Executive Order 151 is not a ban on rubber export

Published: August 4, 2025

We welcome President Boakai’s Executive Order No. 151, issued on August 1, 2025. Executive Order (EO) No. 151 is a forward-looking policy prioritizing domestic value addition, transparency, and economic resilience. Restructuring how we manage rubber exports lays the groundwork for domestic industrial growth and job creation.

I support this effort and urge all stakeholders to collaborate to ensure its successful implementation. EO 151 is a strategic shift toward building a diversified economy that hopefully generates additional revenues and creates plenty of jobs for Liberians. President Boakai’s government uses fiscal tools like a 4% presumptive tax, Rubber Development Fund’s (RFDI) fees, and a $150/metric ton surcharge on raw rubber exports to promote local processing and add value to the sector. Exporters who process rubber domestically are exempt from those taxes, fees, and surcharges, while those who export raw rubber must navigate a rigorous fiscal and permit framework. By leveraging fiscal tools like the 4% presumptive tax, RDFI fees, and post-export income taxation, EO 151 is not just regulating exports; it’s restructuring incentives to favor domestic transformation of rubber (value addition). This contrasts with EO 124, which focused on enforcing rules to address challenges like theft, illegal trade, and neglect in the rubber sector.

However, restricting raw material exports can offer both benefits and drawbacks. It can protect domestic industries and resources, but also potentially harm international trade volumes, which could negatively affect Liberia’s trade deficit and economic growth and lead to unintended consequences. A policy is as good as its implementation. This has been our challenge!

Therefore, EO 151’s success will depend on its practical implementation. A deliberate strategy is needed to incentivize local firms to move up the value chain from raw latex to semi-finished products and ultimately to finished goods. This is how we ensure that the rubber sector becomes a true engine of industrial growth, job creation, and fiscal resilience. I urge the administration to ensure inclusive implementation through tighter coordination and to protect smallholder farmers’ interests, which are vital to the sector’s sustainability and equitable growth. We should support the Ministry of Agriculture and the National Bureau of Concession (NBC) with the resources and capabilities to develop the reports and analyses needed to assist the president in enforcing it for impact. We will do our part in the Senate by working with colleagues to support the Ministry of Agriculture and NBC to ensure an effective rollout.