District 3 of Grand Bassa County has seen the enumeration of over 3,000 properties as part of the Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA) Real Property Tax decentralization program.
The project’s data reveals that nearly 500 of these properties have successfully been registered in the Real Property tax net. This registration signifies that the property owners have been issued tax identification numbers and are prepared to pay their Real Property Tax.
Supported by the Swedish Government through the UNDP, the Real Property Tax Decentralization and Expansion Project aims to ensure the comprehensive registration, documentation, and assessment of all real properties in Grand Bassa County, initially focusing on Electoral District 3.
During an assessment visit that included Swedish Ambassador, Urban Sjöström, and Domestic Tax Department Commissioner, Darlingston Y. Talery, officials from the Real Estate Tax Department highlighted that the project aims to bring at least 10,000 properties into the tax net.
The delegation took stock of the progress achieved thus far and anticipated a remarkable success that would significantly contribute to revenue growth, thereby fostering national development.
The primary goal is to decentralize the administration and collection of real property taxes, thereby fostering revenue growth. As stipulated by the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, Liberia Revenue Authority, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the local government of Grand Bassa County, 50 percent of all taxes collected from real properties in the county will be allocated to support local development.
The high-profile visit primarily aimed to assess the progress of the ongoing project, identify existing challenges, and explore opportunities to ensure the success of the expansion project within the county.
To support this initiative, approximately 90 tax agents were recruited, trained, and deployed across the district. These tax agents are leveraging GIS technology through a digital platform to enumerate and value the real properties.
Commissioner Talery led the delegation, which included Nikolina Stålhand, Second Secretary and Program Officer for Democracy and Human Rights at the Embassy of Sweden in Monrovia, and Olayee Collins, Deputy Minister for Administration at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, among others.
Launched in August of this year, the Grand Bassa Real Estate Decentralization and Expansion Project operates in partnership with the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning.
