Foreign Minister Sara Beysolow Nyanti, Dr. Robtel Neajai Pailey, Keynote Speakers
The Gabriel L. Dennis Foreign Service Institute (FSI) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will host a weeklong series of intellectual debates and lecture series designed to highlight Liberia’s up-coming presidency of the United Nations Security Council, and strengthen critical thinking, research, public speaking, and analytical skills among students of the Foreign Service Institute.
Liberia’s Foreign Minister, Hon. Sara Beysolow Nyanti, will deliver a lecture on the theme, Liberia’s Presidency of the UN Security Council: Challenges, Prospects and Benefits, on Friday, august 21, 2026 during the bi-annual George W. Wallace, Jr., Ambassadorial Lecture Series.
Other speakers include former Foreign Minister Olubanke King Akerele, who will lecture on “The Role of Liberian Women in Shaping International Organizations; Case Study of the UN”; the Chairman of the Policy Advisory Committee, Amb. B. Elias Shoniyin, will lecture on the “The Alignment of Liberia’s Presidency on the UN Security Council with Foreign Policy Objectives”; while the Chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Hon. Nehker E. Gaye, will lecture on the “ The Process of Making Laws that Impact Liberia’s Foreign Policy”.
In addition, the UNDP Resident Representative, Mr. Aliou Mamadou Dia, will lecture on “The Role of the UNDP in Economic Development for Sub-Saharan Countries”; Cllr. Jallah A. Barbu, Executive Director of the War and Economic Crimes Court will lecture on “The Work of the WECC and Implications for National Healing”. .
Rounding off the Lecture series will be Amb. Soulay Daramy, Executive Director of the Foreign Service Academy, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Sierra Leone, who will lecture on “ Expectations of Liberia’s Membership on the UN Security Council: Case Study of Sierra Leone”.
Dr. Robtel Neajai Pailey, Assistant Professor in International Social and Public Policy at the London School of Economics and Political Science, and National Orator 2025, will share insights on “Evaluating the Constitutionality of Citizenship in Liberia and its Impact on National Development”.
Her insights will follow the final round of the inaugural Foreign Service Institute Debates which will commence on Thursday, August 20 with four teams of emerging diplomats, and climax at the end of the George W. Wallace, Jr., Ambassadorial Lecture Series on Friday.
Meanwhile, the IBB School of Public and International Affairs in collaboration with the Gabriel L. Dennis Foreign Service Institute will launch Dr. Robtel Neajai Pailey’s Public Lecture 2026 on Wednesday, August 26, 2026 at 1:00 PM at the C. Cecil Dennis Memorial Auditorium, Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The theme of Dr. Pailey’s lecture is “South-South Cooperation: Third World Solidarity or Self-Interested Neo-Colonialism. In her lecture, Dr. Pailey will trace the origins of South-South Cooperation, explore its main features, present two opposing perspectives about this form of development assistance and offer a nuanced framing of “South-South” cooperation as expanded choice.
FSI Inaugural Intellectual Debates scheduled for August 20 – 21, 2026, has several primary objectives which are: to sharpen critical thinking skills of FSI students, provide a platform where they can debate issues of national concerns, enhance their research and synthesis skills, and strengthen their mastery of public speaking and rhetoric.
The FSI Debate initiative was spearheaded by Dr. Anthony Hinneh, lecturer in Economic Diplomacy at the FSI, in collaboration with Director General, Reginald B. Goodridge, Sr.
The inaugural debates will feature three motions addressing questions of sovereignty, economic development, and citizenship in Liberia.
The first motion, “The Concept of National Sovereignty is Still Relevant in the Modern World,” will be debated by Group B and Group C on Thursday, August 20, at 9:00 a.m.
The second motion, “The Open Door Policy is Still Important Today for Liberia’s Economic Development,” will follow at 2:00 p.m. on the same day.
The third and final motion, “Only Persons Who are Negroes or of Negro Descent Shall be Citizens of Liberia,” will be debated on Friday, August 21, following the Second Edition of the George W. Wallace, Jr. Ambassadorial Lecture Series.
The debates will bring together a distinguished panel of judges drawn from the legal, diplomatic, academic, public policy, and civil society communities. The panel will include Cllr. Jallah A. Barbu, Executive Director of the War and Economic Crimes Court; His Honour Kabineh M. Ja’neh, former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of Liberia; Dr. Aaron Weah, Executive of the African Union Committee of Experts on Reparations and FSI Lecturer; Dr. Mamadou L. Bah, Director of the Ibrahim B. Babangida School of International Affairs at the University of Liberia; Mr. Nathaniel T. Blama, Sr., former Executive Director of the Environmental Protection Agency and FSI Lecturer; Mme. Paula L. M. Kendor, Chair of the Department of French Language at the University of Liberia and FSI Lecturer; and Mrs. Mydea White Simmons, Suakoko Scholar and Entrepreneur.
The moderated of the events is Dr. Laurence K. Bropleh, Cllr., former Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, and FSI Lecturer.
The debate initiative forms part of the FSI’s continuing efforts to develop the professional and intellectual capacities of future Liberian diplomats and foreign-service professionals. Through structured debate, students will be expected to conduct research, analyze competing perspectives, construct evidence-based arguments, and communicate their positions effectively before an audience.
Trophies will be presented to the winning team and runner-up, while all participating teams will receive Certificates of Participation.
The inaugural debates will also complement the FSI’s broader program of intellectual engagement, which includes the George W. Wallace, Jr. Ambassadorial Lecture Series and other initiatives aimed at exposing FSI students to contemporary issues affecting Liberia’s foreign policy, diplomacy, governance, international relations, and national development.
The Gabriel L. Dennis Foreign Service Institute is expected to continue building on the inaugural debate as part of its commitment to preparing a new generation of knowledgeable, articulate, and professionally equipped Liberian diplomats capable of representing Liberia effectively in an increasingly complex international environment.
