MONROVIA – A special legislative committee of the House of Representatives (HOR) has moved to summon key government ministers and officials amid growing concern over the delayed implementation of the cross-border infrastructure pact between Liberia and Guinea. In a communication dated November 27, 2025, Chief Clerk Mildred Sayon informed the ministers and other officials that the directive came from Hon. Foday E. Fahnbulleh, Chairman of the House Specialized Committee on the Implementation of the Access Agreement. The session, scheduled for Tuesday, December 2, 2025, at 1:00 p.m., will bring together the Ministers of Justice and Foreign Affairs, along with senior officials from the National Investment Commission (NIC) and the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning (MFDP), to face scrutiny from the Joint Committee on Investment & Concessions, Judiciary, and Transport.
The inquiry centers on the Liberia–Guinea Implementation Agreement (IA), signed on October 21, 2019, and ratified in May 2021, a pact that provides the legal framework for the shared use of rail and port infrastructure, including cross-border transport of mining ore through Liberia. Under the accord, Guinean mining operators may access Liberian rail and port corridors, particularly the Yekepa–Buchanan railway, to ship minerals to global markets.
The move by lawmakers comes amid growing unease that despite subsequent domestic agreements, key obligations under the IA remain unfulfilled or inadequately documented. During a recent session, the upper chamber of the Legislature, the Senate of Liberia, halted consideration of a major rail access deal with Ivanhoe Liberia Ltd. until proof is provided that all procedural and treaty-related requirements were met. The Senate’s action followed warnings that Liberia risks diplomatic and legal exposure if it proceeds without full compliance.
Lawmakers on the Joint Committee, chaired by Representative Foday E. Fahnbulleh, are expected to press the invited officials on several fronts: status of bilateral approvals, compliance with joint technical oversight, and concrete progress toward rehabilitating or expanding rail/port infrastructure. According to the session notice, the aim is to assess “the level of compliance” and determine whether Liberia’s actions remain “fully aligned with the terms of the agreement.”
The timing of this summons coincides with growing national debate over a domestic deal signed earlier this year between the Government of Liberia and Ivanhoe Liberia Ltd., a subsidiary of a foreign mining concern. That Concession and Access Agreement (CAA) seeks to grant the company rights to use Liberian rail and port infrastructure for Guinean ore export, but critics argue that the CAA may sidestep the oversight structures mandated by the 2019 IA.
Supporters of the CAA, including government ministers, maintain that all necessary approvals under the IA, from both Liberia and Guinea, were secured, and that the pact serves domestic purposes by enabling a multi-user rail policy and opening up economic opportunities for Liberia under the ongoing infrastructure drive.
Yet, in recent weeks, reports have emerged that Guinea may be pursuing its own railway development plans, raising doubt about its willingness to continue using Liberian corridors. Some lawmakers warn that without fresh, explicit consent from Guinea for this new deal, Liberia risks violating treaty obligations, potentially undermining trust and regional cooperation.
The summoned ministers and officials are expected to deliver a full account of diplomatic communications, copies of relevant approvals, records of technical reviews and oversight committee meetings, and any studies conducted on infrastructure capacity, environmental impact, and financial forecasts.
