Though Liberia has passed the 2026 MCC Scorecard, one of President Boakai’s biggest challenges, which should be a call to action, remains massive joblessness. Multiple reports have confirmed that his government has failed to deliver job opportunities for Liberians.
An October 2025 World Bank report said, “Liberia’s economy failed to create quality jobs.” Liberia has also failed on “Employment Opportunity” with a score of 0.167, according to the 2026 MCC Scorecard.
Reading the Indicators
Each year, every MCC candidate country receives a scorecard assessing performance in three policy categories: Ruling Justly, Investing in People, and Encouraging Economic Freedom. While Liberia performed well in areas such as Control of Corruption, Accountability, and Personal Freedom, the country’s poor performance in Employment Opportunity has raised concerns about the state of its labor market and economic inclusion.
The MCC data show that Liberia’s Employment Opportunity score sits far below the median for its income group, reflecting deep challenges in job creation, labor rights protection, and inclusive economic participation. The country’s per capita income stands at $760, compared to a category median of $2,155, underscoring the limited income opportunities available to most citizens.
Persistent Joblessness
Liberia’s economy continues to struggle in creating quality employment opportunities despite moderate signs of stabilization, according to the World Bank’s Sixth Liberia Economic Update released Tuesday.
The report, titled “From Stabilization to Inclusion, Pathways to Resilient Growth and Productive Jobs,” highlights persistent structural weaknesses that limit the country’s ability to generate productive and sustainable employment. It finds that Liberia’s private sector remains dominated by informal and micro-sized firms with low employment capacity, hindering broader economic transformation.
The failure to create quality jobs has kept a large share of the population in vulnerable employment, particularly among youth and women, who face the highest unemployment and underemployment rates.
“Achieving sustained and inclusive growth requires confronting Liberia’s employment challenges and maintaining macroeconomic stability,” said Georgia Wallen, World Bank Country Manager for Liberia. “Structural weaknesses in the labor market and the private sector continue to constrain the country’s growth potential. Tackling these barriers is essential not only for reducing poverty but also for sustaining macroeconomic gains through a stronger domestic tax base, greater resilience to external shocks, and enhanced social cohesion.”
A Call for Economic Transformation
The World Bank proposes a four-pronged strategy to unlock Liberia’s employment potential:
Stimulating labor demand through investment in agro-processing and light manufacturing
Supporting firm growth via improved regulatory, financial, and technological systems
Modernizing the business environment with coordinated reforms and stronger public-private partnerships
Expanding labor participation through targeted interventions focused on skills development, youth employment, and gender inclusion.
“Transformation of the country’s employment status should be complemented by long-term investments in education and human capital, improved market access for local firms, and targeted incentives for those offering wage employments,” said Gweh Gaye Tarwo, World Bank Country Economist and lead author of the report. “Aligning industrial and labor policies with spatial development priorities and value-chain potential will be essential to drive inclusive job creation and reduce regional disparities.”
The Path Forward
The report calls on policymakers to shift focus from short-term stabilization toward building an inclusive and resilient economy capable of generating decent, productive jobs for all Liberians.
While passing the MCC Scorecard marks an important milestone for Liberia, the accompanying red flag on Employment Opportunity, reinforced by the World Bank’s findings, serves as a stark reminder that without meaningful job creation, economic gains will remain fragile and inequality will deepen.
As President Boakai’s administration moves into its next phase, the challenge of turning economic stability into real employment opportunities will define not just the government’s success but the future livelihood of millions of Liberians.
