The Executive Governor of the Central Bank of Liberia (CBL), Henry F. Saamoi, has underscored the urgent need for improved roads and electricity infrastructure as critical to unlocking Liberia’s economic growth. He made the remarks when he and CBL senior staff met with the visiting Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) mission, currently assessing Liberia’s development priorities.
Governor Saamoi told the MCC mission that poor road networks and limited electricity remained major barriers to national progress, holding back the growth of small businesses, hindering access to financial services in rural counties, and slowing private sector growth. He noted that where maintenance had been carried out recently, farmers had been able to bring produce to market, helping moderate food prices and curbing inflation.
He applauded MCC’s past contributions under its first compact, which supported electricity expansion, partial financing of the Mt. Coffee Hydro Plant, and road maintenance planning. But he emphasized that infrastructure gaps continue to constrain the private sector—the real driver of jobs and economic empowerment.
“Liberia’s economy must be in the hands of Liberians,” Governor Saamoi said. “We need stronger infrastructure and inclusive financing so that our businesses—not just foreigners—create jobs and drive growth,” he added.
Expanding MSME Financing
Governor Saamoi highlighted progress under the Liberia Investment Finance and Trade (LIFT) Project, a US$40 million initiative jointly implemented by CBL and the Ministry of Commerce & Industry with World Bank support.
The first phase of the project’s US$6M Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) Line of Credit injected over US$2.3 million into 112 Liberian businesses across eight counties. Significantly, 54% of beneficiaries were women-owned or women-led enterprises, surpassing gender targets and enabling entrepreneurs to expand businesses, create jobs, and strengthen household incomes.
The Governor highlighted the need for affordable medium-to-long-term financing for critical sectors of the economy–agriculture and manufacturing, pointing out that the share of credit to these sectors is currently very low. He maintained that there are opportunities for development finance institutions, including those in the US to partner with the financial institutions in Liberia to avail the needed long-term financing to Liberian businesses. Additionally, Governor Saamoi said that establishing de-risking mechanisms such as a guarantee scheme would be very critical in promoting lending to MSMEs.
Tackling Financial Sector Challenges
The Governor also pointed to challenges that hinder lending, including weak rule of law, which undermined loan recovery and discourages banks from extending credit. He reaffirmed CBL’s commitment to expanding financial inclusion. Already, under the CBL financial education program, 9,364 people have been trained across six counties(Grand Gedeh, Lofa, Nimba, Bong, Margibi and Grand Cape Mount) with women making up 58% of participants.
He also spoke of Advancing digital finance–launching the National Electronic Payment System to integrate all banks nationwide and driving mobile interoperability: working with Orange and MTN to enable cross-network mobile money transactions. He also mentioned that the CBL is strategically considering diversifying its reserves allocation with particular emphasis on gold and that Liberia may be seeking strategic partnerships with USA companies interested in the mining sector. Governor Saamoi also informed the MCC mission that Liberia is considering the establishment of an agricultural lending bank to scale up access to financing agriculture activities.
The Executive Governor set bold targets, pledging to bring 75% of adult Liberians into the formal financial sector by 2029, and the maintenance of enhanced macroeconomic stability and well as ensuring the reform of the current CBL’s Act to strengthen the autonomy and independence of the Bank.
MCC Engagement
The MCC delegation, led by Carrie Monaghan, Managing Director for Africa, thanked Governor Saamoi and CBL leadership for their perspectives, noting that Liberia’s progress and challenges will inform the ongoing assessment of binding constraints to growth for the West African nation.
