Monrovia – Liberia’s mining sector is expanding faster than the institutions meant to police it. That is the warning at the heart of CENTAL’s latest intervention. Executive Director Anderson Miamen told a Monrovia roundtable on Thursday that weak enforcement, bribery and hidden ownership erode the sector’s promise. The diagnosis is hardly new. His remedy is pointed: amended mining laws, a dedicated anti-corruption court and community monitoring. The government is courting mining investment and promising communities a share of the returns. Yet citizens still struggle to see who owns the concessions and where the revenue goes.
The Center for Transparency and Accountability in Liberia (CENTAL) is calling for stronger legal, institutional and anti-corruption measures in the country’s mining sector, warning that weak enforcement of mining laws, bribery, underreporting and limited transparency in beneficial ownership continue to create governance challenges in an industry central to Liberia’s economic development.
CENTAL Executive Director Anderson Miamen made the call on Thursday, October 1, 2026, while delivering a presentation on mining, corruption and mitigation measures at a Civil Society and Communities Roundtable on Mining Sector Reform in Monrovia.
According to Miamen, these challenges pose serious threats to citizens and society, which include poverty, underdevelopment, poor public services, high unemployment, environmental pollution and human rights violations.
“It also put threats to government which include, bad reputation, limited revenue collection, unfunded service sector, threat to re-election bid, criminal prosecution, and low investors,” he added.
The roundtable was organized in partnership with the Sustainable Development Institute (SDI), Integrity Watch Liberia, Integrated Development and Learning, Civil Society Independent Forest Monitors, Medica Liberia, and Sustain Earth and Equity Defenders (SEED).
It brought together local stakeholders and other actors to discuss challenges facing the mining sector and to develop recommendations aimed at promoting more inclusive and sustainable development.
Enforcement at the Center
Miamen identified weak enforcement of mining-related laws as one of the central problems requiring attention. Liberia has established legal and regulatory frameworks governing the industry, but their effectiveness, he indicated, depends heavily on enforcement, institutional capacity and the ability of public agencies to ensure that companies and other actors comply with established requirements.
He also pointed to corruption, including bribery, as a concern affecting the sector, and named underreporting and inadequate transparency around beneficial ownership as areas needing stronger safeguards.
Beneficial ownership transparency matters particularly in an extractive industry where substantial financial interests can be tied to concessions, contracts and commercial relationships. Knowing who ultimately owns or controls companies operating in the sector helps strengthen accountability and allows the public and regulators to better understand the interests behind mining operations.
Proposed Reforms
Miamen proposed amendments to Liberia’s mining laws to bring the legal framework in line with present-day realities.
Among the measures he recommended are anti-corruption mechanisms: the development and implementation of mechanisms designed to establish stronger checks and balances, reducing opportunities for abuse by tightening controls around decision-making, financial transactions and regulatory processes.
Others include a dedicated anti-corruption court, a specialized court to accelerate the handling of corruption cases.
The proposal reflects wider concern about the pace at which such cases move through the justice system and the need for a body able to handle complex economic and financial offenses more efficiently.
The CENTAL boss also recommended a community monitoring body, an inclusive monitoring mechanism for the mining sector, giving communities a structured avenue to take part in overseeing mining activities and to raise concerns about developments affecting their land, livelihoods and environment.
Reform Amid Expansion
The recommendations come as Liberia seeks to expand mining activity while improving governance, investment conditions and the contribution of natural resources to national development.
Iron ore and other minerals continue to provide opportunities for investment, government revenue, employment and infrastructure, and the government has been emphasizing greater value addition and local participation in the minerals sector.
But growth in mining raises the stakes for oversight. The question is not only how much mineral wealth Liberia can extract, but how effectively it can manage the revenues, environmental consequences, community relationships and economic opportunities that come with extraction.
The proposals also arrive as the country pursues greater transparency in extractive-sector governance. The Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative’s (LEITI) 2026 work plan includes activities on contract transparency, beneficial ownership, anti-corruption, extractive-sector reporting and public disclosure of extractive revenues.
The government has also been working to ensure that mining revenues deliver tangible benefits to communities.
In August 2026, the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) convened stakeholders to discuss implementation of a US$5 million (L$911.8 million) annual Community Development Fund under ArcelorMittal Liberia’s Third Mineral Development Agreement.
For civil society organizations, however, the effectiveness of such initiatives depends on transparency, monitoring and meaningful participation by affected communities.
The SDI has previously documented concerns from mining communities about access to information, community benefits, employment, infrastructure and environmental impacts, and has stressed the importance of communities taking part meaningfully in natural-resource decision-making.
A Shared Agenda
Outlining the objectives of the roundtable, SEED Executive Director Loretta A. Pope Kai said the gathering was meant to bring together civil society, local communities, women and other stakeholders to assess key challenges in Liberia’s mining sector and build a shared agenda for “inclusive, transparent, accountable, equitable, and sustainable mining governance in Liberia.”
“We are also here today to assess economic, environmental, social, and human rights challenges in the mining sector, and identify and prioritize critical reform to improve mining governance and ensure greater benefits for Liberia and mining-affected communities,” she said.
Pope Kai said the roundtable also aims to elevate community voices and document the concerns and priorities of affected communities.
“The event also seeks to examine gender equality and gender-based violence within the mining sector and identify measures to strengthen women’s rights, participation, protection, and access to benefits,” she added.
From Extraction to Accountability
Miamen’s presentation adds another voice to the continuing national conversation about how Liberia can turn its mineral wealth into broad-based development while strengthening safeguards against corruption.
The challenge, as the recommendations frame it, is increasingly about moving from extraction to accountable resource governance. Laws must be enforced. Ownership information must be transparent. Revenue flows must be traceable. Corruption allegations must receive credible investigation and prosecution, and affected communities must have meaningful channels to monitor operations and seek redress.
As Liberia continues to attract investment into its mining sector, CENTAL’s recommendations place responsibility on both government institutions and other stakeholders to ensure that economic opportunity is matched by accountability. The country’s mineral wealth can generate substantial economic value, but the strength of the institutions managing it will determine how much of that value becomes lasting national development.
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