Introducing Liberia 7-15

Liberia 7-15 is WCID’s 5-year youth empowerment & gender equality programme, using rugby to change lives and attitudes in Liberia.

A youth-led project aiming to introduce rugby 7s to all 15 counties of Liberia, this project will use the sport as a vehicle for:

Preventing violence against women and girls

Promoting gender equality

Empowering young people through education, opportunities, teamwork, and leadership

Our History

When our co-founder Mark Lee Hegarty first mentioned he was visiting Liberia, it was meant to be a short trip – a way to connect with the Matsiko World Orphan Choir, a group of extraordinary children using music to rise above hardship. But that trip turned into a four-year, life-changing project – one that would redefine WCID’s mission.

Mark lived, worked, and toured with the choir, capturing their spirit, their stories, and their mission in Let The Children Sing! – a six-part docuseries filmed and narrated by the children themselves. While filming, Mark came face-to-face with the painful truth of the scale of sexual violence in Liberia. He met three teenage girls – survivors who had been cast out of their communities and left homeless after bravely reporting their abusers. From their pain, they built power, and formed STOP-GBV (Sisters Thinking as One to Prevent Gender-Based Violence), a grassroots movement that educates communities in Montserrado about consent, respect, and human rights, and provides signposting and support to survivors.

The truth is stark: without education, many in Liberia – boys, girls, men and women – still do not understand that rape is wrong. And the country does not have the resources to change that on its own. We knew we had to act. Following discussions with our co-founder Gauri Taylor-Nayar, together, we began developing a national programme; one that combines the power of education with the spirit of sport to drive cultural and generational change. That programme is Liberia 7-15.

Be Part of the Change

When children learn respect on the rugby field, they carry it home — to their families, friends, and communities.

Join WCID and help us end gender-based violence in Liberia.

Please donate and share this campaign today.

Real change starts with one question: What can I do?