Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan was born on April 7, 1970 at the Old Maternity Center on Capitol Bye Pass, Monrovia, Liberia.
Education & Professional Training
He began his kindergarten education at the A.B. Tolbert Elementary School in Logan Town, Monrovia. He acquired his junior high education from Boatswain Junior High School on Jamaica Road, Monrovia and his high school education from the Booker Washington Institute (BWI) where he graduated in 1989 as Valedictorian with a diploma in Accounting. In the same year, Ngafuan earned a Merit Award for Academic Excellence from the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) for being one of the top 3 students in Liberia who topped the WAEC exams administered nationwide in 1989.
He graduated from the University of Liberia (UL) in February 2000 with a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree in Accounting and Economics (summa cum laude). At the University of Liberia, Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan was elected President of the University of Liberia Student Union (ULSU) in April 1998, leading nearly 12,000 students of the University until his graduation in February 2000.
In June 2004, Ngafuan earned a Master in Business Administration (MBA) degree in Finance and Accounting from the William E. Simon School of Business of the University of Rochester, Rochester, New York, USA.
Ngafuan has earned several professional training certificates, notably:
· A certificate in Central Banking from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York in November 2005
· A Certificate in Public Financial Management (PFM) in July 2007 from the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, Massachusetts, USA.
· A Certificate in Leading Economic Growth in February 2012 from the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, Massachusetts, USA.
· A Certificate in Project Management (April 2018), Cambridge Center of Excellence Accra, Ghana
· A certificate in Executive Presence & Influence: Persuasive Leadership Development in August 2022 from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, USA.
PROFESSIONAL LIFE
As an integral requirement for earning a diploma in Accounting from BWI, Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan began his professional life at the Liberia Petroleum Refining Company (LPRC) where he did a six-month on the job training in the Accounts Section of LPRC from November 1988 to April 1989.
In April 2000, Ngafuan was among honored graduates of the University of Liberia recruited by the newly established Central Bank of Liberia (CBL) under the Executive Governor Elie Saleeby. He served as Bank Examiner in the Supervision Department of the CBL and was later promoted to Banking Analyst in the Domestic Banking Department.
Upon his return from graduate studies in July 2004, he served for nearly six months as a Professional Trainee assigned in the Office of then CBL Governor Charles Greene. He was later appointed as Head of International Banking at the CBL, a position he held until his appointment in January 2006 by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf as Director General of the erstwhile Bureau of the Budget, becoming the youngest member (35 years old) of President Sirleaf’s first Cabinet.
In August 2008, Ngafuan was appointed Minister of Finance by President Sirleaf, replacing Antoinette M. Sayeh who had transitioned to a top position with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). During the second term of President Sirleaf, Ngafuan was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs & Dean of the Cabinet, a position he held until October 2015.
From May 2019 to December 2020, Ngafuan served on the Board of Ecobank Liberia Limited (ELL). He chaired the Board Audit Committee and also served as a member of the Board’s Credit Committee.
In December 2020, Ngafuan was competitively hired by the African Development Bank (AfDB) to serve as AfDB’s Country Manager for Uganda, managing the Bank’s nearly US$2.2 billion portfolio in the country.
Highlights/Accomplishments as Minister of Finance
· Served as Liberia’s Governor to the Board of Governors of the World Bank, the African Development Bank (AfDB), and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), (August 2008- February 2012).
· Chaired the Constituency of the AfDB comprising Liberia, Ghana, Gambia, Sudan and Sierra Leone (between 2010 – early 2012).
· He spearheaded Liberia’s march to the HIPC Completion Point in 2010, triggering the cancellation of nearly US$5 billion in external debt, including a 100% debt cancellation by the Paris Club (France, UK, US, Germany, Japan, etc). This remarkable feat restored Liberia’s right to borrow, which had hitherto been suspended because of Liberia’s huge debt burden that stood at more than 700% of GDP. HIPC Completion also allowed Liberia to redirect funds that would have gone to debt service towards essential development projects and services.
· Led the mobilization of the nearly US$250 million from the World Bank and other multilateral and bilateral donors that was used to pave the Redlight-Gbarnga -Guinea border road.
· Led Liberia’s efforts that mobilized the required funds from the World Bank and other partners for the pavement of the Monrovia-Buchanan Highway.
· Ngafuan initiated the mobilization of funds for the pavement of the Gbarnga-Mendicorma Highway. After securing a US$12 million debt cancellation from the Kuwaiti Fund in Kuwait City in 2011, Ngafuan secured a US$2 million grant from the Kuwaiti Fund for the feasibility studies for the Gbarnga-Medicorma Highway. He also secured the commitment of the Kuwaiti Fund to bring on board a consortium of Arab funders including the Saudi Fund and BADEA to mobilize external financing for the road project.
· Ngafuan led the process that finalized the drafting of the much-touted Public Financial Management (PFM) Law of Liberia and worked with the National Legislature to ensure its passage in 2009. The passage of the PFM Law was subsequently followed by the drafting and adoption of accompanying regulations in 2010 to support the PFM Law.
· Supervised the establishment of the Internal Audit Secretariat (IAS) that later became the Internal Audit Agency IAA),
· Ensured the adoption for the first time ever of accounting standards by the government- the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS);
· Led the introduction of the Direct Deposit Payment system which entailed the payment of salaries of government employees through direct credits to their bank accounts at commercials banks instead of through the issuance of physical checks.
· Led the process that culminated in the introduction in 2011 of the Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS) to automate government’s budgeting and expenditure processes.
· His tenure as Minister of Finance was characterized by year-on-year increment in the salaries of civil servants.
Highlights/Accomplishments as Minister of Foreign Affairs
· Successfully finalized several important bilateral agreements which significantly impact economic development in Liberia, notably led the negotiations and signed on behalf of the Liberian government the following:
o the US$60 million grant agreement with the Government of the People’s Republic of China for the construction of the Ministerial Complex to house a number of government ministries and agencies.
o a US$50-million-dollar first-tranche funding agreement with the Japanese Government for the expansion of the Somalia Drive to a four-lane, paved expressway.
· Concluded a number of political and economic cooperation frameworks with a number of countries and bilateral partners, notable among which were the US-Liberia Partnership Dialogue, Japan-Liberia Partnership Dialogue, and the EU-Liberia Political Dialogue.
· Effectively represented the President of Liberia at the UN Security Council, the UN General Assembly, the African Union, and with bilateral partners in successfully making the case for scaled up financial and logistical support during Liberia’s fight against the deadly Ebola Virus Disease; also valiantly advocated against the blanket stigmatization of Liberians during the Ebola crisis.
· Headed several Liberian government delegations at Ministerial and Summit meetings of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union (AU), and the United Nations (UN).
· Actively participated and contributed to preparatory meetings and retreats of the African Union’s Executive Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs for the formulation of the African Union’s long term vision, Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want.
· Effectively represented the Liberian government as head of delegation to the Quadripartite Dialogues, involving the governments of Liberia and Cote d’Ivoire as well as the UN missions in Liberia and Cote d’Ivoire, which effectively managed and resolved the rising tensions along the Liberian-Ivorian border due to deadly cross-over raids into Cote d’Ivoire by armed bandits believed to have come from Liberia.
· Assisted the President of Liberia and facilitated the re-opening of diplomatic missions of Great Britain, Sweden, Brazil, the State of Qatar, etc.
· Led the diplomatic process that culminated in the re-establishment of full diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia and the subsequent opening in 2015 of the Liberian Embassy in Riyadh headed by a fully accredited ambassador after nearly a decade of diplomatic disengagement.
Highlights/Accomplishments as Budget Director
· Removed the lid of secrecy around the Liberian budget by ensuring the mass dissemination of the budget documents to all relevant stakeholders – the media, CSOs, development partners, etc.
· Significantly improved the transparency and efficiency of the Liberian budget system and helped develop the concept of the County Development Fund (CDF)” and ensured its introduction in 2006 in the Liberian budgetary system. Through the CDF, lump-sum resources were appropriated in the national budget to be allocated on development priorities agreed among county stakeholders including chiefs, elders, youth, women, and elected representatives..
Highlights/Accomplishments as Country Manager of the AfDB (Uganda)
· Successfully oversaw the AfDB portfolio in Uganda comprising 20 public sector projects and 4 private sectors projects with a combined portfolio size of US$2.2 billion. Led the growth the AfDB portfolio in Uganda by nearly US$600 million during the nearly 4-year tour of duty.
· Diplomatically represented the interest of the AfDB with government officials, development partners, executing agencies, and other stakeholders in Uganda.
Served as one of the leading members of the Local Development Partners Group (LDPG) of Uganda
Others
Ngafuan would later serve as National Campaign Manager on the Joseph Nyumah Boakai for President 2017 Campaign Team.
Ngafuan is an award-winning poet. His poem, “The African Teacher”, won the 2nd Prize in the BBC Network Africa 2001 Poetry Competition in which African poets on the continents and in the Diaspora competed throughout 2001.
Ngafuan is an ardent soccer lover. During his tenure as Minister of Finance, he captained the Ministry’s soccer squad, “Dollars”, to win two successive championships in the annual Inter-Ministerial Soccer tournament.
Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan is married with four children.
