President Joseph Boakai told delegates at the 44th Inter-Governmental Action Group against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA) Technical Plenary that Liberia is stepping up its fight against money laundering, terrorist financing and illicit financial flows, and has strengthened domestic institutions to meet regional and global antifinance crime standards.
Speaking at the Farmington Hotel on Thursday, President Boakai said his administration has reinforced legal and institutional frameworks, closed systemic gaps that previously weakened enforcement, and prioritized support for the Financial Intelligence Agency (FIA).
He said the government is committed to ensuring the FIA has the independence, resources, technology and operational capacity necessary to gather intelligence, support investigations, enforce compliance and carry out asset recovery.
Key commitments outlined by the President include full implementation of FATF recommendations, addressing deficiencies identified in Liberia’s Second Round Mutual Evaluation, strengthening supervisory frameworks across reporting sectors, improving beneficial ownership transparency, and enhancing interagency coordination through a functional Inter Ministerial Committee and Financial Crimes Working Group.
The speech emphasized regional cooperation, with Boakai noting criminals do not respect borders and calling for shared intelligence, harmonized laws and joint capacity building across ECOWAS member states.
He also highlighted emerging threats that require attention, including cyber enabled financial crime, proliferation financing and the misuse of new technologies by illicit networks.
Business and financial sector observers said Liberia’s commitments, if implemented and sustained, could improve the country’s compliance profile with GIABA and FATF standards — a development that can strengthen correspondent banking relationships, reduce derisking, and improve prospects for foreign investment and cross border trade.
However, analysts cautioned that measurable progress in mutual evaluations, prosecutions and asset recovery will be critical to translate policy promises into improved market confidence.
