The President of Liberia, Joseph N. Boakai, has announced the establishment of a multi-agency committee to investigate the exportation of unprocessed natural rubber. This issue has been contentious within the rubber industry.
The committee will be led by Agriculture Minister Alexander Nuetah and includes Commerce and Industry Minister Amin Modad, Justice Minister N. Oswald Tweh, National Investment Commission Chairman Jeff Blibo, and Senior Economic Advisor Sahr Johnny.
President Boakai emphasized the urgency of this investigation and requested a detailed report upon its conclusion.
The controversy over exporting unprocessed natural rubber dates back to November 2023 when Executive Order #124 was issued by the previous government. This order imposed a moratorium on such exports from Liberia.
The moratorium applies to various forms of unprocessed natural rubber including natural latex, coagulum, cup lump, tree lace, bark scrap, ground scrap, and concentrated latex or dry rubber produced from rubber trees.
Under this order, several government ministries were instructed to halt the issuance of export permits for these materials.
Alerts Sign-up