Agriculture Minister Mogana Flomo Jr and team have concluded the inspection of ongoing projects in 12 counties. The projects are implemented by the ministry of Agriculture under the Smallholder Agriculture Productivity Enhancement and Commercialization (SAPEC) project. The projects include the construction of farm to market roads in Grand Bassa, Rivercess, Sinoe, Marland, River Gee and Grand Gedeh counties. SAPEC also constructed cassava processing plants in Montseraddo, Grand Bassa and Bomi counties where farmers are processing improved cassava varieties into flour, gari, fufu, deper, kanyan and starch.

In the South East, the ministry has constructed through the SAPEC project rice processing plants in River Gee, Maryland, Grand Gedeh, and Grand Kru counties with processing capacity of 20 tons per day.

While on the inspection tour, Dr. Flomo held interactive discussions with farmers on the challenges and way forward in improving farming activities in the country. The farmers named the lack of advanced agriculture implements to farm on a large scale. They told the minister that they need more government support to help in feeding the nation.

Minister Flomo thanked the farmers and challenged them to do more by increasing the size of their farms and implement new farming technologies introduced by the Ministry so as to increase yield. He encouraged them to make farming a business by growing more of what they eat and stop buying what they are capable of growing. Dr. Mogana Flomo, Jr said in line with President George Weah’s Pro Poor Agenda, agriculture is key, something he has promised the Liberian people that we will eat what we grow four years from now.

The objective of the Ministry of Agriculture SAPEC project is to increase on a sustainable level, the income of smallholder farmers and rural entrepreneurs, particularly women, youth and physically challenged persons. The Project is funded by the government of Liberia, Global Agriculture and Food Security Program/World Bank and the African Development Bank.