Following the recent Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 9), which took place in Yokohama, Japan, the Liberian government has announced that Liberia is on the brink of receiving over US$70 million from the Japanese government to fund several projects in the country.
An application for US$72 million in funding by the Government of Liberia (GoL) during the TICAD 9 is pending consideration by Japanese officials, according to Liberia’s Foreign Affairs Ministry, which recently disclosed news of the application for priority projects on infrastructure, health, education, and agriculture.
The participation of the Liberian government during TICAD 9, according to the Foreign Ministry, has yielded concrete cooperation in infrastructure, agriculture, education, youth empowerment, health, governance, and conservation of the environment. During TICAD 9, the Liberian delegation engaged actively in negotiating the implementation of these projects in bilateral negotiations, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In the meantime, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, under its system for implementation of achievements recorded at the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development, will soon have in place a TICAD 9 Implementation Desk to track commitments made during the conference as well as provide Liberians with quarterly reports on progress being made.
The GoL has indicated that it remains resolute in realizing the success attained on Liberia’s side at TICAD 9, by the Liberian delegation’s efforts, into sustainable development and improved livelihoods for Liberians. Liberia’s government also secured various benefits, in accordance with Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru’s new commitments toward Africa, premised on various sectors including sustainable development, youth and women empowerment, as well as regional-level integration.
Investment and economic growth top the list of benefits that the GoL has achieved at TICAD 9; such as infrastructure cooperation between Liberia and Japan, where both nations agreed to prioritize feasibility studies for the Monrovia to Roberts International Airport road corridor and the rehabilitation of major farm-to-market roads to factor regional trade.
The benefits also include port modernization, with Liberia included in the new Japan Africa Economic Partnership Study Group, to ensure technical support for the modernization of the Freeport of Monrovia and improved port logistics. Industrial cooperation is also a benefit that will be facilitated by the Japan Africa Co-Creation for Industry Initiative.
The Liberian government is expected to benefit from the Japan Africa Co-Creation for Industry Initiative, with matchmaking for Japanese companies and Liberian startups in the fields of ICT, agribusiness, and clean energy. The Liberian TICAD 9 delegation also secured for the country access to financing, which places the country in a position to avail itself of the huge US$5.5 billion extended Enhanced Private Sector Assistance for Africa and Japan’s US$1.5 billion impact investment fund, designed to alleviate risk for Japanese investors in Liberia’s energy and agricultural sectors.
Another accomplishment realized at TICAD 9, is that the Japanese government has agreed to collaborate with Liberia in coastal and sea defense projects, with due regard for Liberia’s vulnerability to rising sea levels and coastal erosion. Capitalizing on its ample experience in the construction of artificial islands and in the installation of advanced coastal protection systems, Japan has indicated its readiness to collaborate more closely with Liberia in addressing pressing concerns in sea defense and waste disposal, according to the Liberian Foreign Ministry.
Under GoL’s ARREST Agenda’s first pillar of agriculture, Liberia’s delegation has achieved an agriculture and food security package that will see Liberia’s prime staple, rice and the country’s other major food crops cultivated. When all goes according to plan, Liberia will be involved in a pilot cooperation on climate resilient rice varieties, with trials in Lofa and Bong Counties, and intensification of mechanized agriculture under JICA funded projects.
The Joseph Boakai-led delegation to TICAD 9 also secured agro-food systems benefits, which positioned the nation to access TICAD’s agriculture package through accessing Japanese irrigation technologies and post-harvest value chains in order to reduce food imports. Under human development of capital and capacity building of youth, a minimum of 500 young Liberian professionals will be touched by the planned AI capacity building training program by Japan for 300,000 Africans, in the biotechnology and green economy fields within the next three years.
The other benefits are exchanges and scholarships, empowerment of women, health and social development, access to vaccines, peace and stability, and governance, support for governance. Under exchanges and scholarships, Liberia received new scholarships under the Africa Youth Program 2025 and ABE Initiative to enable Liberian students to pursue studies in Japan in science, technology, engineering, math, public health, and governance.
Under women’s empowerment, Liberia was invited to join Japan’s Women, Peace and Security platform, opening lines of interaction for the empowerment of Liberian women’s leadership and entrepreneurship. Concerning health and social development, Japan will implement healthcare investment in Liberia under the Government of Japan African Healthcare Investment Promotion Package.
Additionally, there will be goodwill from the Japanese government for Liberia in technical improvement in referral hospitals, medical equipment donations, and training of health workers. Vaccine access is among the benefits, positioning the nation to benefit from Japan’s US$550 million donation to GAVI towards making vaccines available and enhancing health resilience in the post-COVID era.
Through TICAD security cooperation, Liberia’s maritime industry will also receive assistance for capacity building in peace, stability, and governance, focusing on maritime and security cooperation. In governance assistance, Liberia has been covered under Japan’s Africa Mine Action Platform and peace-building initiative, an opportunity that can be utilized for assistance in governance training, youth involvement in peace endeavors, and post-conflict reconstruction support.
By Olando Testimony Zeongar
