Government officials are under pressure over a reported plan to replace Telecom International Alliance (TIA) with NUMTEL Liberia in a deal to manage the country’s messaging and telecom traffic regime, amid questions about the new company’s identity and credentials.
Experts say moving forward with a firm whose background remains opaque could expose Liberia to legal, financial, and technical risks. “Attempting to take over a highly technical infrastructure without any proven records is only equitable to a ghost company embarking on an expedition spree,” one industry analyst said.
The controversy stems from the Boakai administration’s push to dismantle the 2018 TIA concession, which was extended in 2022 and ratified by the Legislature. The government suspended the agreement in October 2025 through Executive Order No. 154, citing audits that found procurement violations, irregular company registration, and an unjustified increase in TIA’s revenue share from 35% to 49%.
With TIA’s operations suspended, the Liberia Telecommunications Authority [LTA] has hinted at a replacement arrangement. NUMTEL Liberia has been named in public discourse as the entity positioned to take over the messaging and revenue assurance functions.
Critics argue that little is known publicly about NUMTEL’s technical capacity, track record, or legal standing in Liberia. They warn that handing over telecom traffic monitoring and messaging infrastructure to a company without a verifiable history could undermine revenue collection, data security, and regulatory oversight.
The government has said its actions are aimed at correcting procurement irregularities and protecting state revenue. It maintains that the TIA deal was awarded in violation of the Public Procurement and Concessions Commission Act of 2010 and cost the country over US$50 million in lost revenue, according to findings by the General Auditing Commission, PPCC, and Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission.
TIA has rejected those conclusions, insisting the contract was lawfully awarded and ratified. The company has urged lawmakers to renegotiate rather than cancel the agreement, warning that abrupt changes could disrupt telecom revenues and invite costly arbitration.
As of press time, the LTA and the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications have not released details of NUMTEL’s ownership structure, technical qualifications, or the legal basis for a potential award.
For many observers, the core issue is transparency. They argue that any replacement for TIA must go through a competitive, legally compliant procurement process with full public disclosure, to avoid repeating the mistakes that marred the original deal.
Without that, they say, Liberia risks swapping one controversial contract for another, this time with a company whose credentials have not been tested or made public. Records show that NUMTEL Liberia was registered in 2024 by one James Sackie as the sole representative.
