Liberia Courts Caribbean Investors | Business

MONROVIA — Liberia is looking to the Caribbean for new investors and business partners, with Presidential Special Envoy for Trade and Investment Ambassador Maisie Dunbar heading to St. Thomas this week to make the case for investment in agriculture, tourism, energy, infrastructure and the country’s largely untapped blue economy.

Dunbar is expected to use her appearance at the 2026 We Mean Business Summit, scheduled for September 16–18 in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, to promote Liberia as an emerging investment destination while seeking to transform longstanding historical and cultural ties between Africa, the Caribbean and the diaspora into economic partnerships.

Her participation represents an effort to introduce Liberia to a pool of entrepreneurs and investors who may not traditionally consider the West African country when looking for international business opportunities.

“The Caribbean and Africa share history, culture, resilience and tremendous entrepreneurial spirit,” Dunbar said. “This is an opportunity to remind our Caribbean sisters that Liberia is not far away. We are part of the same global African story, and there are opportunities for us to do business together.”

Dunbar, who serves as Special Envoy to President Joseph Nyuma Boakai for Trade and Investment, has been invited to participate in a fireside chat focusing on investment, economic opportunity and the role of women in shaping markets and communities.

The summit is hosted by the National Women’s Collaborative, founded by Sharon Jackson, and is expected to bring together women entrepreneurs, business leaders, investors and other professionals. The organization says its network has grown to more than 2,900 women across over 30 countries.

For Liberia, however, Dunbar’s presence in St. Thomas carries an economic proposition beyond the conference itself: whether the shared history and cultural connections between Africa, the Caribbean and the wider African diaspora can increasingly be converted into trade, investment and business partnerships.

“Liberia is not simply a country with resources. Liberia is a country with opportunity,” Dunbar said. “The question is whether we can connect the right investors with the right opportunities and create an environment where capital can come, businesses can grow, and Liberians can benefit.”

Her investment pitch is expected to highlight Liberia’s strategic location along the West African coast and opportunities across agriculture, fisheries, tourism, infrastructure, energy, digital transformation and the blue economy.

The government is also seeking private-sector partnerships as the Boakai administration attempts to attract greater international investment to support its broader development agenda.

But Dunbar is expected to argue that attracting capital alone will not be enough. Liberia, she says, must simultaneously invest in developing the people and skills necessary to sustain businesses that come into the country.

“Investment in Liberia must also be investment in people,” she said. “Human capital development, workforce readiness, entrepreneurship, education and skills are the foundation upon which sustainable economic growth is built.”

That argument is particularly significant for a country with a predominantly young population and a persistent need for jobs, skills development and greater opportunities for Liberian-owned businesses.

Dunbar’s own background also gives the diaspora component of the mission a personal dimension. A Liberian-American entrepreneur who established businesses in the United States before returning to serve in government, she represents the category of diaspora professionals Liberia is increasingly seeking to engage not merely as sources of remittances, but as potential investors, business partners and conduits to international markets.

The St. Thomas engagement is expected to explore potential partnerships involving women-led enterprises, tourism, agriculture, fisheries and the blue economy, infrastructure and trade.

Whether those conversations ultimately produce investments will depend on what follows the summit. Liberia continues to compete with other African economies for international capital, making the country’s ability to connect interested investors with viable projects and an enabling business environment critical to converting promotion into actual investment.

For Dunbar, that is precisely the objective of taking Liberia’s message to St. Thomas: moving the relationship between Liberia and the Caribbean beyond common history and cultural affinity toward business.

Her message to prospective investors is straightforward: come and examine the opportunities.

“We are part of the same global African story,” Dunbar said, “and there are opportunities for us to do business together.”