The Minister added that renovations at the registry are now 90% complete and include a shift to solar power in preparation for the digitalized system.
Monrovia – The digitalization of services at the Liberia Business Registry, along with the issuance of import and export permit declarations, is expected to be completed soon, the Minister of Commerce and Industry, Amin Modad, has disclosed.
By Robin Dopoe, contributing writer
Speaking at the Ministry of Information yesterday, Minister Modad argued that digitalization would streamline business registration and trade processes, remove bureaucratic hurdles and delays, minimize corruption, and simplify compliance with legal requirements, among other benefits.
“The business registration process now takes 3-5 days, significantly down from the 1-2 week backlog we encountered,” Minister Modad added. “When we roll out the digital platform to streamline business registration and reduce corruption, we expect the process to be even more predictable.”
Key among the reforms at the business registry is the rollout of a “new business registration certificate featuring anti-fraud security features,” which Minister Modad says is intended to curtail “corruption and bureaucratic bottlenecks and address revenue leakages.”
The Minister added that renovations at the registry are now 90% complete and include a shift to solar power in preparation for the digitalized system.
According to Minister Modad, the Ministry of Commerce has also secured funding to digitize the “Ministry’s services,” and like the business registration process, work is being carried out to upgrade “critical processes, including the issuance of IPDs and EPDs.”
These upgrades, the Minister noted, prioritize addressing the bureaucratic bottlenecks and corruption that had “entrenched the system,” making the country’s business climate difficult to navigate.
“We will be rolling out the digital platform next week to ensure transparency and improve processing time in the IPD process,” Minister Modad asserted.
The latest revelations from the Minister come as the Ministry of Commerce and the Liberia Business Registry’s paper-based application processes continue to hamper trade by causing delays, inefficiencies, and high costs.
The manual system, experts say, fosters corruption, as bribes can expedite approvals or bypass regulations. This leads to inefficiencies that deter investors, as businesses face lengthy approval times and opaque processes.
Minister Modad also noted that while the Ministry of Commerce is reforming the country’s business climate, it has also resurveyed the Monrovia Industrial Park and is now “reclaiming plots of land to purposely reallocate to Liberian enterprises” as a means of expanding access to key production activities, while ensuring that Liberians take charge of the nascent agro-food processing industry.
“We have engaged our partners for support to expand and modernize the park to make it more attractive for investment and to establish regional industrial hubs in Gbarnga, Ganta, and Voinjama.”
“We are collaborating with the Liberia Electricity Corporation (LEC) to construct a substation within the MIP,” Minister Modad disclosed. “This substation will provide operators with steady, affordable electricity, and the project is expected to be operational soon.”
Additionally, the Minister disclosed that funding has been secured through UNIDO to refurbish the Standard Lab, and work is ongoing to secure further funding to build a more expansive facility.
“We are also in talks with private companies to extend the services of the lab to include inspection of foods and other items imported into the country for safety and hygiene, and to ensure that they meet the quality standards for the market,” Minister Modad said.
He noted that the Ministry of Commerce has begun realigning the mandate of the Standards Authority as the umbrella institution to “regulate standards and other related institutions such as labs.”
The Standard Lab established more than a decade ago, has for years struggled to perform its core functions of promoting trade-facilitated services and competitiveness through certification of goods and services from Liberia.
Without full certification services, Liberian products face rejection or devaluation in international markets, reducing export revenues. Experts say the pending upgrade of the Standard Lab, if implemented, would enhance product quality control, ensuring competitiveness and compliance with global standards.
