Executive Summary
This policy amends the National Telecommunications ICT Policy of 2010. While the 2010
policy laid the basis for future policy development, technology developments have continued,
and new priorities have emerged that are critical to the sustainable development of the ICT
sector. The new policy over the next five years (2019 to 2024) aims to address these
developments and support the social and economic development of Liberian society under
the key pillars of Structure, Empower and Transform (SET). In summary, the key
objectives of the policy are to:
- Expand ICT infrastructure and establish a national fiber optic backbone to connect all
15 county capitals and cross-border connectivity with reliable links;
- Address last mile challenges to ensure universal access to voice services and
broadband, supported by the adoption of infrastructure sharing and dig-once policies
and effective use of the Universal Access Fund to meet the needs of underserved
areas;
- Leverage the assets of all telecommunication operators to support improved connectivity in
Liberia;
- Ensure Government has access to efficient connectivity services along with a Data
Center and backup facilities to serve the needs of all government departments;
- Ensure critical ICT infrastructure is well protected and effective response mechanisms
are in place to deal with cybersecurity issues and other physical disasters e.g.
epidemics;
- Foster the development of efficient Government E-services and online applications for
supporting the growth of Liberia‘s economy;
- Establish a National Education and Research Network (NREN) for all tertiary and
secondary education institutions to provide access to high speed internet and digital
educational services
- Support human capacity building and local innovation in science, digital skills and
technology leading to the creation of new jobs;
- Use ICT to drive inclusion of women, marginalized and indigenous groups;
- Boost the development of a vibrant E-commerce and digital services sector;
- Enable citizens of Liberia to explore the full use of the broadband services making
them a competitive, knowledge driven and well-informed society;
- Improve access to information and transparency through the design and
implementation of open data initiatives; and
- To localize administrative, technical and ensure effective management
of the.lr country code (cc) top level internet domain (TLD) to support
Liberia‘s ICT development agenda
The vision of this policy is to facilitate Liberia‘s transformation into a knowledge-based
economy and inclusive information society with enhanced social development for all. The
policy thus recognizes the critical barriers that must be overcome in Liberia to achieve
progress towards the SDG connectivity target and other regional commitments.
The Government‘s role in the ICT sector will be addressed over the next 5 years as outlined
below.
- Strategic leadership and coordination in promoting the use of ICT. To be most
effective, this should be driven by the office of the Head of State;
- Ensuring there is an enabling environment and sufficient backbone infrastructure for
the commercial deployment of ICT services. This is the responsibility of the Ministry of
Posts and Telecommunication (MoPT) and the regulatory authorities;
- Providing support for ensuring access is affordable and available to all members of
Liberian society;
- Supporting the adoption of ICT within government, both for internal administration and
for transactions with the public and business. This extends to providing connectivity to
government institutions, hosting data and supporting the development of relevant
egovernment
applications
In recognition that some functions are currently being performed under various institutions,
this policy recommends that the following roles are enhanced with relevant changes where
necessary to align with the policy‘s objectives (see Section 6).
Given the dynamic nature of the ICT Industry, this policy will be revisited on an annual basis
by a cross-sectoral, inclusive multi stakeholder policy review team assembled by the MoPT.
The review would identify new trends and emerging technologies which need oversight by
the Ministry and propose modalities for their adoption or regulation.
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