Sussanah Reeds/Mentorship Bong County: The story of 20 years old Exodus Dolo

Each time Exodus dreams and finds himself developing aircraft, cars, and various electronic materials, and when he wakes up and repeats what he did in his dream, using rubber bottles and other waste materials, it turns out to work in real life.

Twenty-year-old Exodus Dolo, now a tenth-grade student in Gbarnga Bong County goes around collecting waste such as old car batteries, rubber bottles, wires, old light bobs, and many disposed materials transforming them into airplanes, transmitters, cars, and projectors. After several days of work, and connecting various wires following his completion of building the object, the cars and planes he makes out of water materials do move.

“When I go to bed to sleep, I sometimes see myself fixing cars, planes, and other things, and when I wake up; I can write it down and then begin to put it into practice and I can work. I need support to be able to put my country out to the world and help my country.” 

Liberia’s youthful population accounts for over fifty percent of the country’s five million people. However, unemployment among Liberian youths remains high while an undocumented number of Liberian youths are endowed with untapped talents and the necessary support to enhance their skills to fill the huge unemployment gap and build a workforce for the crucial employment sector. 

In Gbarnga Bong County, twenty-year-old Exodus Dolo collects wastes materials from dump sites to create his own electronic devices such as Bluetooth, cars, planes, projectors, and transmitters among other things.

After assembling the collected trashed rubber, cartoons, connecting wires, and shaping them into trucks, and planes, Exodus uses an old black car battery, making the cars and plane move on the group

Now in the tenth grade, Exodus dreams of becoming a mechanical engineer. Nevertheless, life for him from his birth, his mother told him was marred by rejection, and the poverty condition of his single mother makes his dream realization far from over.

“I do not know where my dad is. I live with my mother, and my mother told me that my father denied the pregnancy when she was pregnant with me.” Exodus said as his facial appearance dropped looking down to the ground.

In many rural and semi-urban communities, Exodus is just one of the many undocumented and unsupported young Liberians with untapped talents, whose parents’ impoverished conditions cannot afford to improve nor provide the necessary opportunity to advance their extraordinary talents.

Despite the circumstances surrounding Exodus’ birth and his mother’s impoverished condition, he is not resting on his laureate.

Exodus’ talent has gained much admiration in the neighborhood. Gibson Gogo, one of Exodus’ neighbors told this paper with the right support to Exodus, he could be of great asset to Liberia in contributing to the innovation and automobile industry sector.

“His talent is amazing,” Gibson said. Adding that “sometimes we sit and say the white people are making witch, it’s not all about witchcraft. Exodus, takes cartoons, waste materials, and put wires making the connection to the power source and it starts and moves, therefore, we need to utilize these kinds of skills to develop Liberia.”

Gibson believes that if people like Exodus are spotted and provided the right opportunity, it would contribute to job creation and empowerment among the country’s already high youth unemployed. 

Liberia’s unemployment rate in 2023 declined to 2.85 percent. Nevertheless, the last two years recorded a significantly higher unemployment rate than the preceding years.

According to a 2023 global multidimensional poverty index shows that 52 percent of the population live in poverty, below two dollars, fifteen cents per day.

Employers and companies in Liberia including many businesses endure challenging economic times and struggle to recruit the right talents. Addressing the skills shortage is a part of the high unemployment.

Activists argue that if the national government and employers start identifying and nurturing untapped talents among the country’s young population, it could significantly reduce human resource capacity gaps.

“In Africa, and Liberia we have talents,” Said Awalayeh Mar, adding that, “Some people are born with these talents, and in the case of  Exodus he already has the knowledge, so all he needs is money and a greater opportunity.”

Exodus appeals to the national government and mechanical engineering companies for support to fulfill his dreams of establishing car manufacturing in Liberia. 

“I am asking for support. The materials I am presently using, I find from dump sites for now, but I need the advanced ones so that I can fix (it) planes or cars and someone enters into it and move it.” Exodus pleaded saying.

Exodus Dolo eagerly seeks assistance to realize his dream of creating Liberia’s inaugural plane or car. He relies on skills he claims are inspired by his dreams, yet the speed and source of forthcoming aid remain uncertain.

This story is produced by  FeJAL Mentorship Fellow, through the support of Internews USAID, Year 3 Media Activity Reporting  Program. I am Susanna Reeds reporting