Profile of the Minister Amara

Amara M. Konneh is Liberia’s first Minister of Finance and Development Planning, having previously served concurrently as Minister of Planning and Economic Affairs and Minister of Finance from January 2012 to June 2014. He is a core member of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf's Economic Management Team and is credited with stabilizing the Liberian economy from the effects of a protracted civil war and, from the more recent effects of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak.

With the EVD having halted the implementation of the AfT and dropped the nation’s economic growth rate from a projection of 5.9 percent to zero percent, Minister Konneh worked with stakeholders in government to maintain macroeconomic stability during the crisis, resulting in stable exchange rate and inflation in spite of a sharp decline in economic growth. He also coordinated the robust Ebola response effort along with key stakeholders, and spearheaded the mobilization of financial and non-financial resources for the Ebola effort from government, bilateral and multilateral partners, NGOs, state owned enterprises and the private sector.

He provided oversight of the Ebola Trust Fund, ensuring that all Ebola response agencies received timely resources and accounted for them; while also leading his team to maintain consistent salary payments for the entire civil service (including furloughed staff) throughout the crisis.

In the midst of the crisis, he led the effort to develop a post-Ebola Economic Stabilization and Recovery Plan (ESRP) to reverse the socioeconomic effects of the epidemic and resume implementation of the national development plan, the Agenda for Transformation (AfT); and coordinated efforts to reprioritize the AfT, to achieve optimum impact over the last two years of Her Excellency, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf’s Administration.

Mr. Konneh is also National Coordinator of the Liberia Development Alliance (LDA) that coordinates the implementation of Liberia’s development agenda, the Agenda for Transformation (AfT, 2012 - 2017). As National Coordinator of the LDA’s predecessor program, the Liberian Development and Reconstruction Committee (LRDC), he also successfully coordinated the implementation of the Lift Liberia Poverty Reduction Strategy, the  administration's three year post-conflict platform from 2008 to 2011; and as well coordinated the formulation of Liberia's long term development perspective and first national vision, known as Liberia RISING 2030.

During his tenure at the Ministry of Finance, Konneh made great strides towards decentralization of payroll. He introduced for the first time in Liberia, the “Open Budget Initiative”-a platform through which citizens can access the budget and government spending, making Liberia the first country where ordinary citizens can now track spending to various sectors including health, education, infrastructure, etc. via mobile phones, on the Internet, through community radio stations and on an electronic billboard. He has made headlines for  rooting out corruption within the erstwhile Ministry of Finance and for championing the Open Budget Initiative.

He also ensured that Liberia’s post-war economic growth remained sustained in 2012 and 2013, with estimated real GDP growth of 8.9% and 8.7, respectively, led by mining, buoyant construction, and strong performance in services. Growth projection for 2014 was impressive, due in no small measure to macroeconomic stability and supported by further mining and agriculture related Foreign Direct Investments (FDI). However, the adverse effect of the Ebola Virus Disease on the national economy since the inception of the epidemic in July 2014, seriously threatens most of the gains sustained.

Through his leadership, he has also ensured full compliance with the Public Financial Management Act, by implementing its core regulations. Through his administration, Liberia produced for the first time a mid-term budget performance report and a year-end report that is being audited by the General Auditing Commission, a crucial compliance requirements of the Public Financial Management Act. Konneh has also worked to improve Liberia’s tax administration and has automated the chaotic voucher processing system at the Ministry of 
Finance that has improved the payment process and significant reduced duplication.

He is also credited for strengthening aid coordination mechanisms that realized increased aid on budget; developing a ten year National Human Capacity Development Strategy to reverse Liberia’s brain drain; harmonizing the activities of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) with the national development agenda; and promoting the use of Information and Communication Technologies for Development (ICT4D) that led to the landing of a $25 million Africa Coast to Europe (ACE) fiber optic high speed Internet cable in Liberia.

As Liberia's Alternate Governor to the World Bank and African Development Bank, Mr. Konneh played a key role in the waiver of Liberia's US $4.6 billion debt. He was instrumental in the cancellation of Liberia’s US $170 million debt obligation to the Paris Club, a small group of creditor nations. One of Konneh's major accomplishments as Minister of Planning and Economic Affairs was the development of Liberia’s three-year Millennium Challenge Account Threshold proposal, which led to the landmark negotiation with the United States Millennium Challenge Corporation for the approval of a US$15 million grant to reform land rights and access, increase girls’ primary education completion rate, and develop a trade policy regime consistent with regional standards. He is also credited for leading the efforts to restore to the Government of Liberia full authorizing authority over budget support garnered from the European Union (EU) that was previously administered by the EU office in Abidjan as a result of the Liberian conflict.

Over the years, Konneh has built strong relationships within Africa and key international institutions representing both Liberia and the African constituency in the replenishment negotiations for the African Development Fund and the International Development Association. In 2014 he took office as chairperson of the ECOWAS Investment and Development Bank; the first Liberian to hold such post. Recently, Konneh was appointed Chairman of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) African Group Constituency Group One, a 24-member grouping, for the next two years.

Hon. Konneh is a graduate of the prestigious John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University where he received a Master’s Degree in Public Administration with a concentration in political and economic development. He was named Finance Minister of the Year 2014 by The Banker magazine for his efforts to reform and grow the Liberian economy.