Monrovia, Liberia – Liberia’s Finance Minister, Augustine Ngafuan, has announced that the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has canceled or frozen several development projects in Liberia worth around $51 million. These projects impact key sectors such as health, education, elections, and domestic revenue collection.
By Edwin G. Genoway, Jr. (331886458910)[email protected]
In a statement before the Liberian Senate Ad Hoc Committee, Minister Ngafuan explained that the number of canceled projects has increased, with three more confirmed during his testimony. The government is still assessing the full impact of these changes.
Some of the affected projects include a $2.9 million infrastructure project for water and health, a $185,000 community monitoring project through an NGO, and a $19 million project aimed at improving the Ministry of Finance’s monitoring and evaluation systems.
The largest affected program is the $23.4 million Education System Strengthening Project, which was designed to improve the country’s education system. Other programs affected include a $15.9 million project for elections and democracy and a $17.9 million project for local empowerment and decentralization.
Ngafuan noted that the freeze could hurt Liberia’s goal of raising $1 billion in domestic revenue, as the local tax system transition project was heavily supported by USAID.
Additional cancellations include an $11 million fund for COVID-19 awareness and immunization, a $20 million school feeding.
