Monrovia, Liberia – The proposed Concession and Access Agreement between the Government of Liberia and Ivanhoe Liberia Limited, a subsidiary of HPX and SMFG, has significant gaps that the House of Representatives Joint Committee on Investment, Judiciary, and Transport questioned senior government officials about on Tuesday.
Leading officials from the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, the National Investment Commission, and the Ministry of Transportation attended the public hearing, which was presided over by Representative Foday Edward Fahnbulleh. In order to provide legislators a chance to speak with government representatives face-to-face, the CEO of HPX was excused from the meeting.
NIC Chairman Jeff B. Blibo, Justice Minister Cllr. N. Oswald Tweh, Deputy Finance Minister Anthony Myers, and Transport Minister Sirleaf Tyler were among those in attendance. The team was expected by lawmakers to give precise answers regarding the agreement’s compliance with the 2019 Liberia–Guinea Implementation Agreement, which regulates all cross-border access to Liberia’s port and rail facilities.
But the questioning exposed significant ambiguity. The officials were unable to provide an accurate or uniform response when asked if Ivanhoe Liberia’s proposal to transport Guinean ore through Liberia had received official approval from the Guinea government. Members of the Committee reacted sharply to their responses, which alternated between ongoing conversations and unfinished procedures.
The authorities were reminded by lawmakers that a formal approval process is necessary for the 2019 Implementation Agreement. A Request for Eligibility must first be reviewed by Guinea, and then a Request for Access must be jointly reviewed by both nations through a Monitoring Committee. Any final agreement must then be approved by the Inter Ministerial Committee. These measures were intended to ensure that both nations act cooperatively and to prevent unilateral moves.
Members of the committee pointed out that there is no proof that Guinea has designated Ivanhoe’s proposal as an Approved Infrastructure proposal under Article Five of the Implementation Agreement, no Monitoring Committee minutes have been made public, and no Inter Ministerial Committee report has emerged.
Deeper worries regarding whether Liberia would be advancing the CAA without meeting the bilateral requirements agreed upon with Guinea in 2019 were raised by the government delegation’s incapacity to provide evidence or direct confirmation.
The public hearing attracted interest from interested parties in the wake of the national discussion surrounding the Ivanhoe deal. The Joint Committee declared at the conclusion of the meeting that if necessary, it may summon the government agencies back for additional interrogation. The legislators will now resume their discussions in the committee room while they look for any proof that both governments have given their consent.
