During his campaign trail in 2023, President Joseph Nyumah Boakai promised to revise the CTN deal and ensure that Liberia gets its fair share far beyond 3% in revenue. After fifteen months in power, the CTN Deal has been revised with a 40% revenue sharing agreement for GOL amid reduced fees from US$105 as CTN fee per TEU to US$95 per TEU and quarterly monitoring to ensure full compliance. A jump from 3% to 40% constitutes a 37% boost in revenue, which places the Government of Liberia in a better position than it was after several weeks of negotiations and bargains.
Thorough Negotiation
After weeks of negotiation and through revision of the CTN Deal by key stakeholders, including the Ministry of Finance for Development Planning, the Liberia Revenue Authority, the National Port Authority, and other business actors, the Government of Liberia and GTMS Liberia Incorporated sealed a 47-page agreement on March 10, 2025 granting GTMS the exclusive right to provide CTN services in Liberia, including procuring and installing equipment, setting up and commissioning of CTN services in accordance with Good Industry Practice, filling, approving, and controlling the Cargo Tracking Note via electronic management system, and building a central Cargo Database using information, provided by Cargo Tracking Note from the connected Ports.
Oversight
Unlike the 2018 CTN Deal, the new 2025 Deal prioritizes stringent oversight to ensure that every provision in the agreement is fully adhered to. The agreement will allow the Government of Liberia to gain more money, and importers and business actors will pay fewer fees under a more secure and effective tracking system in compliance with international standards.
What is in it for Liberia?
The new agreement has replaced an ambiguous throughput benchmark model with a fixed revenue sharing model (GOL 40% and GTMS 60%). The 40% for the Government of Liberia will increase to 45% after the first five years of the agreement.
Unlike the old deal, the new agreement has reduced charges from US$105 as CTN fee per a twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) to a revised cost of US$95, constituting about 10% charge reduction. The 2018 Agreement allowed funds to be saved in an escrow account of a foreign bank. The new amendment changed that provision and made it compulsory for all payments relating to CTN services to be domiciled and banked in only Liberia, representing a significant policy shift in savings.
No Tax Waiver
The 2018 agreement allowed hundreds of thousands of USD in tax waivers. However, the new deal completely removes all tax waivers and exemptions, which compels GTMS to pay their taxes fully in line with tax laws and regulations. Furthermore, GMTS under the new agreement will submit a comprehensive staffing and incentive plan within six (6) months, allowing Liberian nationals to occupy key positions in GTMS with improved conditions for all employees, covering transportation, insurance, and other work-related incentives. The new deal also emphasizes Liberianization, training, and capacity-building for Liberians, corporate social responsibility, and an effective mechanism to monitor GTMS quarterly.
With more to gain in this new agreement, policymakers and business stakeholders, including importers, have expressed satisfaction over its terms and conditions, noting that Liberia stands to benefit far more than it benefited from the 2018 CTN Deal.
“From 3% of revenue to 40% of revenue for government. 45% in the last 5 years. Also, CTN is required to pay the government 20% corporate tax on its 60%. No tax exemption. Port users are paying lower fees than they paid in the past. Trading is secured and tracked in compliance with standards. The agreement will be published after it is notarized. Transparency,” Development Specialist Ambullai Mamey said.
With the 2025 CTN Deal in full swing, the Government of Liberia and Importers are poised to gain according to multiple business actors in the sector.
