MONROVIA, Liberia – June 17, 2025 – The Director General of the Civil Service Agency (CSA), Dr. Josiah Joekai, delivered a shocking testimony before the Liberian Senate on Tuesday, June 17, 2025, revealing that approximately 3,000 Indian nationals are currently employed by ArcelorMittal Liberia (AML). This figure immediately ignited a firestorm of criticism from lawmakers, particularly Senator Nya Twayen of Nimba County, who expressed grave concerns about the global steel giant’s labor practices and its commitment to local employment.
“CSA Boss testifying at the Senate: there are 3000 Indians working with ArcelorMittal doing jobs that Liberians should be doing,” Senator Twayen posted on his official Facebook page just minutes after the testimony. The senator’s remarks underscore growing concerns over the company’s labor practices and its commitment to prioritizing local employment in a nation grappling with high unemployment.
The issue of AML’s operations in Nimba County has been the subject of increasing scrutiny in recent weeks. Just four days prior, on June 13, Senator Twayen formally wrote to the Senate Plenary requesting a full-scale investigation into the reported $1.4 billion cost of an iron ore processing plant constructed by AML in Nimba. He strongly suspects the reported cost may have been grossly inflated, a move he believes is designed to minimize declared profits.
“An inflated or overstated investment swallows profit and deprives Liberia of receiving dividend, a case with us and ArcelorMittal for 20 years now that has always declared loss instead of profit; we will get to the bottom of this one,” Twayen asserted, linking the alleged over-investment to the company’s consistent declaration of losses, which in turn prevents Liberia from receiving dividends.
Senator Twayen has actively leveraged his social media platform to intensify public pressure on ArcelorMittal, accusing the company of neglecting the infrastructural needs of communities in its operational areas. In a scathing June 5 post, the senator expressed profound frustration over the dilapidated condition of Yekepa, the company’s primary mining hub.
“AML? You can dedicate another $1 billion plant, if the conditions laid down by the Nimba Caucus are not met, we will resist renewal. What shall it profit Nimba to have a billion-dollar property built by AML in a filthy Yekepa that you have refused to renovate, with a very bad road leading to said billion-dollar property? Look at the muddy road leading to and around the so-called billion-dollar installation… shame. AML will have to yield to the people’s demands or leave. Simple,” he wrote, directly linking the company’s expansion ambitions to its perceived failure to address local development concerns.
He further elaborated on his suspicion regarding AML’s financial reporting, alleging “transfer pricing” as a mechanism to avoid paying dividends. “For more than 20 years AML has not declared profit. By law, we are supposed to get the royalty (which they give, even though disproportionately small) and also get dividends by the end of the year from declared profits. But do you know why they haven’t declared any profit to make us get that dividend? The answer is below: Transfer Pricing,” Twayen alleged, hinting at complex accounting maneuvers to shift profits out of Liberia.
As AML continues to push forward with its expansion plans, the revelation of a significant foreign workforce, coupled with long-standing allegations of inflated investments and corporate neglect, is fueling mounting calls for transparency, accountability, and fair labor practices. The Senate is yet to formally announce whether it will launch a comprehensive investigation into these multiple allegations, but pressure from Nimba lawmakers, local citizens, and civil society groups is becoming increasingly urgent.
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