By: Julius Konton
The Ministry of Mines and Energy through a joint intergovernmental partnership, has begun conducting a risk assessment survey across the Country.
Among other things, the survey centered around illicit financial flows, money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation in financing in the Artisanal and Small-scale Mining sub-sector.
The exercise kicked off on Tuesday, September 9, 2025, in Tappita mining district, Nimba County, and will later move over to small-scale mining communities in Grand Gedeh County.
In separate remarks at a brief introductory ceremony held at the Tappita City Palaver Hut, representatives from the Mines and Energy Ministry, the Financial Intelligence Agency (FIA), and the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC), informed respondents that the assessment survey intends to feed into an informed decision essential to efforts by the national government to combat illegal financial transactions in small-scale mining.
Respondents participating in the survey are providing information through questionnaire distributed amongst them concerning a series of financial transactions and security-related issues they have noticed as potential reasons why individuals get involved with perpetrating acts of illicit financial dealings in small-scale mining operations.
The Respondents include mineral brokers, dealers, traders or processors (jewelry shops), local government authorities, miners, and national security agencies comprising the Liberia National Police (LNP), Liberia Immigration Service (LIS), and the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA).
Funded through development partnership from the German non-governmental organization – GIZ, the illicit financial flows risk assessment survey is being jointly carried out by the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME), the Financial Intelligence Agency (FIA), Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC), and the Central Bank of Liberia (CBL).
Meanwhile, The next leg of the survey will reach out to other counties and mining regions of the Country.
