Liberia: More Than Half of Arrest Agenda Programs Inactive

14 January 2026
Liberian Observer (Monrovia)
By David a. Yates

Naymote Partners for Democratic Development has raised serious concerns over the slow pace of Liberia's national development agenda, revealing that more than half of the Government's ARREST Agenda for Inclusive Development (AAID) interventions remain inactive or lack sufficient data for verification.

The findings are detailed in Naymote's 2025 President Meter Report, the first independent and evidence-based assessment of President Joseph Nyuma Boakai Sr.'s implementation of the AAID during its inaugural year.

The report, officially presented by Naymote Executive Director Eddie D. Jarwolo, assessed government performance from January to December 2025, one year after the launch of the national development blueprint on January 15, 2025. It evaluated 378 interventions across 52 core programs and six strategic pillars, providing a comprehensive picture of progress, shortcomings, and systemic challenges.

According to the report, only three interventions (0.8 percent) were fully completed in 2025. While 165 interventions (43.7 percent) showed some level of progress, 76 interventions (20.1 percent) had not started at all. An additional 134 interventions (35.4 percent) could not be rated due to insufficient publicly available information.

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Overall, Naymote concluded that 55.5 percent of AAID programs are either inactive or unverifiable, raising urgent questions about government coordination, transparency, and implementation capacity.

Speaking on the findings, Jarwolo said, "This report shows that while the ARREST Agenda is ambitious and well-structured, the speed of execution is simply not sufficient to deliver meaningful results within the promised timeframe. Urgent corrective actions are required if the agenda is to translate into tangible improvements in the lives of Liberians." He warned that at the current pace, implementation would need to accelerate more than twenty-fold to meet the 2029 targets.

The President Meter Report highlighted uneven performance across the six strategic pillars. Governance and Anti-Corruption recorded one of the highest activation rates at 56.9 percent, followed by Environmental Sustainability (56.7 percent) and Infrastructure Development (55.3 percent). Naymote attributed these gains to ongoing digital governance reforms, donor-supported climate initiatives, and visible infrastructure projects.

In contrast, Human Capital Development (36.7 percent) and Economic Transformation (35 percent) were the weakest-performing pillars, constrained by underfunding, weak inter-ministerial coordination, and limited public reporting by implementing agencies.

The report also flagged persistent challenges in service delivery outside Monrovia. Assessments of County Service Centers revealed that over 60 percent of core government services remain unavailable beyond the capital, reinforcing concerns that decentralization continues to lag. Naymote stressed that without deeper decentralization of authority and resources, rural populations will remain excluded from the benefits promised under the ARREST Agenda.

Despite the overall slow pace, the report highlighted notable achievements, including the establishment of the War and Economic Crimes Court office, rollout of biometric national identification for over 710,000 citizens, pilot e-procurement systems, key legislative reforms, and targeted investments in agriculture, energy, and tourism.

Jarwolo emphasized that these gains demonstrate that meaningful results are possible when political will, institutional capacity, and adequate resources are aligned, adding, "These successes should serve as a model for accelerating progress across other sectors."

In response to the findings, Naymote called for urgent reforms, including the establishment of a dedicated AAID coordination secretariat, mandatory quarterly public reporting by all implementing institutions, strengthened budget execution, and deeper decentralization to ensure equitable service delivery nationwide.

Produced under Naymote's Democracy Advancement Program with support from the Embassy of Sweden and Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), the report makes clear that the views expressed are solely those of Naymote and do not necessarily reflect the positions of its partners.

Jarwolo concluded, "The President Meter is not about assigning blame. It is about tracking promises, measuring performance, and ensuring that Liberians can hold their government accountable for the commitments it has made."

Naymote also announced that it will continue quarterly monitoring of the ARREST Agenda through 2029, publishing findings publicly and engaging government institutions, civil society, media, and citizens to promote transparency and results-driven governance.

Read the original article on Liberian Observer.

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