By: Julius Konton
Liberia has taken another major step toward strengthening public sector accountability and institutional efficiency, following the completion of a comprehensive civil service verification exercise covering the Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs and Tourism (MICAT) and the newly established Liberia National Tourism Authority (LNTA).
The findings, officially presented by the Civil Service Agency (CSA), Director General Dr. Josiah F. Joekai Jr. confirm a verified workforce, expose skills and placement gaps, and mark a critical milestone in Liberia’s long-running post-conflict civil service reform agenda aimed at eliminating ghost workers, improving payroll integrity, and professionalizing state institutions.
The verification exercise was led by CSA Director General Dr. Josiah F. Joekai, alongside a multidisciplinary team of human resource, payroll, and forensic credential specialists.
Over the past decade, successive administrations have intensified efforts to clean up government payrolls, enforce merit-based recruitment, and align staff qualifications with job roles.
The creation of the Liberia National Tourism Authority, carved out of MICAT’s former Culture and Tourism Department, represents a strategic shift to professionalize tourism governance and diversify Liberia’s economy beyond extractive industries.
To ensure credibility and continuity, the CSA undertook a data-driven verification to clearly distinguish staff remaining at Ministry of information from those transitioning to the LNTA.
“This was not a bulk transfer,” Dr. Joekai stressed. “It was a deliberate, evidence-based process to establish who is qualified, who is active, and where each employee properly belongs.”
Dr. Joekai described the exercise as a cornerstone of Liberia’s public sector reform agenda.
