Monrovia, Liberia – The Ministry of Local Government, in collaboration with the Governance Commission, is set to convene a two-day High-Level Policy Dialogue on Local Governance and Decentralization aimed at accelerating the transfer of administrative, political and fiscal powers from central government to local authorities across Liberia’s 15 counties.
The high-level dialogue is scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday, August 26–27, 2026, at the JNB Conference Hall of the Ministry of Local Government in Monrovia.
The forum will bring together heads of key Ministries, Agencies and Commissions (MACs), County Superintendents and County Service Center Coordinators from all 15 counties to address persistent challenges undermining Liberia’s decentralization agenda.
At the center of the discussions will be the implementation of the Local Government Act (LGA) of 2018, which provides the legal framework for devolving government functions and decision-making powers to local authorities.
The Ministry of Local Government said the dialogue is intended to build executive-level consensus around the legal and administrative requirements for transferring responsibilities from central government institutions to county structures.
A major concern to be addressed is the continued centralization of approvals for services that are already being delivered through County Service Centers.
County Service Centers were established across all 15 counties as one-stop facilities intended to make government services more accessible to citizens outside Monrovia. The centers provide services involving documentation, permits, licenses and certificates.
However, many county offices of national government institutions continue to rely on central offices in Monrovia for final approvals and routine sign-offs.
The continued dependence on central authorization has created operational bottlenecks, increased transaction costs and delayed the delivery of services to citizens, according to the organizers.
The upcoming dialogue is therefore expected to focus on identifying the specific powers that can be transferred to county-level representatives and establishing clear timelines for the transfers.
The establishment of the Ministry of Local Government in September 2025, following the restructuring of the former Ministry of Internal Affairs, was described as a major institutional step in Liberia’s decentralization process.
The ministry was created with a dedicated mandate to lead and coordinate the country’s national local governance and decentralization agenda.
The planned dialogue also follows President Joseph Nyuma Boakai’s July 4, 2025 directive on devolution, which called for greater movement of government functions and decision-making authority from Monrovia to local communities.
During the two-day meeting, participating institutions are expected to identify legal, administrative and technical barriers preventing them from devolving functions to county-level structures.
The discussions are also expected to produce a time-bound Devolution Action Plan outlining the specific authorities to be transferred, including license approvals, official sign-offs and selected revenue-related processes.
The plan will further establish deadlines, technical requirements and training needs necessary for each transfer of responsibility.
Participating institutions will include agencies and ministries responsible for revenue and economic services, infrastructure and land administration, social services and environmental protection.
Among the institutions expected to participate are the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, Liberia Revenue Authority, Ministry of Transport, National Transport Authority and Ministry of Labor.
The Ministry of Public Works, Liberia Land Authority, Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications and Ministry of Foreign Affairs are also expected to participate in discussions concerning infrastructure, land and related services.
Social and environmental institutions expected to take part include the Ministry of Health, Environmental Protection Agency, Liberia Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Authority, Ministry of Gender and Social Protection, and the Civil Registration and Nationality Agency, among others.
Organizers expect the dialogue to produce a standardized Devolution Action Plan that will clearly map out timelines, technical prerequisites and training requirements for each authority being transferred to county structures.
The process is also expected to identify immediate measures for reducing the cost and time citizens incur when accessing government services once local approval and sign-off powers become operational.
A key outcome will be the signing of an Inter-Ministerial Devolution Resolution, through which participating ministries and agencies are expected to commit to transferring specific authorities to County Service Centers under county government leadership within an agreed timeframe.
The dialogue will also formally launch a High-Level Inter-Ministerial Committee on Local Governance and Decentralization, which will be responsible for monitoring implementation, addressing bottlenecks and troubleshooting challenges that emerge during the devolution process.
The committee’s formal launch is expected to be officiated by Vice President Jeremiah Kpan Koung, alongside the presentation of a Joint Resolution Matrix on Devolution.
The first day of the dialogue will focus largely on technical issues, including presentations on the Local Government Act of 2018 and the operational bottlenecks currently affecting decentralization.
Participants will subsequently break into agency-specific sessions to identify functions that can be devolved, as well as the legal, administrative, technological and human-resource requirements needed to facilitate the transfers.
The second day will culminate in an executive plenary involving heads of participating ministries, agencies and commissions.
During the final session, participants are expected to review and finalize the Joint Devolution Resolution and implementation matrix before formally committing their institutions to the agreed decentralization measures.
The initiative comes amid broader efforts by the Boakai administration to shift government services closer to citizens and strengthen local participation in governance.
If successfully implemented, the devolution process could reduce the need for citizens in the counties to travel to Monrovia for routine government approvals while strengthening the authority and effectiveness of local government institutions.
The policy dialogue is therefore expected to serve as a critical test of the government’s commitment to translating Liberia’s decentralization laws and policies into practical changes in how public services are delivered across the country.
