April 13, 2025
Kuwait City – In a major development for Liberia’s infrastructure agenda, the Kuwaiti Fund for Arab Economic Development has pledged to lead a consortium of Arab lenders. They will mobilize resources for the Salayea to Voinjama stretch of the Gbarnga–Mendikorma Highway Project.
The 114km stretch will benefit from coordinated funding efforts by Arab financial institutions. These include the Saudi Fund for Development, the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA).
The OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID) and the Abu Dhabi Fund are also participating. The high-level meeting in Kuwait City included the Liberian Government delegation, headed by Finance and Development Planning Minister Hon. Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan. The Acting Director General of the Kuwaiti Fund, Waleed S. Al-Bahar, along with his team, also attended.
Also present were key members of the Liberian delegation: Public Works Minister Hon. Roland Giddings and Deputy Minister for International Cooperation and Economic Integration Dr. Ibrahim Al-Bakri Nyei. Additionally, Deputy Minister for Economic Management Hon. Dehpue Zuo and National Port Authority Managing Director Hon. Sekou H. Dukuly were present.
In a related breakthrough, the Liberian Government and the Kuwaiti Fund signed an agreement to restructure Liberia’s outstanding $6.7 million debt. This action lifts a 2023 suspension on disbursements linked to the highway project. It followed delinquency in repaying a $14 million loan extended in 2016 to the National Port Authority.
With the agreement now in place, the Kuwaiti Fund has committed to releasing previously withheld disbursements to contractors on the Gbarnga–Salayea road segment. This will accelerate progress on the project.
A key priority will be mobilizing $76 million to pave a critical 50km stretch between Konia and Voinjama. This section is estimated at $65 million. An additional $11 million will be applied to an 81km section for an asphalt layer. Further discussions between the Liberian Government and Arab lenders, led by the Kuwaiti Fund, are scheduled to take place next week.
These discussions will occur on the sidelines of the upcoming IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington D.C.
This follows a separate funding commitment from the African Development Bank earlier this year. The commitment is for the Voinjama–Mendikorma portion of the same highway.
In addition to the road talks, Liberia’s delegation will explore opportunities to deepen bilateral ties with the Government of Kuwait. This includes potential cooperation between port authorities.
It is worth noting that the Kuwaiti Fund played a similar role in 2016. It led the mobilization of resources for the Gbarnga–Salayea Highway.
The Liberian Government extended its heartfelt appreciation to the Government and people of Kuwait. They thanked them for their continued partnership in advancing road connectivity and development in Liberia.
