace technical competence.
“AI can generate a blueprint, but it cannot construct a building without skilled technicians,” she noted.
She encouraged the graduates to see AI not as competition, but as a tool to enhance productivity and innovation.
Speaking in her capacity as leader of the Liberian Senate, Karnga-Lawrence reaffirmed the government’s commitment to strengthening vocational education nationwide. She called for a cultural shift to dismantle what she described as an outdated stigma that elevates white-collar professions over skilled labor.
Among the legislative priorities she outlined were increased investment in modern TVET facilities and laboratories, expanded public-private partnerships to support industrial internships, the establishment of innovation hubs and incubation centers, and policies aimed at dignifying and elevating skilled trades.
In closing, she challenged the graduates to become solution-driven leaders capable of transforming national challenges into opportunities.
“Liberia’s future will not be downloaded,” she declared. “It will be welded. It will be wired. It will be programmed — and it will be engineered by you.”
The 74th Convocation marks another milestone for BWI, Liberia’s premier vocational institution since its founding in 1929, as it continues to produce skilled professionals critical to the country’s development agenda.
