Fact-Checking Claims by Samuel Tweah about Road and Electricity Financing

In Summary:

• Former Finance Minister Samuel D. Tweah Jr. has claimed that the CDC administration secured all financing for major road networks and signed a 10-year electricity financing agreement with the World Bank.

• Our fact check reveals that while the CDC administration did secure financing for several major road projects with international partners, not all major corridors had full funding by the end of the administration. Some remained in negotiation or unfunded.

• Regarding the electricity sector, the CDC administration initiated a 10-year National Electrification Strategy supported by the World Bank but did not sign the agreement in full

• The agreement is the multi-phase Liberia Electricity Sector Strengthening and Access Project which is in the tune of $190 million.

Samuel D. Tweah Jr., Liberia’s former Minister of Finance and Development Planning, held a press conference on June 3, in which he made several claims. Notably, Mr. Tweah claimed that the George Weah administration secured all financing for major road networks in the country and signed a 10-year electricity financing agreement with the World Bank.

He made these claims to counter what he described as a “sustained campaign of misinformation” targeting him and other former officials. Mr. Tweah along with former National Security Advisor Jefferson Karmoh and former Solicitor General Cllr. Nyanti Tuan are facing multiple charges, including economic sabotage, fraud, and criminal conspiracy.

Claim #1

Mr. Tweah claims: “Our government (the CDC Administration) secured all financing of all major road networks in this country.”

Rating Justification

To verify this claim, we launched a keyword search and found many articles regarding road financing agreements during the administration of former President George Weah.

Our search revealed that several financing agreements between the government of Liberia and its development partners, including the World Bank, African Development Bank, European Investment Bank (EIB), ECOWAS Bank for Investment & Development (EBID), and the UK Government, were signed during the CDC administration.

These financing agreements were secured for the construction of Liberia’s major road networks, including the South Eastern Road, funded by the World Bank on December 18, 2018, and the Coastal Highway (Barclayville–Sasstown), which was financed by the Ecowas Bank for Investment and Development on July 30, 2019.

In addition, the Harper–Karloken–Cavalla road project, financed by the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Ganta–Yekepa, Sanniquelle–Logatuo, and Tappita–Zwedru road corridors were signed during the CDC’s six-year term.

While many major projects received these financing agreements under the CDC administration, some major corridors, such as the Buchanan to Greenville Road, the Yarkpa Town Junction to Cestos Road, and the Konia to Voinjama road, were still without funding or undergoing negotiations as of the end of the CDC Administration.

These revelations were contained in President Weah’s 2023 State of the Nation Address and a press conference held by former Public Works Minister Ruth Coker-Collins on January 18, 2024.

Conclusion

Based on these findings, we conclude that the claim made by the former Finance Minister that the CDC administration secured financing for all major roads in Liberia is misleading.

While it is evident that the CDC administration secured financing agreements for several major road networks and made notable construction progress, not all the major road corridors had full financing secured during the administration. Funding arrangements for some of the major corridors were in negotiation or preparatory phases.

Claim #2

Mr. Tweah also claimed: “I signed under President Weah, a 10-year electricity financing from the World Bank. So, that means the financing for the person who will be elected in 2029, I signed it.”

Rating Justification  

To verify this claim, we contacted Mr. Tweah, requesting a copy of the agreement or sources supporting his claim. However, he did not respond to our inquiry before the publication of this fact-check report. We will update this report once we get any response from him.

We then searched the websites of various credible news outlets, the World Bank, the Ministry of Finance, and the Executive Mansion to ascertain whether the Government of Liberia signed financing agreements with development partners between 2018 and 2023.

We found a 2018 FrontPage Africa news article, in which the paper reported that the government was considering a 10-year PPA (Power Purchase Agreement) with Karpower, a Turkish Company, intended to provide emergency power via a floating power plant.

However, the article revealed that major donors, including the World Bank, the EU, Norway, the UK, and others, warned that the agreement would increase debt and undermine existing investments. This agreement was never signed.

However, in 2020, the George Weah administration approved the National Electrification Strategy (NES). The NES, supported by the World Bank, provides a roadmap to achieve universal access to electricity for Liberia by 2030 through a combination of grid expansion, densification, and off-grid solutions.

The NES is a three-phase programmatic approach (MPA) for mobilizing IDA support towards the goal of universal access by 2030. The total estimated cost for the electrification access expansion was estimated at US$280 million to help Liberia achieve universal access to energy by 2030.

On March 12, 2021, the World Bank approved the Liberia Electricity Sector Strengthening and Access Project (LESSAP – P173416). This is a Multi-Phase Programmatic Approach (MPA) with a total financing envelope of US$190 million, including an indicative IDA amount of US$180 million.

The first phase of the project was signed in April 2021 at a tune of US$64.2 million to improve the electricity sector. This phase is expected to end on June 30, 2026, as detailed in the screenshot below.

Meanwhile, the current administration, under President Joseph Boakai, has signed Phase II of the project with the World Bank in July 2024 to expand Liberia’s electricity sector in rural areas.

According to a World Bank document, the financing amount for the proposed second phase of the MPA  is US$33 million, with US$30 million of IDA credit and US$3 million of ESMAP grant as per the original MPA framework.

This phase is expected to begin at the close of the first phase in June 2026. The project document did not mention when this phase would come to an end.

Conclusion

Based on our research, we conclude that there is no evidence to support the claim made by former Finance Minister Samuel D. Tweah Jr., that he signed a 10-year electricity financing agreement with the World Bank during the CDC administration.

Evidence shows that Mr. Tweah signed the first phase of the agreement on March 12, 2021, and the current administration has signed the second phase and it’s expected to begin at the end of the first phase.