By all accounts, a $1.8 billion concession and access agreement between the Government of Liberia and U.S.-owned Ivanhoe Atlantic should represent a monumental economic opportunity. The deal, which includes access to Liberia’s rail infrastructure, was announced with fanfare by the U.S. Embassy in Monrovia. Yet, the announcement has stirred more alarm than celebration among transparency advocates, including the Center for Transparency and Accountability in Liberia (CENTAL), and for good reason.
On Tuesday, July 8, 2025, CENTAL’s Program Manager, Atty. Gerald D. Yeakula, took to Facebook to publicly question the manner in which the agreement was reached and announced. “Why is President Boakai signing secret deals with a U.S. company?” Yeakula asked pointedly. “What happened to concession transparency as provided under the procurement and other laws? Why is the U.S. informing us about the deal first and not our own government?” These questions strike at the core of governance and accountability, two pillars President Boakai once campaigned on with vigor.
What makes this situation even more troubling is that the agreement appears to bypass the very laws designed to protect Liberians from opaque and exploitative deals. The Public Procurement and Concessions Act (PPCA) of Liberia requires competitive bidding and legislative ratification for all major concessions. While details remain scant, there is little evidence that this process was followed. No record has emerged of public consultations, legislative engagement, or a formal competitive bidding process, hallmarks of transparent and democratic concession management.
Instead, the Liberian public has been left to rely on a social media announcement from a foreign embassy to learn of a deal that involves their national rail and port infrastructure, critical assets that are both economically strategic and symbolically sovereign. This is not just a procedural misstep; it is a deep insult to national dignity and a clear breach of the public’s right to know.
The deal, reportedly worth $1.8 billion, represents nearly half of Liberia’s gross domestic product. Any agreement of this magnitude should have undergone rigorous scrutiny, including stakeholder engagement and parliamentary debate. That it was signed and disclosed without any of these essential checks raises serious questions about what the Boakai administration is hiding and why.
Even more troubling is the silence from relevant government agencies. The National Investment Commission (NIC), the Public Procurement and Concessions Commission (PPCC), and the Legislature have yet to publicly clarify their roles or knowledge of this deal. Was the NIC involved in the negotiation? Did the PPCC vet the procurement process? Was the Legislature consulted or completely sidelined? These are not rhetorical questions; they are demands for accountability.
The U.S. Embassy, for its part, has framed the deal as part of its broader strategy to move Liberia “from aid to trade.” The statement emphasized the investment’s alignment with President Boakai’s rail development agenda and Liberia’s multi-user infrastructure policy. Yet the logic of long-term national development cannot rest solely on opaque deals. If the Boakai administration believes this agreement is in the best interest of the country, it should have no problem presenting the full text of the contract to the public and the Legislature.
Critics of the former Weah administration often decried its tendency toward secrecy, especially in resource and infrastructure deals. But if the Boakai government continues down this path, it risks replicating the very failures it promised to correct. Transparency should not be optional; it is the only safeguard against corruption and abuse of power.
Civil society must not stay silent. Institutions like CENTAL have already raised the alarm, and more voices, particularly from the media, academia, and organized labor, must follow suit. The people of Liberia deserve more than lip service to transparency. They deserve full disclosure, inclusive participation, and respect for the rule of law.
This is not merely a political issue; it is a matter of national sovereignty and intergenerational responsibility. What is at stake is not just $1.8 billion, but the credibility of a government elected on the promise of reform.
President Boakai must act now to correct course. He should immediately release the full agreement, clarify the legal process it followed, and submit it to the Legislature for proper scrutiny. Anything less would confirm growing fears that Liberia’s resources are once again being traded behind closed doors, this time under the guise of international partnership and investment.
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