Investment Opportunities

Investment opportunities in Liberia can be found in the manufacturing or industry, construction, fishery, agricultural sectors (commercial farming for rice); in tourism (eco-tourism, hotels and restaurants, leisure activities); in manufacturing; in training in various fields; and in many areas of infrastructure, including telecommunication, energy and finance.

Priority Areas are as follows:

 Industry/Manufacturing

There are quite a lot of manufacturing opportunities basically available to foreign investors across the board. Two areas of special interest might be food-processing (e.g., juices, jams, jellies) and the manufacture of rubber goods, given Liberia’s natural assets for agriculture and its substantial production of rubber. Rubber goods with investment potential include tires and tubes, inflatable, sporting goods and surgical products. Decorative items made of rubber wood, which is soft and is currently used only as firewood, can also find a niche market.

Other opportunities for value addition to Liberia’s forestry products include sawmilling, pulp and paper production, plywood and particle board production, and manufacturing furniture.

Agriculture

Agriculture is the dominant sector in the Liberian economy, accounting for more than half the GDP and perhaps 70% of employment. Liberia imports substantial quantities of its staple food, rice, which accounted for a little over 10% of its imports in 2004. Large-scale swamp cultivation could serve both domestic and export markets. Investment is needed in production, quality assurance and processing. Coffee, cocoa, corn (maize) and sugar cane are grown in most parts of the country. Both coffee and cocoa have been significant earners of foreign exchange in the past and could be again.

There are opportunities in commercial farming as well as in processing, especially in converting cocoa beans into cocoa powder, butter and liquor. The variety of fruits grown in Liberia includes mango, banana, papaya, pineapple, melon, breadfruit and a number of citrus fruits such as orange, grape fruit, tangerine and lime. Vegetables grown include cabbage, hot pepper, cucumber and pumpkin. The international fruit and vegetable market is huge. Accessing it requires quality control, proper post-harvest handling and storage, and efficient transport — all of which offer opportunities for investors. There are also opportunities in processing fruits into jams and juices and processing cane and

corn into sugar and oil, among other things.

The biggest earner of foreign exchange for Liberia is rubber. Natural is cultivated both by large foreign companies (like Firestone, which has been in Liberia for 80 years) and by Liberian smallholders, each of them accounting for about half the area under cultivation.

Processing is minimal. The government would like to see more FDI in this area, both for the managing and maintenance of plantations, and for greater value addition in rubber-processing.

Oil palm is another tree crop with great potential in Liberia. It can yield cooking oil, animal food, and raw material for the manufacture of cosmetics, detergents and pharmaceuticals. A number of state-owned and private oil palm plantations are available for rehabilitation.

Agricultural development in Liberia is in need of a variety of support services that also offer many investment opportunities. These include pest and disease control, extension services, cold storage, transport and marketing, and training and capacity-building

Regulation and Policies:

Registering a Business in Liberia

The potential investor willing to establish a business will have to follow the following regulations and policies:

Registration and Related Requirements

All foreign commercial enterprises must register with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry before they commence operations. The registration process begins with a letter from the company or the individual to the Ministry that states the name, nature and location of the proposed business.

The next step is completing the registration forms available from the Ministry (cost USD100) and submitting them with the required documents and the appropriate fee. The fees are as follows: sole proprietorship USD700, partnership USD800 and corporation USD 900. The process is in principle simple.

In addition to registration with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, foreign companies must meet the requirements of the particular sector or industry in which they propose to operate.

For example, in the fishery industry, potential investors must register the watercraft with the Bureau of Maritime Affairs and pay an inspection fee as determined by the Bureau in order to secure a certificate of inspection.

INVESTMENT POLICY INCENTIVES

& Foreign Investment

Liberia incentive package focuses on several priority sectors available to Foreign Investors. The investment Incentive Code of 1973, which continues to be in force, specified the following:

v  The manufacture or assembly of finished and semi-finished goods;

v  Agriculture, forestry and fishing;

v  Mining and quarrying;

v  Building and construction;

v  Electricity, gas an water;

v  Transport and communication;

v  Service sectors that provide technical services to the preceding; and service sectors that provide services and suppliers to tourism;

v  Free-zone enterprises, exports, and activities on different sectors.

The benefits granted are as follows:

Exemptions from Trade Taxes

Machinery, equipment, raw materials semi-finished products and other supplies to be used in the project are exempted from import duty up to 90 % of their dutiable value

Manufactured goods exported from the production of the project are entitled to full rebate on import duties and full refund of both income tax and excise tax.

Exemptions from Income Tax

Reinvested profits are exempted from income tax. However, if the reinvestment is in employee housing, the exemption is subject to prior approval from the national investment Commission (NIC).

Profits not reinvested are exempted from 50% of the income tax otherwise payable.

Other Benefits

Approved investment projects may receive certain additional benefits on application to the government.

Guarantees

v  Legal protection  of private property rights, regarding foreign investment;

v  Unconditional transferability in convertible currency, of net profits and  dividends;

v  Privately managed foreign currency accounts;

A Success Story on a Foreign Investor in Liberia

Firestone, the pioneer rubber company in Liberia, recently broke ground for a USD10 million rubber-processing factory.