MONROVIA – The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private investment arm of the World Bank, delayed the release of a damning internal report on the Salala Rubber Corporation (SRC) plantation in Liberia for more than a year, a delay that allowed the plantation’s former owner to sell the business before the findings were made public, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) has revealed.
In an investigative report published in April 2025, ICIJ disclosed that the IFC postponed submitting its required action plan in response to the findings “for over a year until mid-January,” despite internal rules requiring submission within 50 business days. By the time the report was eventually released in mid-March, the previous owner had already divested, handing control of the plantation to a new company.
“For over a year, the World Bank’s private investment arm delayed the release of a damning internal report,” the ICIJ stated. “By the time the IFC released the report in mid-March, the business’s former owner had divested, handing control of the plantation to a new owner.”
The plantation, located in central Liberia, has for years been at the center of allegations involving forced displacement, pollution, poor labor conditions, and intimidation of residents. Communities affected by SRC’s operations told ICIJ they see the sale as a strategy by both the IFC and the former owner, the Luxembourg-based Socfin group, to avoid responsibility for past abuses.
Community representatives argued that the move allowed Socfin and IFC “to minimize their responsibility for addressing harm done to workers and plantation residents,” according to the ICIJ report.
A 108-page investigation conducted by the IFC’s internal watchdog in December 2023 found that the organization had failed to adequately “assess and monitor the environmental and social risks and impacts” of SRC’s operations. The findings highlighted systemic shortcomings in IFC’s due diligence processes, particularly concerning community rights and environmental protection.
Renowned Liberian human rights lawyer Alfred Brownell, who has advocated for affected communities, sharply criticized IFC’s conduct.
“The harm is because of their lack of due care, due diligence. They had responsibilities and they failed in those responsibilities,” Brownell told ICIJ.
Since the sale of the plantation, conditions for workers and residents have reportedly worsened. The ICIJ noted that contractors are now earning less, movement around the plantation is more restricted, and police have issued threats to workers and community members.
The IFC, which invested in SRC in 2008, has faced growing scrutiny over its involvement in controversial projects worldwide. Critics argue that its failure to act swiftly in the Salala case reflects a broader pattern of weak accountability mechanisms within the institution.
The Liberian government has not issued a formal statement in response to the revelations. However, local civil society groups are calling for renewed investigations into the sale and for reparations for communities affected by years of alleged rights violations.
The ICIJ report underscores the lingering legacy of foreign investments in Liberia’s agricultural sector and how delays and inaction by powerful financial institutions can deepen harm to vulnerable communities.
Source: http://International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ)
