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Liberia touts Japanese backing, but past pledges temper optimism

  • Writer: Michael T
    Michael T
  • 4 days ago
  • 2 min read
L-R, Finance Minister Augustine Ngafuan, President Joseph Boakai & Foreign Minister Sara Beysolow Nyanti
L-R, Finance Minister Augustine Ngafuan, President Joseph Boakai & Foreign Minister Sara Beysolow Nyanti

Monrovia, Aug. 28 — Liberia’s Foreign Ministry has rolled out a raft of promises from Japan after this month’s Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 9), hailing commitments on roads, ports, agriculture, and youth training. The package, said to include feasibility studies for a Monrovia airport corridor, port modernization, scholarships, and health investment, was presented as a breakthrough in ties with Tokyo.


The pledges come under Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s renewed Africa drive, which prioritises private sector-led growth and resilience in the face of climate change. Liberia is also eyeing access to a $5.5 billion funding window for African businesses and Japan’s impact investment fund.


Notwithstanding, veterans of past summits urge caution. TICAD communiqués have often promised more than they delivered, with projects stuck in study phases or tied up in slow-moving bureaucracies. Japanese investors, wary of risk, remain thin on the ground in Liberia compared with Chinese contractors or Western aid.


Liberia, however, is betting big on follow-through. The government says 500 young Liberians will be trained under Japan’s Africa-wide skills programme, referral hospitals will see technical upgrades, and climate-resilient rice trials will begin in Bong and Lofa counties. Japan has also shown interest in helping Liberia shore up its eroding coastline.


A $72 million Liberian funding proposal is still under review in Tokyo. Meanwhile, Monrovia says it will set up a special desk to monitor TICAD pledges.


For one of West Africa’s poorest nations, the promise of Japanese cooperation is enticing. Whether it proves more than another list of well-intentioned pledges depends on execution—something Liberia and its partners have struggled with before.




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