Six (6) Executive Directors of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group will lead a delegation to undertake a consultation mission to Liberia from March 20—24, 2023.
The consultation mission, which is part of the annual work program of the Executive Directors, is aimed at visiting selected regional member countries of the Bank Group.
The delegation will have the opportunity to exchange views with the government, development partners and other stakeholders on issues related to the country’s development trajectory as well as the Bank’s cooperation with Liberia.
In line with the mission’s consideration, the delegation will meet with His Excellency, Dr. George M. Weah, President of the Republic of Liberia.
They are also expected to hold meetings with relevant government agencies, as well as institutions in the private sector.
Agencies of government they are expected to meet with include the ministries of Finance and Development Planning, Public Works, Mines and Energy, Agriculture, Gender, Youth and Sports, Commerce, and Agriculture. The delegation will also meet the National Legislature, the Central Bank of Liberia, the National Investment Commission, Liberia Revenue Authority, and National Fisheries and Aquaculture Authority (NaFAA), as well as integrity institutions.
Additionally, meetings have also been scheduled with the Liberia Business Association, the Liberia Chamber of Commerce, commercial banks, university students, the informal sector, civil society, women and youth groups, and the Liberia Marketing Association.
The delegation will also meet development partners, including heads of mission, agencies and ambassadors.
The Bank’s current priorities for Liberia are guided by the Country Strategy Paper (CSP) covering the period 2019—2023. The CSP is anchored on two re-enforcing priority areas: (i) Economic diversification through improved transport and energy infrastructure; and (ii) Improving economic governance and enhancing private sector development.
The CSP is informed by the government’s development strategy, the “Pro-Poor Agenda for Prosperity and Development (PAPD 2018-23)”, which has prioritized infrastructure development and job creation.
Liberia was instrumental in the creation of the African Development Bank (AfDB) and is also a founding member of the Bank as its vision bearer when the late Dr. Romeo A. Horton crafted the vision for the formation of the Bank. Having joined in 1964, the Bank remains one of Liberia’s key development partners.
The Bank’s current portfolio in Liberia comprises 14 ongoing and recently approved operations with cumulative commitments, amounting to US$376.96 million, dominated by road transport and energy infrastructure.
Since it started development activities in Liberia in 1968, the African Development Bank’s assistance has helped to respond to some of the key drivers of fragility, including weak state institutions and human capital, inadequate basic social services and infrastructure, food and nutrition insecurity, limited good governance and accountability, and slow economic revival.
At the AfDB, Liberia is administered within the same constituency as The Gambia, Ghana Sierra Leone and Sudan. The constituency is currently represented at the AfDB Board by Executive Director, Rufus N. Darkortey of Liberia, who will be part of the mission.