–As LTM Takes Over Licensing and Registrations from Transport Ministry
By Jerromie S. Walters
Monrovia: Some 265 employees at Liberia’s Ministry of Transport face imminent job losses as the Liberia Traffic Management (LTM) takes full charge of issuing driver’s licenses and vehicle registrations across Liberia today, July 14, 2025. The Ministry of Transport was created by an Act of the National Legislature on August 25, 1987, to formulate and administer the transport, insurance, and maritime regulations and policies of Liberia.
These include the oversight responsibility for the execution of policies relating to land, sea, and air transport services operating within the country. It is also mandated to ensure strict adherence to insurance standards and regulations in collaboration with insurance agencies operating in the country.
The Ministry has two Departments containing several divisions each namely: the Department of Administration and Management and the Department of Land Transport Regulatory Services.
The Department of Land Transport Regulatory Services contains the Division of Driver’s License, Division of Motor Vehicle & License plate, Division of Motorcycle & Tricycle, Division of Inspectorate, Division of Land Transport, Division of Waterway & Rail, and the Division of Road Safety Secretariat. With the coming of the Liberia Traffic Management (LTM) and its responsibility of issuing driver’s licenses and vehicle registrations, the functions of the Division of Driver’s License, Division of Motor Vehicle & License plate at the Ministry of Transport appear disabled.
Officials say these departments contain nothing less than 265 staff. Also, some employees of these departments informed this paper that they were asked to show up to work every day even after the LTM’s takeover today, and they would be paid as required. However, the employees are baffled about how long said will continue, especially when their departments will be shut down considering that the duties attached to them have been given to the LTM.
Moreover, this paper has established that the Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA) “Banking Hall” room within the Ministry of Transport where driver’s licenses and vehicle registration payments were made was shut down since Wednesday, July 9, 2025. The coming of the Liberia Traffic Management (LTM) also led to a chaotic experience in Central Monrovia on Thursday when peaceful protesting Transport Ministry employees met violent police resistance during their march against the impending transfer.
The Birth of LTM:
The Liberia Traffic Management (LTM) takeover of these key functions traditionally performed by the Ministry of Transport follows President Joseph Boakai’s recent public endorsement of the government’s concession agreement with LTM, solidifying the administration’s position despite controversies surrounding the arrangement.
The current concession traces back to 2018 when Liberia’s government first granted LTM exclusive authority to develop and manage the nation’s complete traffic management infrastructure. The sweeping agreement covered multiple critical systems including traffic violation processing, vehicle towing operations, urban parking solutions, automotive inspections, and driver certification programs. Additional provisions required LTM to establish specialized facilities for license plate production while implementing modernized systems for both driver licensing and vehicle registration nationwide.
This concession faced unexpected complications in June 2020 when the Transport Ministry independently entered into a competing Public-Private Partnership with Modern Development Management Corporation (MDMC). The conflicting agreement assigned MDMC nearly identical responsibilities for vehicle registration and licensing systems, creating immediate legal tensions with LTM’s established contractual rights. LTM management swiftly challenged what they viewed as a direct infringement on their legally protected concessions.
After failed negotiation attempts, the company pursued formal legal action by filing a Petition for Declaratory Judgment against multiple parties including the Liberian government, MDMC, and the Liberia Bank for Development and Investment. The Civil Law Court initially dismissed the petition based on procedural technicalities related to arbitration requirements, prompting LTM to escalate their appeal to the Supreme Court where the matter remained unresolved throughout the remainder of former President Weah’s term.
The political transition in 2024 brought renewed attention to the lingering dispute when President Boakai’s administration ordered an urgent legal review of the competing contracts. Justice Ministry attorneys conducted an exhaustive analysis that ultimately determined the MDMC agreement unlawfully conflicted with LTM’s legislatively-ratified concession. Their formal opinion stressed that only the LTM contract carried full legal standing as it had been properly approved through legislative channels, unlike the MDMC arrangement which lacked similar ratification.
Based on these findings, the Justice Minister recommended immediate termination of all government dealings with MDMC, formal notification of the agreement’s invalidity, and full implementation of the original LTM concession terms. The Executive Mansion officially adopted these recommendations in October 2024, communicating the decision to both affected companies while directing relevant agencies to comply.
Legislative support for this resolution came in December 2024 when the Liberian Senate completed its own thorough investigation into the matter. Their December 17 report strongly reaffirmed LTM’s contractual rights while explicitly criticizing the Transport Ministry for improperly entering into the competing MDMC agreement. Senate leaders formally advised President Boakai to fully support LTM’s operations moving forward.
Despite these clear directives, observers noted the Transport Ministry appeared to disregard the established position when it published a December 2024 bid solicitation for services that directly overlapped with LTM’s mandated responsibilities. The controversial bidding process, which included license plate production and system automation components originally slated to run through January 2025, was abruptly terminated when the ministry removed the posting from its website – an action many interpreted as reluctant compliance following earlier defiance.
The matter reached its conclusion when President Boakai personally intervened through a formal communication to Transport Minister Sirleaf Tyler. The presidential directive left no room for interpretation, explicitly confirming the LTM agreement’s validity while ordering the Justice Minister to oversee its complete and immediate implementation across all government entities.
Ex-Official Criticizes The Decision:
Former Deputy Minister for Administration at Liberia’s Ministry of Transport, J. Ebenezer Kolliegbo, has criticized the government’s decision to transfer vehicle registration and driver’s licensing operations to the Liberia Traffic Management (LTM), a foreign-controlled private company. Kolliegbo, who previously oversaw the ministry’s administrative functions, expressed deep concern that this decision effectively strips the Transport Ministry of one of its most important and revenue-generating responsibilities.
He emphasized that these functions have historically and legally belonged to the Ministry of Transport, questioning both the legality and transparency of the transfer process. “The complete lack of public discussion or legislative debate surrounding this move suggests there may be ulterior motives at play beyond simple modernization efforts,” Kolliegbo stated.
The former official raised serious questions about several aspects of the arrangement, including the ownership structure of LTM, the legal justification for bypassing the Transport Ministry, and whether proper procedures were followed.
He pointed out that in functional democracies, such significant changes to government operations would typically involve public hearings, thorough investigations, and legislative oversight. “Instead, what we’re seeing appears to be yet another opaque deal that primarily benefits a select few individuals or entities,” Kolliegbo remarked, drawing parallels to Liberia’s history of controversial resource and infrastructure concessions.
Highlighting the legal contradictions in the government’s position, Kolliegbo noted that while authorities cited the 1972 Vehicle and Traffic Law – which originally placed licensing under the Justice Ministry – a subsequent 1987 Act explicitly assigned all transport-related functions to the Transport Ministry. He questioned why the government chose privatization over strengthening the ministry’s capacity, pointing out that even Liberia’s 2011 Transport Master Plan had proposed creating an autonomous agency for licensing rather than outsourcing to a private foreign firm.
Kolliegbo warned that Liberia is developing a dangerous pattern of weakening public institutions by transferring essential state functions to private entities without proper transparency or accountability. “Each time we hand over another core government responsibility to private interests, we further erode our governance structures,” he said. “Where does this end? Will we soon see traffic enforcement and other critical transport sector functions also being run by private corporations with questionable oversight?”
The former deputy minister called on the government to immediately provide full transparency regarding several key issues. These include disclosing the complete ownership details and contractual terms of LTM, explaining the legal basis for bypassing the Transport Ministry, confirming whether legislative approval was obtained, and outlining what safeguards have been implemented to prevent potential abuses. “The Liberian people deserve clear answers to these fundamental questions,” Kolliegbo insisted. “Without proper transparency and accountability, this appears to be less about genuine reform and more about enabling private interests to capture state functions.”
Police IG Assesses LTM’s Readiness:
On Wednesday, July 9, 2025, Police Inspector General Gregory Coleman led a delegation to inspect the Liberia Traffic Management (LTM) headquarters in Paynesville. The visit formed part of final preparations ahead of LTM’s scheduled takeover of all driver’s licenses and vehicle registration services this coming Saturday, July 13. During the facility tour, the police team thoroughly examined operational systems and held crucial discussions with LTM executives about transition readiness.
The Liberia National Police released an official statement reaffirming their commitment to ensuring a seamless transfer of responsibilities that benefits all Liberian citizens. The notice specifically directed that beginning July 13, all valid driving documents must originate exclusively from LTM offices located near the SKD Sports Complex, warning that licenses or registrations obtained elsewhere would be deemed illegitimate and subject to police enforcement.
The police clarification provides some reassurance to motorists by confirming that documents issued before the July 13 deadline would maintain their validity until expiration. “This transition marks a pivotal step in Liberia’s pursuit of enhanced road safety, administrative accountability, and centralized traffic management,” the LNP statement emphasized while urging public cooperation with the impending changes.
However, Police Inspector General Gregory Coleman has since been accused of having a share in the Liberia Traffic Management (LTM). This paper can not confirm whether this claim is authentic or not.
