Liberia Pioneers AfDB-Backed Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Bank

The Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Banks will promote private sector-led inclusive economic development, by creating entrepreneurship opportunities for young Africans aged 18-35

• Program will turn job seekers into job creators – Liberian President Boakai
• The future of Liberia’s youth cannot be left to hustling – Dr. Adesina

Liberia has become the first country to launch an African Development Bank Group initiative (www.AfDB.org) that will help tackle youth unemployment among African youth.

President of the Republic of Liberia, Joseph Nyuma Boakai Sr was joined in the capital Monrovia by the Bank Group’s President, Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina for the official launch of the first Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Bank (YEIB) on Tuesday 22 July.

The Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Banks will promote private sector-led inclusive economic development, by creating entrepreneurship opportunities for young Africans aged 18-35. According to the Bank’s Country Focus Report 2025 for Liberia, underemployment and informal employment have long undermined the country’s ability to harness a key demographic strength.

To address these challenges, Liberia’s Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Bank is expected to finance 30,000 youth-led businesses, create 120,000 direct and indirect jobs, contribute $80 million to government revenues through taxes, and unlock up to $500 million in additional lending to youth-owned businesses across the country.

The Youth Bank is being jointly financed by the African Development Fund—the concessional lending arm of the African Development Bank Group ($15.9 million)—and the Government of Liberia ($1.2 million in in-kind contributions).

“The YEIB speaks directly to the heart of our future because over sixty percent of our population is under the age of thirty. This program gives hope to our young people by turning them from job seekers into job creators,” said President Boakai. “It will provide financing, mentorship, and the skills they need to succeed in agriculture, technology, the knowledge based economy, and other emerging sectors.”

“Liberia must not watch as its best assets—its youth—falter,” Adesina said. “The future of Liberia’s youth cannot be left to ‘hustling.’” He added that with recruitment ongoing, and licensing expected to be completed shortly, the Liberian YEIB is scheduled to commence operations in early 2026, with a focus on “critical sectors with immense opportunities for the youth, including agriculture, value addition with agribusiness, digital services, mining and tourism.”

Youth entrepreneurship banks have also been approved for Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Cote d’Ivoire, representing a growing commitment to enhancing private sector development through improved financing for entrepreneurs, on a continent where three-quarters of the population are below the age of 35.

The Bank has since 1967 invested more than $1.02 billion in 72 projects in Liberia, and as of February 2024, it had an active portfolio of 18 sovereign operations worth $314.77 million, focusing primarily on transport infrastructure, energy development, and agricultural transformation. These investments include the Mano River Union road network connecting Liberia with neighbouring countries, regional power interconnection initiatives, and programs supporting smallholder farmers across the country.

The Bank’s operations in Liberia are funded through multiple sources, with the African Development Fund—the concessional lending arm of the Bank Group—providing most of the financing, supplemented by the Transition Support Facility and various specialized funds including the Nigeria Trust Fund.