[Dakar, Senegal – September 2, 2025] – Liberia has announced a bold $900 million Legacy Investment Program at the Africa Food Systems Forum (AFS Forum) 2025 in Dakar, Senegal, demonstrating a renewed national commitment to food security, rural prosperity, and inclusive economic growth.

The Forum, scheduled from August 31 to September 5, 2025, is under the theme “Africa’s Youth: Leading Collaboration, Innovation, and Implementation of Agri-Food Systems Transformation” and has attracted over 6,000 participants from 113 countries, including policymakers, private sector representatives, farmers, youth innovators, and development partners.

Presenting Liberia’s Legacy Program, Agriculture Minister Dr. J. Alexander Nuetah described the initiative as a cornerstone of the country’s agricultural transformation agenda, which he said was cardinal to its push for food self-sufficiency, improved nutrition, rural job creation, and poverty reduction.

“The Legacy Investment Program focuses on increasing productivity by providing the right inputs, infrastructure, technology, and services across agricultural value chains,” he said.

The initiative centers on rice, maize, coffee, cassava, and oil palm, with ambitious production goals aimed at reducing import reliance, increasing exports, and creating employment opportunities. These include 50,000 hectares of rice to achieve self-sufficiency, 20,000 hectares of maize for food and livestock feed, and 15,000 hectares of coffee to revive export markets. Additionally, 20,000 hectares of cassava will be cultivated to enhance food security and agro-processing, and 18,000 hectares of oil palm will be planted to boost edible oil supply and foreign exchange earnings.

The launch has already attracted strong international interest, with high-level delegations from Germany and Ireland, along with development partners such as AGRA and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, endorsing Liberia’s strategy. Ireland reaffirmed its longstanding support for nutrition-sensitive agriculture, women’s empowerment, and climate-smart practices in Liberia.

“Liberia offers an enabling environment for agribusiness investment, with strong incentives and a dual currency regime that attracts private investors,” Minister Nuetah emphasized, reassuring potential investors of the supportive environment for agribusiness, with government incentives aimed at encouraging sustainable private sector participation.

He added that the program aligns with Liberia’s development vision of achieving lower-middle-income status by 2030, reducing unemployment, and increasing GDP per capita from $866 in 2024 to $1,115 by 2030.

 “This $900 million plan is more than a national strategy; it is a roadmap for partnerships that can deliver prosperity across Africa’s food systems,” he remarked.

The Legacy Program at the Africa Food Systems Forum aims to turn a country’s food system priorities into practical, investment-ready projects that can be funded and implemented over several years for lasting impact. These programs help countries accelerate progress by working with partners to develop resilient, inclusive, and sustainable agri-food systems. This annual event provides a reliable platform for launching these initiatives and promoting collective solutions.