Monrovia, Liberia – Gbarpolu County Senator and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Public Accounts and Audit, Amara Konneh, has accused distributors of intentionally sustaining excessive costs on the native market regardless of progress made by the Authorities of Liberia (GOL) in stabilizing the financial system.
By Obediah Johnson
In an announcement posted to his official Fb web page on Monday, September 15, Senator Konneh mentioned his current visits to a number of weekend markets revealed that client costs stay stubbornly excessive, despite the fact that each the change charge and inflation have improved considerably.
“Yesterday, I visited just a few weekend markets to achieve perception into the persistence of excessive client costs, even with current enhancements in each inflation and change charge metrics,” Konneh wrote. “My findings underscore a sophisticated set of structural and behavioral components which might be hindering the federal government’s efforts to attain important value reduction for Liberians.”
Financial Progress, However No Reduction
In line with Konneh, beneath the management of Central Financial institution Governor Henry Saamoi, inflation has dropped from 13.1% in February 2025 to 7.4% in July 2025, whereas the Liberian greenback has strengthened towards the U.S. greenback.
Regardless of these positive factors, he famous, distributors stay unwilling to decrease costs. He described the phenomenon as “value stickiness,” the place costs rise rapidly however fall slowly, usually because of worry of future losses.
“Distributors are voicing issues concerning the sustainability of enhancements within the change charge and the long-term stability of the Liberian greenback,” Konneh defined.
Why Costs Stay Excessive
Konneh outlined a number of components stopping value reductions:
- Excessive borrowing prices: The Central Financial institution has maintained a Financial Coverage Fee of 17.25%, making commerce financing costly.
- Outdated stock: Importers are nonetheless offloading items bought at larger costs, together with rice, which President Joseph Boakai had promised would drop to US$14 per bag.
- Dependence on imports: Liberia’s reliance on overseas items makes it weak to world and seasonal provide disruptions, particularly through the wet season.
- Casual market dominance: With over 80% of Liberians buying and selling within the casual sector, implementing value laws and tax compliance is tough.
He added that whereas remittance inflows reached US$425.9 million within the first half of 2025—injecting extra {dollars} into the financial system—customers have but to see any profit within the type of cheaper items.
A Name for Coverage Motion
Konneh pressured that the disconnect between constructive macroeconomic indicators and stagnant market costs leaves Liberians annoyed and raises questions for policymakers.
“Ought to the federal government undertake extra proactive methods to stabilize costs and promote reductions, or would permitting the market to regulate steadily by itself show more practical?” he requested.
To seek out solutions, the senator mentioned he has urged his colleagues—particularly these on the Senate Committees on Banking and Forex, Methods and Means, and Commerce—to convene discussions with the Central Financial institution, Ministry of Commerce, and Ministry of Finance and Improvement Planning.
Although the Senate is presently in recess, Konneh emphasised that the problem requires pressing consideration to assist President Boakai’s value discount initiative and be certain that reforms deliver tangible reduction to abnormal Liberians.
“Via coordinated efforts and structural reforms, we are able to understand the total potential of our macroeconomic enhancements and restore confidence in Liberia’s market,” he mentioned.
