23 Facts About Joseph Boakai

Joseph Nyumah Boakai was born on 30 November 1944 and is a Liberian politician who has served as the 26th president of Liberia since 2024.

Joseph Boakai previously served as the 29th vice president of Liberia from 2006 to 2018, under President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and as the minister of agriculture from 1983 to 1985.

Joseph Boakai went on to defeat Weah in the 2023 election.

Joseph Boakai was born in the remote village of Worsonga in Foya District, Lofa County, on 30 November 1944, and is from the Kissi ethnic group.

Joseph Boakai is married to Katumu Boakai and they have four children.

Joseph Boakai is a Baptist and a deacon of the Effort Baptist Church.

Active in philanthropic efforts, Joseph Boakai supervised and personally financed a 7-mile rural village road construction near Warsonga in Lofa county, Liberia.

Joseph Boakai worked with the Federation of Liberian Youth and the Danish Youth to construct a school for 150 students and clinic for a community of 10 villages.

Joseph Boakai was active in organizing and fundraising for the rural electrification of Foya Kama in Lofa County, Northern Liberia.

Joseph Boakai reviewed and evaluated the Liberian 1986 proposed Green Revolution and FAO World Bank 1986 Agricultural sector Review Document and evaluated AMSCO, Amsterdam Funded training program for projects in Uganda in 1994 and Tanzania in 1996.

Joseph Boakai is the owner of LUSU Resource Corporation and co-owner of AGROMACHINES Liberia.

Joseph Boakai performed supervisory functions over several institutions and agencies, including the Liberia National Lotteries, the Liberia Marketing Association, the Liberia Agency for Community Empowerment, and the National Commission on Disarmament Demobilization Resettlement and Reintegration.

Joseph Boakai attended primary and high school in Sierra Leone and Liberia before graduating from the College of West Africa.

Joseph Boakai later graduated from the University of Liberia in 1972 with a bachelor's degree in business administration.

Joseph Boakai went on to work in both the public and private sectors.

Joseph Boakai worked as a resident manager and managing director for the Liberia Produce Marketing Corporation.

Joseph Boakai later worked as a consultant to the World Bank in Washington and founded a firm dealing in agricultural equipment and consultancy.

Joseph Boakai has served as board chairman of the Liberia Wood Management Corporation and the Liberia Petroleum Refining Company.

Joseph Boakai announced his intention to run for the Liberian presidency, which was scheduled for 10 October 2017.

When Joseph Boakai was asked if he was invited or not, he said that the President never invited him to carry out the groundbreaking ceremony for the road that leads to his home in Lofa County.

Joseph Boakai defeated incumbent George Weah in the second round of the 2023 presidential election, which was held on 14 November.

At his inauguration as president on 22 January 2024, Joseph Boakai was seen having difficulty in delivering his inaugural address, which he was unable to finish, and was escorted away from the podium, with reports suggesting that he was suffering from heat exhaustion.

In July 2024, Joseph Boakai lowered his salary as president from $13,400 to $8,000 annually.