A Country Ripe for Investing O. Natty B. Davis, II Chairman The National Investment Commission

A Country Ripe for Investing

O. Natty B. Davis, IIChairman

The National Investment Commission

National Investment Commission Government of Liberia

• A newly emerging and secure market

• “Development” based opportunities (energy, roads, water and sanitation)

• A market-driven, investor-friendly environment that is steadily improving, thereby making it easy to grow and develop your business

• Strategically located along the coast of West Africa thereby granting investors access to the largest and fastest-growing markets in the world

The Government & development partners have allocated expenditure > US$0.5B toward infrastructure over the next 3 years.

Liberia: A Unique Opportunity for Investors


Strategically Located to Easily Access the Global Market

• The domestic market is limited to approx. 4 million consumers; however the need to rebuild the economy means there are many opportunities

• The regional markets furnished by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), includes 250 million consumers, and the Mano River Union (MRU) with 40 million

• Other major markets, including the European Union, China and the United States. – Preferential treatment under the EU’s Everything But Arms

(EBA) initiative, and the US Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA)


A Politically & Economically Stable Environment with Significant FDI Inflow


The Private Sector is the Engine for Growth and Development

Committed to Creating an Investor Friendly Country

A comprehensive Commercial Code to strengthen the country’s business environment. The new code clearly sets out the provisions for sales, leases, financial leases, mortgages, secured transactions and commercial arbitration.

The government, private sector and international institutions work together:

-The Liberia Better Business Forum (LBBF) to achieve measurable enhancement of the business enabling environment for private sector activity

-The Business Reform Committee (BRC) to reduce unnecessary regulations, simplify processes, and generally make it easier to do business in Liberia


Guiding Investors through the Liberian Marketplace

The National Investment Commission’s (NIC’s) current mandate is to promote Liberia’s many investment opportunities, attract and support the growth of value-adding foreign direct investments (FDIs), and advocate for and strengthen the domestic private sector.

The NIC’s Role- Chair’s the government’s Business Reform Committee-Member of the Liberia Better Business Forum-Chair’s the Inter-Ministerial Concessions Committee (IMCC)-Chair of the Commissioner’s meeting, which approves investment incentive contracts above USD 10 million

Development & Investment Strategy•Creating “economic growth and development corridors” by clustering investments in strategic areas•Privatize key state-owned enterprises (SOEs)


Public Private Partnerships

What We Seek•Private sector participation to facilitate the reconstruction, development and modernization of infrastructure.

The Port SectorExperience: The Freeport of Monrovia – The National Port Authority (NPA) operates as the “landlord” while the private sector (APM Terminals) operates the infrastructure on a PPP basis. (Signed Sept. 2010)

Buchanan Port334 meters long and with a depth of 9.5 meters (Buchanan Renewables, container and general cargo)

Greenville PortHas two quays and two berthing facilities, 70 and 180 meters long, with a depth of 6 meters.

Harper Port100-meter pier with an available water depth of 5.5 meters


Public Private Partnerships, cont.

Roberts International Airport State of the art, modern airport structure

Housing and Urban Development Environmentally-appropriate developments throughout Monrovia (1.2M population) and along growth corridors

Road network An estimated 2,400 km of feeder roads, which require rehabilitation and repair


Public Private Partnership

The Energy SectorExperience: Management Contract awarded to Manitoba Hydro International (MHI) to bring the Liberia Electric Company (LEC) up to a level of full functionality as a power utility. MHI receives a fee of US$8.2 million over five years, paid by development partners. (Signed April 2010)

Energy needs for concessions also present a sizable market (over 700MW in total at full operation).

Energy Generation OptionsSeeking a mix of energy sources: Biomass-fired power, HFO-fired and diesel plants, Solar-power, Hydro-power


Transport

What We Seek-Create thousands of jobs in the sea and ground transport sector-Upgrade workforce through skills development, in fields such as engineering (sea) and car mechanics-Safely reduce the travel time for passengers

Market Opportunities•Strong demand for sea transport to link coastal cities •Access to financing is needed for truck purchasing (finance leasing opportunities)•Trucking modernization may attract outsourcing needs for large concessions.


Tree Crops

What We Seek-Creation of thousands of jobs and engagement of households-Focus on small to mid-size entrepreneurs (e.g. land rehabilitation, value addition opportunities and resource pooling) -Upgrade workforce through skills development

Market Opportunities

•3 major tree crops (rubber, palm oil and cocoa) have steady or increasing demand with rising prices on the international market•New investments in cocoa are needed.

Rubber is Liberia’s biggest export.


Horticulture

What We Seek•Engage out-growers•Add value to raw materials •Demonstrate industrial capabilities•Build access to market in developed countries & expose the sector to stringent quality & traceability standards•Develop skilled workers

Market Opportunities

•Growing demand for fruit juices, concentrates and canned sliced pineapples.


Fisheries

What We Seek•Engage smallholder livelihood; currently 37,000 Liberians engaged in fishing and processing. •Raise significant export revenue and license revenue immediately. •Vitalize fishery industry and reduce wastage.

Market Opportunities•Facilities for post-catch storage, processing, and handling for artisanal fishing•Middle-scale processor with modern storage and processing facilities


Investment Incentives

• Incentives are available to foreign and domestic investors for approved investment projects in priority areas, such as the following, defined by the government:– Tourism carried out through tourist resorts, hotels, and cultural

sites,– Manufacturing of finished products having at least 60 percent local

raw material content, – Energy, – Hospitals and medical clinics, – Low- and medium-income housing, – Air, sea, rail, and road transport infrastructure, – High impact information and communications technology, and– Banking in the non-bank areas in the southeastern region.

• Investments in excess of USD 10 million are eligible for incentive packages through the Investment Commission

• Economically viable and strategically located investments up to USD 20 million are eligible for the following incentives:


Exemptions from trade taxes: - Equipment and machinery,

raw materials, capital spare parts, and other goods to be used in the project are exempted from import duty up to 100 percent of their dutiable value.

- A customs user fee of 1.5% plus ECOWAS trade levy of .5% is applicable.

Tax deductions: - The cost of equipment and machinery

used in the year the asset is placed into service is eligible for a tax deduction of up to 30 %

- The construction cost of a new hotel or tourist resort is eligible for a tax deduction of up to 30%,

- The cost of buildings and fixtures used to manufacture finished products with at least 20% local raw materials is eligible for a tax deduction of up to 10%.

Investment Incentives, cont.


Documents

A Country Ripe for Investing O. Natty B. Davis, II Chairman The National Investment Commission