Published: July 3, 2026
CAPITOL HILL, Monrovia – The House of Representatives passed a US$18 million financing agreement for the Ganta-Zwedru road project, sending the measure to the Senate for concurrence under pressure from a July 20 deadline that could put the funding at risk if lawmakers stall.
The chamber adopted a report from the Joint Committee on Ways, Means, Finance, and Development Planning and Public Works and Road Development, which found the agreement in Liberia’s national interest and urged ratification without delay.
The credit, bearing Credit No. 8025-LR from the International Development Association, funds the second additional financing for the Ganta-Zwedru Road Asset Management Project. It covers about 100 kilometers of highway, including 39 kilometers from Ganta to Saclepea under Lot One and 51 kilometers from Saclepea to Zwedru under Lot Two. Beyond civil works, the funds will support resettlement activities, road safety measures, and institutional reforms to strengthen Liberia’s management of its road infrastructure.
The Ministry of Finance and Development Planning signed the agreement on behalf of the government on April 21, and the International Development Association signed on April 15, lawmakers were told during the committee’s presentation. The committee said the effectiveness deadline, set for about July 20, makes swift legislative action essential.
“The instrument is operative, concessional, and in the national interest, and the constraint on it is time rather than merit,” the committee said in its report.
The committee recommended the Executive seek an extension of the effectiveness deadline from the International Development Association as a safeguard against delays in the legislative process. It also asked that the ratification file include a clean execution copy of the agreement, the disbursement allocation schedule, a status report on the environmental and social audit for Lot One, and a statement detailing the original financing, the first additional financing, and the cumulative credit extended to the project.
The committee cautioned lawmakers against letting those administrative requirements delay ratification.
“Given the concessional terms and the effectiveness deadline, do not treat the delivery as grounds to defer ratification,” the report said.
Lofa County District 4 Representative Gizzie K. Kollie moved that the House adopt the committee’s report and ratify the agreement. Members supported the motion, and the House passed it, ordering the agreement transmitted to the Senate for concurrence under the constitutional process governing international financing agreements.
The additional financing supports the government’s broader push to improve road connectivity and strengthen the institutions that manage road infrastructure. The project will also help operationalize the National Road Fund and convert the Infrastructure Implementation Unit within the Ministry of Public Works into a dedicated Road Agency, reforms intended to improve maintenance planning, financing and long-term management of Liberia’s road network.
If the Senate concurs, the US$18 million credit is expected to speed up work on the Ganta-Zwedru road, improving year-round access, cutting travel time, boosting road safety and easing the movement of goods and farm produce between Nimba and Grand Gedeh counties. Officials say the project should also lift economic activity for communities that rely on the corridor for trade and access to public services.
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