By Festus Poquie
The International Monetary Fund has cut Liberia’s 2025 growth forecast to 4.6% from 5.6% projected in February, according to an IMF Executive Board report posted on the Fund’s website.
The reduction — a one percentage-point downgrade or roughly an 18% decline in the projected growth rate follows the second review of Liberia’s program under the IMF’s External Credit Facility.
The Fund said real GDP growth in 2024 was 4.0%, down from 4.6% in 2023. Inflation also accelerated sharply, rising to 10.7% in 2025 from 8.2% the previous year, the report noted.
Despite improvements in fiscal management and policy reforms, the IMF cited persistent inflation and other headwinds.
The outlook brightens in 2026, however, with the Fund projecting growth of 5.4% driven by expected expansion in mining activity—particularly gold and iron ore and a recovery in agricultural production.
Full details of the second review remain limited: Liberian authorities requested that the IMF not publish the complete content of the review. The Fund said it will release the staff assessment of the economy after 28 days.
IMF directors urged Liberia to continue implementing structural reforms to unlock growth potential and strengthen climate resilience. They emphasized intensified anti-corruption measures and improvements to the country’s governance framework to ensure institutional integrity.
Directors also called for robust debt management to avoid the accumulation of new external arrears and recommended sustained efforts to preserve fiscal discipline, bolster financial stability, strengthen public governance, and support private sector development to raise living standards and reduce poverty.
