The Liberian government has signed a 2.45 billion Japanese yen grant agreement (about $16 million) with Japan to rehabilitate a major roadway linking the Freeport of Monrovia to central sections of the capital, officials said Friday.
The agreement, concluded in Tokyo, provides financing for the reconstruction of the Freeport–Gabriel Tucker Bridge corridor, a 1.9-kilometer urban arterial route considered one of Monrovia’s most important commercial transport links.
Prince Tambah, Liberia’s deputy minister for technical services at the Ministry of Public Works, signed the contract following a week of meetings with the Japan International Cooperation Agency and Eight-Japan Engineering Consultants Inc.
The project will be carried out by Dai Nippon Construction, which will rehabilitate and reconstruct the dual-carriageway corridor leading to the Gabriel Tucker Bridge. According to the Ministry of Public Works, the contractor is expected to mobilize in May, with construction scheduled to begin in July. The project is expected to take about 26 months to complete.
Funded entirely through a grant from the Japanese government, the project reflects expanding infrastructure cooperation between Liberia and Japan.
Liberian officials said the rehabilitation is intended to ease congestion and improve the flow of goods moving between the Freeport of Monrovia — the country’s principal maritime gateway — and commercial districts in the capital. The work will also address chronic flooding that has long affected the corridor during the rainy season.
Mr. Tambah expressed appreciation for Japan’s financial and technical support, describing the project as an important step toward modernizing Liberia’s urban road network.
He also credited Liberia’s foreign minister, Sara Beysolow Nyanti, and the country’s ambassador to Japan, Edward Wade Appleton Jr., with helping to strengthen diplomatic ties that facilitated the agreement.
Officials at the Ministry of Public Works, including Minister Roland Lafette Giddings, were also acknowledged for advancing the project from planning to implementation.
When completed, the upgraded corridor is expected to improve transport efficiency, strengthen drainage infrastructure and support economic activity connected to the port, one of the country’s most important logistics hubs.
The project marks one of several recent efforts by Liberia to expand international partnerships to finance long-delayed infrastructure improvements in the capital.
