The African Development Bank (AfDB) has launched a new digital platform in Liberia aimed at improving the supervision, monitoring and evaluation of development projects, as the lender steps up efforts to enhance project delivery across Africa.
The platform, known as Remote Appraisal, Supervision, Monitoring and Evaluation (RASME), was officially unveiled in Monrovia by AfDB Country Manager for Liberia Rees Mwasambili. The initiative is part of the Bank’s broader digital transformation strategy and is being rolled out progressively across the continent.
The launch coincided with a four-day capacity-building workshop held from June 22 to June 25, bringing together more than 50 participants, including representatives of Bank-financed projects, implementing agencies and AfDB project managers working in Liberia.
RASME enables project teams to collect real-time field data using smartphones, tablets, drones and satellite imagery, generating georeferenced data, photographs, videos and maps to improve project oversight and support evidence-based decision-making.
“With RASME, project data collection becomes faster, more efficient, and more cost-effective. The faster we deploy future operations, the better designed and more impactful they will be,” Mwasambili said.
The workshop also explored how digital technologies can strengthen monitoring and evaluation, improve coordination among project implementation units, government institutions and AfDB specialists, and enhance the effectiveness of development interventions across sectors.
AfDB has been one of Liberia’s longstanding development partners since the country became a founding member of the institution in 1964.
According to the Bank, it has invested approximately $1.03 billion in nearly 76 projects in Liberia over the past six decades. These include five regional projects worth $405 million and 71 national projects totaling about $625.5 million.
The AfDB’s current portfolio in Liberia comprises 19 active operations valued at $419.2 million, covering key sectors including transport, energy, agriculture, finance and multisector development.
The Bank said the introduction of RASME is expected to improve project performance, accelerate implementation and strengthen accountability by providing timely, reliable data to support development outcomes across Liberia and other African countries where the platform is being deployed.
