From Left: Theresa Anima Kusi OLA, Sophie Katagna OLA, Amélie N’djouaba Kouassi OLA
Liberia carries the memory of decades of civil conflict and the long aftermath of the Ebola epidemic of 2014–2016. Recovery has been slow and uneven, shaped by significant gaps in healthcare, education, and infrastructure, and by the particular vulnerability of women and children in communities still finding their footing. It is into this context that the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles arrived in January 2021.
The OLA presence in Liberia began with a request. In 2018, Archbishop Lewis Jerome Zeiger of Monrovia approached the Society of African Missions, seeking a dedicated religious presence to support the local Church’s work. The request reached the OLA, and over the following years a mission was established as an extension of the Ghana Province. On 20 January 2021, four Sisters arrived in Monrovia — a community that from the outset reflected the intercultural character of the congregation, drawing together women from different West African backgrounds.
The early months were spent learning. The Sisters immersed themselves in the local culture and socio-political context, meeting with leaders from various ministries and community movements. Their SMA brothers had worked to prepare living quarters and ensure basic infrastructure was in place, including solar power. From that starting point, the community began to find its footing in the daily life of Liberia.
The mission is now centred in Bomi County, where the Sisters work across education and pastoral ministry. At St. Dominic School, an OLA Sister holds an administrative role, contributing to the formation of young students within a framework that attends to both academic development and personal values. Across the wider mission, the Sisters are involved in pastoral outreach with youth groups and marginalised communities, offering consistent presence and practical support to those who have least access to either.
A significant responsibility came in August 2024, when the Sisters assumed management of the Oscar Romero School for the Deaf. Originally established in 2008 by Mary’s Meals Liberia, the school provides residential education for children with hearing impairments. Under OLA leadership, the school has extended its curriculum, adding Grade 9 for the 2025–2026 academic year, and the Sisters hold a clear vision for Oscar Romero as a place where deaf and hearing individuals share life and work alongside one another, with access to education not defined by difference.
Across the mission, the Sisters have identified priorities for development: additional classrooms and facilities at the Oscar Romero School, educational resources including a library and computer complex, and a vocational centre that would allow students to develop practical, lasting skills. These are not aspirational additions. They reflect the daily reality of working in a country where infrastructure remains fragile and resources limited.
The OLA presence in Liberia is four years old. The community has moved from an initial period of orientation into sustained engagement in education, pastoral care, and community life. The needs it works within are significant and ongoing, and the mission is still finding its shape.