From the Fish Town-Harper Road in Maryland to the Saclepea-Tappita Corridor in Nimba, Liberia’s road map is being redrawn with AfDB and World Bank money. Together, the two institutions have committed more than $900 million to Liberia’s development portfolio, with transport taking the largest share at 60.6% of AfDB commitments.
The scale is visible. Since 1967, the AfDB has invested over $1.02 billion in Liberia across 72 projects, with 177 kilometers of roads completed under Bank projects. That includes the 50-km Fishtown-Harper Road, the 16-km Harper Junction to Cavalla Border Road, the 80-km Karloken to Fish Town road, and the 22-km Sanniquellie to Loguatuo stretch under Phase II of the Mano River Union Road Development and Transport Facilitation Programme.
The Mano River Union Road project, backed by $292 million from the African Development Fund, is paving 372 km across Guinea, Côte d’Ivoire, and Liberia’s Maryland and River Gee counties.
Benefits are already showing along the 16-km Harper Junction-Cavalla River stretch as travel costs have fallen by 60% and travel times by 70%.
“The rehabilitated roadway also anchors clinics, markets for goods and schools that are being used by road commuters, boosting the livelihoods of traders, many of them women,” said AfDB Transport Engineer Prince Tambah.
A 250-metre bridge across the Cavalla River is now under tender by ECOWAS, with completion expected soon.
Once completed, vehicles will travel directly between Liberia and Côte d’Ivoire, easing costs for traders and producers.
World Bank Executive Director Dr. Zarau Wendeline Kibwe this week toured Nimba County projects, praising “rapid advancements in roads, education and energy”. The 39-km Saclepea-Tappita Road is 90% complete, with the Tappita lot at 94%, pending a major bridge. Full completion is targeted for September-October 2026. The completed Ganta-Saclepea stretch has already slashed travel time from seven hours to two-and-a-half hours.
The RETRAP Project from Tappita to Toe Town, valued at $30-45 million is one of World Bank’s Road Asset Management Project which has seen multiple additional financings, including a $40 million credit in 2017.
It can be recalled that on March 1, 2024, Liberia and AfDB signed a US$40 million loan for Phase 1 of the Mano River Union Road Development Transport Facilitation project.
The loan will upgrade 48.5 km of roads in Liberia to bitumen standard and fund feasibility studies for another 97 km.
At the 2024 AfDB Annual Meetings, President Akinwumi Adesina announced plans to mobilize $3.5 billion to $5 billion for the “Liberty corridor project,” a world-class rail system connecting Liberia’s deepwater Didia port to Guinea.
The project aligns with President Joseph Boakai’s ARREST Agenda, focusing on agriculture, roads, rule of law, education, sanitation, and tourism.
AfDB Executive Director Rufus Darkortey noted that despite adding 1.9 million km of roads since 1995, only 30% of African roads are paved, versus 92% in East Asia.
Africa invests just 3.1% of GDP in infrastructure, with only 12% from private sources. In Liberia, the Bank has 11 ongoing projects worth $378 million, with disbursement at 50.8%. Transport, energy, and agriculture are the focus.
Former President George Weah in 2023 commended the Bank’s support, citing the $56 million Fish Town-Harper Road Phase 1 as “emblematic of a strong commitment to Liberia’s development”.
“The Bank has been a long-time supporter not only of Liberia but of the Mano River Union… seen as a conduit to develop the region’s agricultural potential, create jobs for youth unemployment and tackle fragility,” said AfDB Country Manager Benedict Kanu.
For the Boakai administration, roads are the backbone of the ARREST Agenda. “We have yet to receive economic progress in ways that reflect the country’s potential and promise, but I believe our economic conditions can improve when we seize the opportunities we have,” President Boakai said in his inaugural address.
With domestic revenue tight and debt levels high, Liberia is leaning on AfDB and World Bank to carry the infrastructure load. The bet: that asphalt today delivers trade, clinics, and schools tomorrow — and that a paved road from Fish Town to Harper, or Saclepea to Tappita, is the first mile toward inclusive growth.
As of February 2024, AfDB’s active portfolio in Liberia stood at 18 projects valued at $397 million, “each designed to enhance the quality of life for Liberians”. With the World Bank’s corridors nearing completion and new AfDB phases signed, the two lenders are, for now, carrying Liberia’s road development on their heads — and pumping millions to make sure the country isn’t left in the dirt.
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