Monrovia — The Government of Liberia is under growing public and political pressure after the Monrovia and Paynesville City Corporations included Zoomlion Ghana Limited on the shortlist of companies bidding for a lucrative 20-year solid waste management contract for the Greater Monrovia Area.
The move is raising serious concerns about transparency, good governance, and the sincerity of President Joseph Boakai's much-publicized "war on corruption."
According to the official Request for Proposal (RFP), obtained by FrontPage Africa, Zoomlion Ghana Limited was shortlisted alongside five other companies--Carlson, Gulf Energy Environmental Services Co. Ltd, Zircon Industrial Engineering, Talwa Sanitation & Alternative Energy, and Global Green Energy and Power Corporation Ltd--for a comprehensive solid waste and infrastructure development project covering Monrovia and Paynesville.
The project, spanning two decades, is one of the largest waste management undertakings in Liberia's history and comes at a time when the government is under pressure to deliver on its promises of reform, job creation, and accountable leadership. Critics argue that including a company with a history of corruption in Liberia -- and one that has been rejected by its home country -- sends the wrong message at a critical time in the Boakai administration.
Follow us on WhatsApp | LinkedIn for the latest headlines
Zoomlion Ghana Limited is no stranger to controversy. In 2013, the World Bank debarred the company for two years for corrupt practices in Liberia. Specifically, Zoomlion admitted to paying bribes to a government official during the implementation of the World Bank-financed Emergency Monrovia Urban Sanitation Project.
The fallout from that scandal was significant, with Zoomlion's reputation badly damaged across the region. More recently, the company's operations in Ghana have come under scrutiny, prompting public protests, media investigations, and the termination of major contracts.
An investigative report by Ghanaian journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni, backed by the country's Auditor-General, revealed systemic financial irregularities, poor service delivery, and the exploitation of sanitation workers under government contracts.
Despite this history, Zoomlion is now in contention for a 20-year public-private partnership that will shape the future of urban sanitation in Liberia's two largest municipalities.
Bomi County Senator Edwin Melvin Snowe is leading the charge against the potential awarding of the contract to Zoomlion. During a recent session of the Liberian Senate, Senator Snowe expressed his alarm at the possibility of re-engaging the company, arguing that the move would reflect poorly on the government's commitment to fighting corruption and supporting Liberian enterprises.
"Zoomlion has a history in Liberia. They operated here before. It was a major situation," Snowe said. "Now we're getting ready to sign a 20-year contract with them to clean garbage in Monrovia? Even the Ghanaians are throwing that company out of Ghana."
Senator Snowe's comments reference Ghana's decision to sever ties with Zoomlion following mounting allegations of financial mismanagement and labor rights violations.
He warned that proceeding with Zoomlion would not only be a policy misstep but an ethical one -- undermining Liberia's credibility with international partners and donors.
Senator Snowe has formally requested that the Senate Plenary deliberate on the issue and issue a resolution urging the Monrovia and Paynesville City Corporations to disqualify Zoomlion. He also proposed that civil society actors--particularly from the WASH sector--be included on the bid evaluation committee to promote transparency and accountability.
The Liberia Civil Society Organizations WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) Network joined the chorus of concern, issuing a strong statement on July 7 calling for Zoomlion's immediate disqualification from the bidding process.
Citing a series of audit findings from Ghana's Auditor-General and reports from The Fourth Estate, the network revealed that Zoomlion had received over GH¢40 million (about US$3.3 million) between 2017 and 2020 for services that were either poorly executed or not delivered at all.
One particular audit noted a GH¢9.8 million payment to Zoomlion without a formal contract, and another GH¢30.5 million for unverified work. "These revelations should disqualify any company from further public procurement engagements, let alone in another country," said George B. Karyah, Secretary General of the WASH CSOs Network. "Liberia risks international embarrassment by seriously considering a firm with such a checkered past."
The WASH Network also raised alarm about the company's labor record, referencing protests by sanitation workers in Accra who claimed they had gone months without pay. Demonstrators, many of them frontline sanitation workers, held signs reading, "Zoomlion, no pay no work" and "Pay us our arrears," highlighting long-standing grievances about wage theft and exploitation.
Civil society groups and lawmakers alike are urging the Boakai administration to rethink its approach to the waste management contract. Many are calling for the inclusion of capable Liberian-owned companies, stressing that empowering local firms would not only boost the economy but also help build domestic capacity for future infrastructure projects.
"There is no justification for excluding Liberian firms from such an important contract," said Senator Snowe. "Why import a corruption-stained company from another country to do what qualified Liberians can do themselves?"
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
President Boakai's administration has made anti-corruption one of its central priorities, promising to clean up government and restore public trust. Yet this controversy over the waste management contract is being seen as an early and serious test of that commitment.
"This government has promised to break from the corrupt practices of the past," said a governance expert who spoke on condition of anonymity. "Allowing a company that was banned by the World Bank for corruption in Liberia to return and secure a 20-year contract would send the exact opposite message."
Critics argue that if the Boakai administration allows the contract to go forward with Zoomlion, it will not only damage the president's reformist image but also risk alienating international donors and agencies like the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), both of which prioritize transparency in public-private partnerships.
As the bidding process enters its final stages, all eyes are now on the Monrovia and Paynesville City Corporations, and ultimately on President Boakai. Whether or not Zoomlion is awarded the contract could serve as a defining moment for the administration's credibility.
The decision will not only determine the future of waste management in Monrovia and Paynesville--it will send a powerful message about whether Liberia is truly turning a page in the fight against corruption, or merely flipping through the same old playbook.
