Liberian President Joseph Boakai has signed a new decree broadening the mandate of the Liberian Refugee Repatriation and Resettlement Commission to strengthen national coordination on refugee, migration and statelessness issues.
Issued from the Executive Mansion in Monrovia, the directive updates an earlier decree and modernizes Liberia’s institutional framework in response to changing migration trends, including mixed migration flows, lingering refugee populations, cases of statelessness in border communities and the rising return and deportation of Liberian nationals.
Authorities say the move aims to establish a unified national mechanism to safeguard security, reinforce social cohesion and ensure humanitarian protection.
Under the expanded mandate, the commission will coordinate asylum procedures, voluntary repatriation, local integration and resettlement, while also overseeing migration governance, border reception facilities and the identification and management of statelessness cases.
The body will manage migration data, conduct research and develop early warning systems while advising the government on refugee and migration policies.
The decree also sets a transitional framework ahead of the planned creation of the Liberian Commission for Refugees and Migration (RAMCOL), which will assume broader responsibilities once formally established.
Liberia’s Ministry of Finance and Development Planning will mobilize resources for implementation, while the commission will work with international partners and submit periodic progress reports directly to the president during the one-year duration of the decree.
