In a historic step toward deepening Liberia’s global economic engagement, President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, Sr. has officially launched the Liberia Trade and Investment Office in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The milestone event marks a key pillar of President Boakai’s broader agenda to transform Liberia’s economy and mobilize the country’s diaspora for national development.
The office, located at 325-41 Chestnut Street in the heart of Philadelphia’s historic commercial corridor, is set to serve as a strategic hub for trade facilitation, investment promotion, and diaspora engagement. It will provide vital support to U.S. businesses and investors interested in exploring opportunities in Liberia’s growing sectors such as agribusiness, energy, digital services, light manufacturing, and sustainable tourism.
Although President Boakai is on an official working visit to the United States at the invitation of U.S. President Donald J. Trump, he appointed Ambassador Charles Snetter, Ambassador At-Large, to represent him at the launch and deliver a keynote at the Liberia-U.S. Business and Trade Conference. Snetter will convey President Boakai’s message of “partnership, progress, and shared prosperity.”
“This initiative signals a new era in Liberia’s trade diplomacy,” President Boakai said through an Executive Mansion release on Wednesday. “We are creating a bridge to connect Liberian innovation and resources with American expertise and capital, while also calling on the diaspora to help build a more prosperous Liberia.”
The two-day conference features sessions on investment-ready projects and value-added exports under the “Made in Liberia” initiative, along with financing opportunities from institutions such as the U.S. Export-Import Bank and the Development Finance Corporation. One session, “Mobilizing Liberians Abroad,” will spotlight scalable public-private partnership models in infrastructure, agriculture, and broadband development.
According to the Executive Mansion, highlight of the conference will be the signing of a landmark Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of Liberia, the Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA), and the Laborers’ District Council of Philadelphia. The agreement aims to boost workforce development and technical skills exchange between the two nations.
In addition to Ambassador Snetter, Liberia’s delegation includes Ambassador Dudley Gibson-Schwarz, Liberia’s Trade and Investment Representative to the United States, and senior officials from the Ministry of Commerce, the National Investment Commission, and the Ministry of Finance. The delegation will also tour the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority to explore opportunities in logistics and export expansion.
The opening of the Liberia Trade and Investment Office represents a tangible expression of President Boakai’s push to diversify Liberia’s economy, strengthen international partnerships, and empower the diaspora to play a central role in the country’s development.
