Liberia Action Plan Review 2024-2026

Liberia’s fifth action plan continues ongoing open government reforms and aligns with the government’s 2025–2029 ARREST Agenda.^[1] The most promising commitments seek to advance anti-corruption efforts through open contractingA transparent procurement process, known as open contracting, increases competition, improves public service delivery, and ensures governments better value for their money. Technical specifications: C... More, beneficial ownershipDisclosing beneficial owners — those who ultimately control or profit from a business — is essential for combating corruption, stemming illicit financial flows, and fighting tax evasion. Technical... More transparencyAccording to OGP’s Articles of Governance, transparency occurs when “government-held information (including on activities and decisions) is open, comprehensive, timely, freely available to the pub... More, and strengthening integrity institutions. Liberia undertook an inclusive co-creation processCollaboration between government, civil society and other stakeholders (e.g., citizens, academics, private sector) is at the heart of the OGP process. Participating governments must ensure that a dive... to revise continued commitments, notably engaging youthRecognizing that investing in youth means investing in a better future, OGP participating governments are creating meaningful opportunities for youth to participate in government processes. Technical ... More.

The action plan’s eight commitments focus on anti-corruption and integrityOGP participating governments are working to root out undue influence across government affairs, because the use of public office for private gain erodes citizens’ trust in their government and its ... More, fiscal openness, public service deliveryTo ensure that citizens of all groups are better supported by the government, OGP participating governments are working to improve the quality of and access to public services. Commitments in this are... More, and justiceTo address barriers that prevent citizens from having their justice needs met, OGP participating governments are working to expand transparency, accountability, and inclusion into all systems of justi.... These reforms are continued from the previous plan, albeit with renewed momentum under a new administration.

This report provides in-depth analysis for three commitments with the greatest potential for results. They benefit from high-level political support^[2] as well as technical and financial support from partners. They promise to use transparency and accountability to advance Liberia’s anti-corruption agenda.

CommitmentOGP commitments are promises for reform co-created by governments and civil society and submitted as part of an action plan. Commitments typically include a description of the problem, concrete action... 1 aims to strengthen Liberia’s integrity ecosystem by establishing a specialized Anti-Corruption Court, National Integrity Committee, and local hubs for the corruption authority across regions. It also continues efforts to strengthen the asset declaration system and implement integrity educationAccountability within the public education system is key to improving outcomes and attainment, and accountability is nearly impossible without transparent policies and opportunities for participation ... in schools. An ambitious reform, it remains to be seen if key elements can be implemented within the two-year implementation period given limited resources.

Commitment 3 aims to use the e-Government Procurement (e-GP) system, launched in early 2025, to expand published information on public contracts. Meanwhile, Commitment 5 aims to operationalize a public registry of who really owns companies in Liberia. Combined, this information could significantly strengthen government integrity and transparency. These reforms benefit from online platforms ready to be populated with information and partner support, granting them substantial potential.

As with previous plans, political transitions and budget constraints remain risks to implementation. Its success may depend on continued civil society pressure, partner support, and strong leadership from implementing entities—especially on legal reforms, data transparency, and citizen engagement.

Beyond the usual civil society and government discussions, Liberia’s co-creation process used the Federation of Liberian Youth^[3] and radio programs to engage a wider public. While all commitments were continued from the previous plan, most were revised to account for changes in context and to strengthen their ambition. Civil society organizations (CSOs) were active in developing this plan and see strengths in the increased transparency commitments.^[4] However, they are concerned about challenges such as weak enforcement, limited funding,^[5] and engagement with the legislature ^[6] during the plan’s creation. CSOs aspire for stronger implementation, especially in areas like justice and budget transparency, which they say lack clear action steps or enforcement tools.^[7] As public information on OGP in Liberia was limited due to the absence of a working OGP website or repository, Liberia did not meet the minimum requirements of the OGP Participation and Co-Creation Standards.

Table 1. Promising Commitments