While other African leaders are securing transformative deals for their nations, Liberia’s President, Joseph Nyuma Boakai, has perfected the art of the fruitless, taxpayer-funded global tour. His presidency is becoming synonymous with one outcome: returning home with nothing but excuses after wasting millions on lavish travel.
The pattern is undeniable and insulting to every Liberian struggling under a dying economy. President Boakai’s recent trip to France is a case study in diplomatic ineptitude. Traveling on a chartered private jet with a bloated delegation—a grotesque spectacle for a nation he describes as “dirt poor”—he engaged in talks on “Bilateral Cooperation” and “Development Initiatives.” The result? Zero dollars. Zero commitments. A resounding nothing.
Undeterred by his own failure, he immediately jetted off to the United Arab Emirates, ensuring the national vault continues to bleed. Liberians are left asking a simple, painful question: How long must the country fund a President’s fruitless globetrotting while his counterparts return home with millions for their people?
The true damage is revealed in the contrast with his peers. At the very same meeting in France, Ghana’s President, John Dramani Mahama, did the work of a real leader. He returned to Accra with a tangible bounty for his people: Retooling of its armed forces, funds for seven new hospitals, partnerships in agribusiness and AI, and advanced maritime and counterterrorism cooperation. President Macron was so impressed, he extended another invitation for a full state visit. For Boakai, there was only a receipt for the private jet.
Boakai’s travels are drawing unfavorable comparisons to his predecessors. In a 2018 visit to France, former President George Weah, a former footballer, went to France and returned with a 10-million-euro grant from President Macron, who explicitly stated his desire to support Liberia’s “new era.” Boakai, a career politician, returns with empty hands and a full itinerary for his next vacation masquerading as a state visit.
The humiliation is bipartisan. At the US-Africa Summit, President Boakai shriveled under the gaze of President Donald Trump, who condescendingly complimented his “beautiful English.” Boakai’s response? A cringe-inducing series of “Yes, Sir” replies that embarrassed the nation. While Gabon left the same summit with a $500 million investment deal and nearly a thousand new jobs, Boakai returned to Monrovia with nothing but a bruised ego—paid for by the Liberian taxpayer.
His incompetence is matched only by his amnesia. In a stunning display of contradiction, he begged the United States for a comprehensive mineral survey, only to be confronted by journalists with his own January speech where he praised China for delivering that very report. Faced with his own recorded words, the President simply denied reality.
The evidence is overwhelming. Joseph Boakai is not a diplomat; he is a tourist on the Liberian people’s dime. While his counterparts are strategic dealmakers, he is a serial underperformer, funding his globetrotting with money that should be healing a broken nation. Each departure on a private jet is a betrayal, and each return with empty hands is a confirmation that under Boakai, Liberia is not open for business—it’s open for exploitation by a leader who values his own vanity over his nation’s viability.