The Civil Society Network of Liberia of Liberia (CSNL) describes as false and misleading allegations contained in several media publications that the Minister of Commerce & Industry, Magdalene Dagoseh, is ‘under scrutiny for US$429,000 Industrial Park Renovation,’ describing it as a calculated attempt by certain individuals to undermine the works of the minister and malign her reputation.
The group said it conducted an independent investigation into the management of the Monrovia Industrial Park (MIP) Fund and established that the Ministry of Commerce & Industry is in full compliance with the processes and regulations governing the MIP Rehabilitation Project. Upon taking over the Ministry, Minister Dagoseh’s Leadership reviewed past audits and the preliminary findings from the ongoing audit of the use of the MIP Fund; the review and analysis of the audits reveals that since the management of the Monrovia Industrial Park (MIP) was transferred from the National Investment Commission (NIC) to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MOCI) in 2017 by former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the MIP Fund has not been transparently administered in addressing the development, security, sanitation, and the general upkeep of the MIP.
According to CSNL, in ensuring that the MIP Fund is used to strengthen coordination between Liberia’s industrial and trade policies and enhance effective oversight of the Park’s development and sustainability, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry convened the first meeting of the Inter-Agency Board on October 14, 2025, but did not achieve quorum and was therefore rescheduled to October 22, 2025, when quorum was established.
In a release sent to this paper over the weekend, CSNL’s Executive Director, Sensee Kiadii, explained that as the body clothed with the oversight and approval functions of the Monrovia Industrial Park, the Board approved an adjusted operational budget of US$429,009.00 for the last quarter of Fiscal Year 2025, to address urgent infrastructural works and safety needs within the Park. The Resolution was signed by nine (9) of the ten (10) Board Members and their accredited representatives.
Executive Director Kiadii noted that a copy of the Board’s resolution, which he claims is in CSNL’s possession, reveals that contrary to ‘fake’ information that some member institutions of the Inter-Agency Board questioned their signatures on the resolution, all member institutions of the board duly signed through their heads or designated representatives, except the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, which was not represented at the meeting. “There is no record that a member institution has so far disputed the authority of its representative or the validity of their signatures on the approved Resolution. Commerce Minister Magdalene Dagoseh should be commended for ensuring the compliant implementation of the MIP Administration Regulation, and it is unfair to accuse her of any sinister motive in the planned use of US$429,000 of the MIP Fund to rehabilitate the park,” the CSNL release said.
The group said that as provided for in Section 5.2 of the MIP Administrative Regulation, the Inter-Agency Advisory Board, comprising of representatives from the Ministries of Commerce and Industry, Finance and Development Planning, Public Works, Justice, Labor, the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Investment Commission, the Liberia Business Association, the Liberia Revenue Authority, and the Liberia Chamber of Commerce, needs a minimum of seven members to constitute a quorum for any official decision, including approvals of all financial and operational decisions relating to the MIP.
The CSNL release noted that while the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning did not have a representative at the meeting, the Administrative Regulation governing the Board clearly stipulates that a quorum of seven members, irrespective of member institutions, is sufficient to take decisions that shall be binding and legal. Therefore, the Resolution passed on October 22, 2025, by the signatures of nine (9) member institutions, was legally valid and procedurally sound.
“Furthermore, the assertion that the Commerce Ministry has awarded the MIP Rehabilitation Project to a company outside the Public Procurement and Concessions Commission (PPCC) process is baseless and unfounded. The CSNL’s investigation also proved that, unlike the fake media report, no contract has been awarded to any construction company, and no construction work has commenced at the Monrovia Industrial Park. The Ministry has just begun the publication of bid advertisements (Expression of Interest (EOI) documents) in the local dailies in line with PPCC-approved processes,” the release indicated.
CSNL concluded that all documents in its possession, the Commerce Ministry is fully compliant with legal and administrative procedures regarding the MIP, with all decisions approved by the Inter-Agency Advisory Board, adding that Minister Dagoseh has a strong background in public and private sectors, showcasing transparency and integrity in her roles.
