Profile of Liberia's Permanent Representative

Robert Wilmot Kpadeh, a British-educated International Human Rights Lawyer and Peace, Conflict, and Development expert. He is an Economist and Communication expert. He is also a Social Justice Advocate who has led several advocacies in defense of human rights, the rule of law, and good governance. He is a structuredacademic and has lectured in Political Science, International Relations, and Public Policy Making at the state-owned University of Liberia (UL) and the African Methodist Episcopal University (AMEU) also in Liberia as a Senior Lecturer.

In terms of public service, Kpadeh has served as Deputy Minister of Information at the Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs, and Tourism, a role he performed with distinction for over five years– under the Administration of President EllenJohnson
Sirleaf.

He is the author of the book; [“Wisdom Is Wealth—Poetry and Philosophy”] which can be accessed on Amazon. He has written several thematic papers on governance, the rule of law, and basic fundamental rights.

Kpadeh is one of the co-authors of the 2023 United Nations Roadmap paper that essentially outlines solutions on how to prevent the usage of technology to facilitate Human Trafficking under the supervision of the United Nations Human Rights Commission.

Employment History
Liberia's Permanent Representative to The International Maritime Organization (IMO), Liberia Maritime Authority, London
2 0 2 4
• The Liberian Permanent Mission to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) is the technical and diplomatic arm of the Liberia Maritime Program:
• To coordinate all the Government of Liberia’s maritime-related activities between Monrovia and London
• To Primarily ensure Liberia’s active participation in all IMO meetings and deliberations to promote and protect Liberia's Maritime Interests to the fullest.
• To ensure at all times that Liberia's maritime policies are aligned with the international instruments and regulations adopted by the IMO, as well as ensure that Liberia is effectively and efficiently compliant with all maritime covenants, treaties, and protocols.
• In addition to these IMO responsibilities, the Permanent Representative regularly represents Liberia at meetings of other maritime-related bodies such as the International Mobile Satellite Organization (IMSO); the International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund (IOPC); the London Convention1972 (LC72) and London Protocol 1996 (LP96), the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

Senior Lecturer/ taught Political Science and International Relations/University of Liberia, University of Liberia, Monrovia
F E B RUA RY 2 0 1 9 — 2 0 2 2

Senior Lecturer/ taught Public Policy and Political Economy/ AME University, Liberia, AME Episcopal University, Monrovia
2 0 1 9 — 2 0 2 2

Deputy Minister for Technical Services, Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs, and Tourism, Republic of Liberia, Monrovia
2 0 1 1 — 2 0 1 6
• Coordinated the affairs of all technical matters of the ministry;
• Oversight of the day-to-day activities of the departments of Central Printing, Communications Bureau, Motion Picture, Liberia News Agency (LINA), Directed the Editorial dimension of the New Liberia Newspaper (the government-published newspaper and portals)
• Managed the Research and Utilization departments
• And other assigned duties by the Minister proper and /or the President of The Republic of Liberia
• Communicated government policies and programs locally and Internationally
• Responded to all foreign inquiries regarding governance, policies, transparency, and rights-related matters

Managing Editor/Publisher, The Parrot Newspaper (Liberia), Monrovia
2 0 0 4 — 2 0 1 2
• Directs the Paper Editorially, administratively, and financially;
• Source funding for the paper and negotiate commercials in terms of advert and public relations contracts;
• Writes major statements on behalf of the paper and serves as the official spokesperson for the institution.

Editor–In–Chief, The Telegraph Newspaper, Monrovia
2 0 0 3 — 2 0 0 4
• Directed the affairs of the paper and managed all reporters
• Wrote editorials and commentaries on major political and economic issues that arose in the country at the time;
• Conducted refresher training workshops for reporters every month aimed at ensuring that reporters are on course with the global trends of journalism;
• Conducted interviews with major newsmakers like the Speaker of the House, Pro-temp, Vice President, and in some instances, the President;
• Negotiated advert contracts on behalf of the paper.Politics and Associations:

The One People Revolutionary Movement (OPRM), Monrovia
2 0 1 9 — P R E S ENT
• National Secretary General- National Movement to Support Boakai, a political movement from 2015 to 2017
• Chief of Communication

Joseph N. Boakai Presidential Campaign/ 2017 Presidential Election, Liberia
• National Media CoordinatorJoseph Boakai President Campaign/ Rescue Mission, 2023, Liberia
• Chairman- Independent Democrats of Liberia (IDL) – 2011 – 2012 March
• Founding Secretary General/Publisher Association of Liberia (PAL) – from 2007 to 2012 March:
• Vice President/ PAL-2012-2014
• Chairman of the Press Union of Liberia Press Club with direct supervision over the Edward Wilmot Blyden Forum - 2008 - 2010;
• President/Liberia Media Group – 2009 – 2012

International Engagements:
Kpadeh has attended and participated in several international engagements including; the United Nations General Assembly in New York twice, African Union Summits in Addis, Ababa Ethiopia, ECOWAS Summits on several occasions in Abuja, Nigeria, The Annual International Maritime Organization (IMO)/Summit in London twice, and The Regional Maritime University Summit Held in Yaoundé, Cameroun.
And he is well-traveled.

Affiliations:
• Member/Press Union of Liberia;
• Member/Publisher Association of Liberia;
• Member/World Editor Forum – Paris, France;
• Member/African Editor’s Forum – Nairobi Kenya.

Education
AA Basic Economic and Shipping Management, Institute of Export and Shipping Management (IESM), Accra
1 9 9 4 — 1 9 9 6
BSc (Cum Laude): Economics, United Methodist University, Monrovia
2 0 0 2 — 2 0 0 6
MA: Peace, Conflict, and International Development, University of Bradford, United Kingdom, Bradford, UK
2 0 1 8 — 2 0 1 9
LLM (Hons): International Human Rights Law & Practice, University of York Law School, UnitedKingdom, York, UK
2 0 2 2 — 2 0 2