Liberia: Finance Minister-Designate Pledges Quick Action to Boost Economic Activities

Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan, the Minister of Finance and Development Planning-designate, has outlined a comprehensive plan to accelerate economic activities and improve revenue generation, with a particular focus on the mining sector.

In his confirmation hearing before the Ways, Means, Finance, and Budget Committee of the Liberian Senate,  Ngafuan acknowledged the daunting challenges ahead but expressed his determination to take “quick actions to make things better” while recognizing that some of the issues are complex and will require a multi-stakeholder, time-intensive approach.

Among his key priorities, Ngafuan highlighted the need to effectively allocate resources by prioritizing the government’s development agenda, known as the ARREST Agenda for Inclusive Development (AAID). He pledged to ensure that the national budget for the fiscal year 2025 is aligned with the AAID’s top priorities.

To generate increased resources and revenue for development, Ngafuan outlined several strategies, including:

1. Addressing the binding constraints to economic growth, particularly in the energy and infrastructure sectors.
2. Supporting the “Liberians Feed Yourselves Agenda: National Agricultural Development Plan (NADP) 2024-2030” to unlock the potential of the agriculture sector.
3. Improving revenue generation from key sectors, such as mining, by conducting a comprehensive review and taking appropriate actions to unlock their full potential.
4. Adequately supporting the Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA) and other revenue-generating agencies to leverage technology and digitization to close revenue leakages.
5. Protecting and supporting value-addition and “Made in Liberia” initiatives through appropriate incentives and protection.

Ngafuan also emphasized the need to enhance the credibility and efficiency of the budget process, improve compliance with financial management laws and regulations, review the government’s pay harmonization program, ensure prudent and disciplined debt management, and actively support Liberia’s climate action agenda.

The Finance Minister-designate said  he does not have all the answers but pledged to leverage the collective wisdom and contribution of the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning workforce to succeed in his mission of serving the Liberian people.

– Festus Poquie