Liberia Advances Arms Control Capacity with Critical Training-of-Trainers Exercise to Strengthen Trade Treaty Implementation

Monrovia Liberia: As a means of enhancing national security and arms regulation, the Liberia National Commission on Arms, in strategic partnership with Expertise France under the European Union’s Arms Trade Treaty Outreach Project (EU ATT-OP IV), convened a pivotal two-day Training-of-Trainers workshop that climaxed on Friday, May 30, 2025, at a local hotel in Monrovia. 

By: Abraham Sylvester Panto

The initiative gathered 30 representatives from Liberia’s principal security agencies, including the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL), Liberia National Police (LNP), Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA), National Security Agency (NSA), Liberia Immigration Service (LIS), and the Executive Protection Service (EPS), customs officials, security agents from major ports, and civil society actors engaged in arms control.

The workshop’s concentrated agenda focused on fortifying participants’ technical proficiency in regulating the trade and transfer of conventional arms, bridging national legislation and international treaty obligations.

Through intensive training sessions, attendees acquired a comprehensive grasp of Liberia’s domestic arms control framework and the obligations under the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), positioning the participants to become national trainers responsible for cascading knowledge to a broader network of implementers across government and border communities.

Building on the foundation of Liberia’s existing collaboration with Expertise France and its participation in the EU P2P ATT IV program, the hands-on training sought to enhance institutional capacity within critical agencies and foster engagement with border communities, where the risk of arms diversion and illegal flows remains high.

According to LiNCA, the workshop represents the second installment in the Training-of-Trainers series, following a hybrid session conducted in December 2024 at the MUREX Plaza in Monrovia.

The continuity of these training efforts underscores Liberia’s commitment to sustained capacity building, aiming for a robust and self-sufficient national framework capable of enforcing ATT provisions without external reliance.

Further institutional strengthening occurred with the repeal of the 2012 Liberia National Commission on Small Arms Act, replaced by the creation of LiNCA as the competent authority mandated to oversee the regulation of arms, ammunition, explosives, and related materials.

LiNCA’s mandate encompasses comprehensive supervision over the importation, exportation, transfer, storage, and use of conventional arms by security agencies and civilian entities, thereby centralizing and streamlining arms control governance.

The commission role extends beyond regulation to active coordination and monitoring of all public and private initiatives targeting the prevention, combat, and eradication of the proliferation, diversion, illicit trade, and transit of conventional arms.

This mandate demands continuous collaboration with state agencies, international partners, and civil society to address the multifaceted challenges posed by illegal arms flows within and across Liberia’s borders.

The culmination of the ongoing two-day workshop marks a critical step forward in Liberia’s strategic efforts to safeguard national peace and security through enhanced arms control capabilities.