– But Rep. Musa Bility Complains of Legislative Sideline
By Shallon S. Gonlor
Zolowee Town, Nimba County – President Joseph Nyuma Boakai Thursday inaugurated ArcelorMittal-Liberia’s colossal $1.4 billion iron ore concentrator plant, marking Liberia’s largest private sector investment in a generation and signaling a new era of industrial growth for the West African nation.
The state-of-the-art facility at Mount Tokadeh represents the centerpiece of the steel giant’s Phase II expansion, poised to revolutionize Liberia’s mining sector through advanced ore processing technology that promises to nearly triple export value while creating over 6,000 direct and indirect jobs.
Standing before thousands of jubilant citizens, government officials, and ArcelorMittal executives, President Boakai framed the project as a testament to Liberia’s improving investment climate. “Today we witness how good governance and private enterprise can jointly transform a nation,” declared the President, flanked by Vice President Jeremiah Kpan Koung and AML’s global CEO.
The concentrator plant – which will process 15 million metric tons of iron ore annually – forms part of ArcelorMittal’s broader $3 billion commitment to Liberia under its extended Mineral Development Agreement. The investment has already delivered:
– 200 km of rehabilitated railroads connecting Nimba to Buchanan Port
– Upgraded electricity infrastructure benefiting 30 communities
– Vocational training centers producing 500 skilled workers annually
President Boakai struck a firm tone regarding corporate responsibilities, demanding AML honor its social obligations. “We will ensure every clause in the MDA is fulfilled – from local hiring quotas to community development funds,” he asserted, drawing cheers from residents of mining-affected areas.
The President spotlighted AML’s pending construction of three new hospitals and 50 scholarship slots for Nimba County students as benchmarks for responsible investment. “The wealth beneath our soil must translate to prosperity above it,” Boakai emphasized, announcing monthly oversight meetings between regulators, communities, and AML leadership.
The project positions Liberia as West Africa’s emerging iron ore hub, with analysts predicting 2.5% GDP growth in 2026 alone. Mines Minister Wilmot Paye revealed negotiations are underway with three additional mining firms seeking to replicate AML’s model.
While celebrating the economic windfall, Boakai issued a sober reminder: “This partnership isn’t charity – it’s a contract. We expect world-class environmental safeguards, first-preference hiring for Liberians, and transparent revenue reporting.” The government has deployed 15 mining inspectors to monitor compliance.
With first ore shipments scheduled for Q1 2026, focus now turns to: Finalizing the Buchanan Port expansion
– Training 2,000 equipment operators through AML’s new vocational institute
– Establishing a sovereign wealth fund to manage mineral revenues. As dusk fell over Mount Tokadeh, the President left the crowd with a vision: “Five years from today, let these hills remind us how vision, courage and partnership built a new Liberia.”
Meanwhile, Representative Musa Bility (District 5, Nimba County) says the Government of Liberia sidelined the county’s entire legislative caucus during President Joseph Nyuma Boakai’s high-profile trip today to ArcelorMittal’s iron-ore concession in Yekepa, where the company is “dedicating” a US $1.5 billion expansion project.
In an angry statement issued Tuesday morning, Bility described the snub as “dangerously dismissive of the legitimate concerns and constitutional roles of elected representatives of the people of Nimba,” noting that the visit comes just ten days after the 11-member caucus publicly criticized ongoing negotiations to amend the ArcelorMittal Mineral Development Agreement (MDA), which expires in 2029.
“Not a single invitation or consultation was extended to the caucus,” the lawmaker said. “Of the eleven members, only two are at the event—and even they went without the consent or mandate of the rest of us.”
Bility stressed that neither of Nimba’s two senators nor its nine representatives was formally engaged ahead of the presidential visit, despite the mine’s location in their constituency and the unresolved issues surrounding the MDA rewrite. Those issues include deplorable road conditions leading to the concession site, inadequate services in neighboring communities, and questions about revenue-sharing and local employment.
“I am not against the President visiting Nimba, nor against investment,” Bility clarified. “But development must be done in partnership with the people, not by disregarding them.”
The representative lamented what he called a “lost opportunity” to present the caucus’s concerns directly to President Weah and Vice President Jeremiah Koung. “Instead, we are left with pomp and pageantry without substance,” he said.
Bility warned that excluding local lawmakers could erode public trust and undermine the Legislature’s oversight role. “This sets a bad precedent,” he argued. “Our people deserve better.”
He called on the executive branch to “reassess its approach” to the MDA renegotiation and to “meaningfully involve the Nimba Caucus going forward.” He also urged Nimba residents to “stay alert and engaged” as talks continue.
Government spokespeople did not immediately respond to requests for comment, and ArcelorMittal Liberia has yet to address the caucus’s complaints. The steel giant says its expansion will triple production capacity, create roughly 2,000 construction jobs, and deliver “hundreds of millions of dollars” in additional revenue to Liberia over the next decade.
Whether that promise can be realized without the buy-in of Nimba’s elected officials—and the communities they represent—remains to be seen.
