Liberia wants nuclear authority modelled on Singapore and South Korea
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on The Analyst (Liberia)
Liberia Environmental Protection Agency Executive Director Emmanuel K. Urey Yarkpawolo calls for a national strategy to recruit and promote talent, after Finance Minister Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan praised an agency official. He notably proposes a nuclear authority modelled on Singapore and South Korea, according to The Analyst.
Liberia should establish a nuclear authority to regulate the use of radiation at a future cancer diagnosis and treatment centre, Rafael Ngumbu, director of research and radiation safety at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), argued during budget hearings at the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, The Analyst reports.
His presentation led Finance Minister Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan to designate him as one of Liberia's « stars ». EPA Executive Director Emmanuel K. Urey Yarkpawolo revisited the episode in a statement dated 8 November 2026, « Let Liberia's Stars Shine: Turning Talents into National Progress », calling for a national strategy for merit-based recruitment, research funding and skills development.
The 2026-2030 cooperation framework between Liberia and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) lists the creation of an independent regulatory authority among national priorities. Mr Yarkpawolo is asking ministries to translate this recognition into budgetary resources, recalling that talent remains unused when praise is not accompanied by funding.
The statement comes amid a tense budget cycle: Liberia expects $1.54 billion in revenue in 2027 and is seeking to limit requested appropriations for this budget. Minister Ngafuan, meanwhile, defends the country's public spending.
