Liberia: 'Diversion of Resources'

Jan 14, 2015 | The NEWS
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When the international watchdog, Global Witness warned some years back that oil discovery in Liberia could become a blessing or curse, depending how the country manages its oil and gas sector, some folks in government thought that the group was meddling in the country's affairs.

Liberia is blessed with diverse natural resources, yet a country of about 4 million people, is rated amongst the world's poorest nations. This is unbelievable for a government that has the potential to improve the condition of its people; yet it is doing little. The evidence is inevitably strong and irrefutable.

Lack of proper financial management and inadequate fiscal probity at the National Oil Company of Liberia (NOCAL) and the British firm, TGS-NOPEC, a Geophysical Company that specializes in the acquisition, processing, management and marketing of geophysical data, entered a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on August 4, 2009 signed between TGS and NOCAL.