By Verity News Editorial Board
President Joseph Nyuma Boakai has been in power for 2.78 years as of now. That’s exactly 2 years, 9 months, and 12 days since January 22, 2024.
The World Bank has released a 60-page comprehensive report on Liberia titled “Beyond Growth.”
Verity News has thoroughly reviewed the 60-page October 2026 report and summarized it in just 2 pages, divided into two parts: (I) Passes (Positives) and (II) Failures (Challenges).
I) Where did Boakai pass (Positives)?
A. Growth, Institutional Reform, and Microeconomic Stability:
1) Real GDP growth rose from 4.0% (2024) to 5.1% (2025).
2) Industry grew 10.8%, with iron ore output up 42% and mining up 17.0%.
3) Services remained a steady anchor, adding 2.0 percentage points to growth.
4) Medium-term economic outlook is “cautiously positive”.
5) Growth is projected to average 5.3% a year in 2026–28, with per capita income growth of 3.1%.
6) Mount Coffee hydropower is planned to expand from 88 MW to about 130 MW by 2028.
7) Palm oil rebounded, and road improvements are starting to connect farmers to markets.
8)Headline inflation fell from its early-2025 peak to 4.0% year-on-year by December 2025, and food inflation turned negative (-1.7%).
9) The first half of 2026 averaged 4.5%, versus 11.8% a year earlier.
10) The Liberian dollar appreciated 9.6% year-on-year by June 2026.
11) The central bank (CBL) cut its policy rate cautiously, from 17.0% to 16.0% by July 2026.
12) Government actions helped to lower wholesale rice prices and reduce port handling fees.
13) Bank capital adequacy rose from 33.8% to 37.9%.
14) Liquidity is ample, at three times the regulatory minimum.
15) Non-performing loans fell from 22.2% to 12.6%.
16) Return on assets was 3.7%.
17) Exports rose from US$1.3bn to US$2.1bn, driven by gold and iron ore.
18) The current account deficit narrowed from 8.1% to 7.0% of GDP.
19) Reserves improved: net foreign assets rose 83%.
20) Remittances were strong, at 16.3% of GDP.
21) The deficit narrowed to 2.1% of GDP, and the primary balance improved from -1.4% to -0.4%.
22) Domestic revenue covered 69.3% of spending, up from 59.0%.
23) Public debt fell from 56.4% to 55.1% of GDP, projected at 53.6% by 2028 and 45.4% by 2031.
24) A VAT law is planned for early 2027.
25) The State-owned Enterprises Authority of Liberia (SEAL) Act was signed in February 2026, and the old Bureau of State Enterprises became SEAL on August 23, 2026. This creates a clearer, centralized oversight framework.
26) Audit coverage by the Auditor General (GAC) rose from 48% (2019) to 65% (2024).
27) The statements of the National Social Security Corporation (NASSCORP) received unqualified opinions.
28) The electricity utility (LEC) moved from an adverse to a qualified audit opinion in 2024. The report gives a practical six-point reform plan, in two phases (end-FY2027 and mid-2028).
29) A new household survey is the first since 2016 and will improve poverty data.
II) Where did Boakai fail and need to improve (Challenges)?
B. Growth without jobs and needed opportunities to improve lives and reduce poverty:
1) Extreme poverty rose from 34.6% to 36.1% despite 5.1% growth.
2) Growth is concentrated in capital-intensive mining enclaves that create few jobs.
3) Agriculture slowed to 2.6%, and manufacturing contracted by 2.8%.
4) 78% of workers are informally self-employed.
5) 86% of firms are micro-sized, and about 89% are single-person.
6) Only 2 new limited liability companies are formed per 10,000 adults, about 165 times below the global average.
7) Non-food inflation averaged 9.9% in 2025, up from 6.7%. It was driven by services, healthcare, and housing, which erode the incomes of wage earners.
8)Average headline inflation in 2025 (8.5%) was slightly above 2024 (8.3%).
9) Monetary control is limited by dollarization and by commodity-driven inflows.
10) Private credit grew only 4.8%, down from 8.3%.
11) Non-performing loans (NPLs: 12.6%) still exceed the 10% regulatory ceiling.
12) Banks serve formal, low-risk borrowers, while the economy is informal and high-risk.
13) Imports surged 48.8%, and food imports reached US$479m.
14) The current account deficit is projected to widen to about 18.1% of GDP on average in 2026–28.
15) Concessional financing may fall as donor priorities shift.
16) Consolidation relied on cutting capital spending from 8.5% to 5.7% of GDP.
17) External grants fell from 7.8% to 4.9% of GDP.
18) Liberia captures only 15–20% of mining’s fiscal value, versus 50–60% in peer countries.
19) The tax gap is about 3% of GDP, and tax expenditures cost 5–6%.
20) Liberia remains at high risk of overall public debt distress, with little buffer.
21) Active monitoring covers only 19 of 46 operational entities (State-Owned Enterprises and Entities).
22) Only about 13% of entities submit compliant quarterly reports.
23) Only 17 of 47 operational SOEs have had a completed audit since FY19, and adverse opinions dominate.
24) Reported data are inconsistent: audited and reported figures differ by more than 20% in 20% of cases.
25) Without roughly US$50m in grants over three years, LEC’s net loss would be about US$17–20m a year.
26) Debt analysis needs a standardized shock of 2% of GDP because true contingent liabilities are unknown.
