On August 21, 2008, Amara Mohamed Konneh was sworn in as the 16th Minister of Planning and Economic Affairs of the Republic of Liberia. He joined the Ministry of Planning and Economic Affairs (MPEA) after serving as Deputy Minister of State for Policy and Communications. Before that, Minister Konneh spent more than a decade working with development foundations and as a policy and financial systems analyst at the Vanguard Group of Investment Companies in Pennsylvania, United States.

Minister Konneh is a core member of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf’s Economic Management Team. In nominating Mr. Konneh, the President made reference to Mr. Konneh’s rural beginnings by stating, “He knows exactly what poverty means because he’s lived it and he understands what it will take to track our PRS implementation through a robust monitoring and evaluation that will help us understand the impact of the interventions on the lives of the Liberian people."

As the coordinator of Liberia’s development strategy, Minister Konneh’s top priorities include rebuilding the Ministry’s internal capacity; implementing the 3-Year (2008-2011) Lift Liberia Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS); undertaking medium to long-term economic development planning; strengthening aid coordination mechanisms; developing a National Human Capacity Development Strategy to reverse Liberia’s brain drain; improving relationships with development partners; civil society and all stakeholders; harmonizing the activities of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and promoting the use of Information and Communication Technologies for Development (ICT4D).

Minister Konneh has achieved several major accomplishments to date including the development of a national monitoring and evaluation system to track PRS implementation resulting in an eighty percent completion rate to date. As Alternate Governor to the World Bank, he played a key role in completing the benchmarks for the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative resulting in the waiver of $4.6 billion in external debt from the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. He developed Liberia’s threshold country proposal and negotiated with the United States Millennium Challenge Corporation resulting in its approval of a US$15 million grant to improve land rights and access, increase girls’ primary education completion rate, and develop a trade policy regime consistent with regional standards.

Minister Konneh chaired Liberia’s ICT4D Committee to facilitate the signing of a US$25 million construction and maintenance grant for the Africa Coast to Europe's (ACE) submarine fiber optic cable project that will bring high-speed internet connectivity to Liberia.  He is currently leading on the development of Liberia’s National Capacity Development Strategy to reverse the brain drain, the National Aid Policy to effectively manage aid flows to Liberia, and has initiated the crafting of Liberia’s long-term development strategy – Liberia’s Vision for Growth and Development 2030.   

With the continued commitment and support of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and the National Legislature, and the dedication of the staff, Minister Konneh remains optimistic that Liberia’s national development agenda will achieve the desired effects and pave an irreversible path to progress in Liberia.

Looking beyond PRS and the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) completion point, the Ministry is working with other institutions to position the country toward the formulation of a post-HIPC completion point investment plan and the next generation of PRS, which will hinge on the utilization of future borrowings and long-term development planning.

Minister Konneh travels regularly to the 15 counties of Liberia to monitor the implementation of development projects and hold local consultations with local citizens, NGOs, civil society, development partners and the private sector. He also travels internationally to garner project and budgetary support for Liberia from bilateral partners, multilateral institutions, and foundation leaders and seek technical assistance for building local capacity to accelerate the implementation of development projects. 

In addition to his ministerial portfolio, Mr. Konneh serves on the boards of the following state-owned enterprises: National Port Authority; National Investment Commission; Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation; Forestry Development Authority; Environmental Protection Agency; and Liberia Broadcasting System.

Before becoming Minister of Planning and Economic Affairs, Minister Konneh served as Deputy Chief of Staff to President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf for Policy and Communications, where he spearheaded several initiatives including reforming the management practices at the Ministry of State through a performance improvement program and coordinating the development of policies and communications strategy. In this capacity, he helped to organize Liberia’s first conference on ICT4D that brought ICT giants such as Microsoft, Cisco, and others to Liberia.

Like many Liberians, Minister Konneh lost several members of his immediate family to the violent conflict. At the age of 18 years old, he became a refugee in Guinea where he established a school for Liberian refugees.  His volunteer leadership led him to a position with the International Rescue Committee as the Education Coordinator for Liberian and Sierra Leonean refugee schools in the Guinea Forest Region where he served from 1991 - 1993. In this capacity, he supervised the development of 18 schools, including the first high school in the Beyla Prefecture, and facilitated curriculum development, teacher training, and resource mobilization. 

Minister Konneh was born in Bassa Camp (Weasua), Gbarpolu County to the late Majumah Konneh and the late Mamadee Konneh. He started school at the age of 10 and attended Liberian public and private schools before becoming a refugee in Guinea, and later, the United States. He graduated from Drexel University and earned a graduate degree in Management from Penn State University. 

Minister Konneh is a graduate from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University where he earned a Masters degree in Public Administration with an emphasis in political and economic development.