Amid heightened joblessness and increased hardship in Liberia, the latest EITI report as released by the Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) shows that Bea Mountain had 1,110 permanent foreign employees during the period.
“The report reveals that Bea Mountain gold export value amounted to Six Hundred Ninety-One Million Two Hundred Fifty-Four Thousand Five Hundred Thirty-Nine United States Dollars (US$691,254,539.00). The report also reveals that total employment in the extractive sector for the period was 19,345. Of this amount, 16,602 were males, while 2,743 were females. Further analysis shows that Bea Mountain had 1,110 permanent foreign employees during the period.” Mr. Jeffery Yates, Executive Director, LEITI.
Bea Mountain Mining Corporation, Liberia’s largest gold exporter, earned hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars, nearing a billion in export value, from gold production in 2023, yet communities in Grand Cape Mount County, where the company operates, continue to grapple with poverty and a lack of basic social services, including safe drinking water, quality education, and reliable healthcare.
These concerns were brought into sharp focus during the official launch of Liberia’s 16th Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) Report, the LEITI Data Portal, and the Updated Simplified Contract Matrix at a press conference held on Friday, December 12, 2025, in Monrovia.
According to the LEITI report, Bea Mountain alone exported 12,146 kilograms of gold in 2023, valued at approximately US$653.6 million, accounting for more than 56 percent of Liberia’s total mining exports for the year.
Additional figures in the report place Bea Mountain’s total gold export value at US$691.25 million.
In total, Liberia’s extractive sector exported commodities worth US$1.35 billion in 2023.
Gold exports amounted to US$660.34 million, while iron ore exports reached US$482.7 million.
Bea Mountain Mining Corporation and ArcelorMittal together contributed over 93 percent of the country’s total mining exports, up from 91 percent in 2022-further underscoring the dominance of a few major players in the sector.
Yet, despite these massive earnings, residents of Grand Cape Mount County say the wealth generated from gold mining has not translated into improved living conditions.
Communities surrounding the Bea Mountain concession area reportedly still struggle with limited access to clean drinking water, overcrowded and under-resourced schools, and poorly equipped healthcare facilities, forcing many residents to travel long distances for basic medical care.
Employment data in the report shows that the extractive sector employed 19,345 people in 2023, including 16,602 men and 2,743 women. Bea Mountain alone recorded 1,110 permanent foreign employees, raising persistent concerns about local employment opportunities, skills transfer, and long-term benefits for host communities.
Speaking at the December 12 press conference, the Multi-Stakeholder Steering Group (MSG) of LEITI emphasized transparency, accountability, and improved governance of Liberia’s natural resources.
However, civil society groups argue that transparency must go beyond publishing figures and instead result in visible social and economic development in mining-affected areas.
“The figures point to enormous wealth,” a civil society representative said following the launch. “But the people living in Grand Cape Mount remain poor, without safe water, decent schools, or functioning hospitals. That contradiction is the real issue.”
The report also identified suspicious transactions involving the Liberia Petroleum Regulatory Authority, ArcelorMittal, and the Liberia Revenue Authority, which the MSG has referred to the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission for further investigation.
As Liberia heads toward EITI validation in January 2026, pressure is increasing on both the government and concession companies to ensure that the country’s mineral wealth benefits ordinary citizens.
For communities in Grand Cape Mount County, where gold worth hundreds of millions of dollars is extracted each year, the expectation is clear: resource wealth must translate into better lives, not deeper poverty.
