- By Ishmael F Menkor
The “smuggling” of cement, rice, and petroleum products—classified by the government as “political goods”—continues to escalate across Liberia’s borders, raising concerns about commodity shortages and soaring prices in local markets.
Many fear that Liberia is likely to face shortages of these if the government fails to stop these items from being smuggled or shipped out of the country.
The Daily Observer Nimba Bureau observed the unprecedented movement or smuggling of these essential goods using the Ganta Border and other subordinate ports of crossing into Guinea.
This is said to have undermined the prices of these commodities in the local market, posing hardship on the citizens.
During a tour in Nimba earlier this year, Commerce Minister Dagoseh described cement, rice, and petroleum products as “political goods” but declined to answer whether a moratorium exists on the export of cement to neighboring countries. Her refusal came amid growing reports of large-scale smuggling of these commodities, particularly into Guinea, which has been blamed for persistent price hikes in Liberia.
A Daily Observer investigation has established that the illegal movement of these goods—especially cement—remains rampant. Each day, thousands of bags of cement are transported across the Ganta border into Guinea. Despite the scale of the smuggling, security agencies appear to be doing little to curb the cross-border trade, leaving local markets under strain.
“Cement is now produced in Liberia, but the price still remains high in the market,” lamented Karnay Brewer, a builder in Ganta. Another resident, James, expressed frustration: “Dozens of trailers arrive with cement daily, but only to find the stores or distribution centers emptied.”
In Ganta, a commercial hub in Nimba County that hosts several cement distributors, rice dealers, and filling stations, the prices of these essential goods continue to climb. A bag of cement currently sells for between US$8 and US$8.50, while gasoline costs about L$880 per gallon.
“The rice or cement that leaves daily is huge and it is likely to cause shortages in the market,” another local entrepreneur said. “The prices of cement, rice and petroleum products are yet to drop in the local market, something many put the blame on the continued smuggling of these essential products.”
During former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf’s administration, a moratorium was imposed on the export of cement, rice, and petroleum products to curb the massive outflow of these goods to neighboring countries, primarily Guinea. The measure aimed to prevent shortages that often led to sharp price increases and public discontent—situations that opposition politicians frequently leveraged to rally citizens against the government.
Today, however, it remains unclear whether such restrictions are still in place. A senior customs officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said he was unaware of any current moratorium on cement exports.
As uncertainty lingers over the status of these restrictions, smuggling continues unabated, leaving many to question whether the government is taking adequate steps to safeguard Liberia’s domestic supply.
When contacted, the Communication Director of Liberia Revenue Authority D. Kaihenneh Sengbeh, whether there was any moratorium on cement, rice and gasoline from leaving Liberia, said he was not aware of any restriction on the movement of these basic commodities.
He said, “We at LRA do not obstruct trade, but we facilitate legitimate trade and if some come with their export permit, we do business with them.”
Mr. Sengbeh further explained that under the ECOWAS protocol, there is free movement of goods and services, but the carrier should have an export declaration permit to the customs authority for relevant revenue collection.
“If we stop goods from leaving our country to other countries, they too do the same,” he cautioned.
However, it is not clear whether the custom authority is collecting the requisite export duty inline with the revenue law of Liberia, something it is yet to be established by this paper.
