Published: September 27, 2025
WASHINGTON — Liberia’s foreign minister Sara Beysolow Nyanti has disclosed that her ministry is building a comprehensive database of Liberians living abroad, from their locations to the skills they’ve acquired, so the government can better connect them to jobs, investment opportunities, and national priorities at home.
“Every Liberian who leaves Liberia becomes the responsibility of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but our reach has been limited,” Nyanti told the opening session of the Liberia Diaspora Annual Conference 2025 on Friday in Washington. “We have embassies and consulates, but it’s not enough. That’s why we’re building a database so we know where you are, what skills you now possess, whether you’re a doctor, a neurosurgeon, or an educator, and link you to the ARREST agenda. We cannot manage what we cannot measure.”
Speaking before President Joseph N. Boakai, senior cabinet officials and hundreds of Liberians from North America, Europe, Australia and beyond, Nyanti said the initiative is part of the Boakai administration’s ARREST Agenda — a six-pillar reform drive that prioritizes agriculture, roads, rule of law, education, sanitation and tourism/technology. She said the new system will equip embassies and consulates to track diaspora professionals and channel their expertise into health care, education, commerce and infrastructure projects back home.
She emphasized that Liberians abroad already play a vital economic role, sending home hundreds of millions of dollars in remittances that stabilize the currency and keep households afloat. But she urged them to become intentional investors, pooling resources to target development instead of only meeting daily needs.
She also cast her appeal in the context of unity at a time when many countries are turning inward. “The global trend is isolation and closing borders, but President Boakai is saying to Liberians wherever you are: ‘Let’s get together.’ We are better together,” she said. “We have medical missions, scholarships, community projects that often go unnoticed — this conference is about organizing that energy so it counts.”
The Foreign Minister underscored that credible governance at home translates into respect abroad, citing Liberia’s historic election this year as a non-permanent member of the U.N. Security Council. “All our experiences, as refugees, as asylees, as professionals who persevered, give us a voice and the capability to contribute to a just world,” she said.
She pledged that the Foreign Ministry will also focus on protecting Liberians overseas, describing the relationship as one of “protection and partnership.”
Diaspora leaders used the forum to call for more consular services in places such as Australia, Canada and across Europe, saying it remains difficult to secure passports, visas and civil documents. Nyanti said those complaints highlight why the ministry is prioritizing systems upgrades and closer engagement.
“Liberians everywhere are required for this work,” Nyanti said. “This weekend is about discovering each other, our talents, our ideas, and discovering how we can take Liberia forward together.”
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