Liberia’s President George Weah has announced that his government was contemplating the establishment of an agricultural bank.
He underlined that his government is committed to transform the lives of Liberians through decisive implementation of the national development framework, the pro-poor agenda for prosperity and development.
According to AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina, the African Development Bank and the Liberian government would partner to create new opportunities to boost the Liberian economy. He praised the Liberian government for the successful review of its wage bill, and for the quality of the continuing talks it was conducting with the International Monetary Fund.
Adesina also stated that Liberia was endowed with fertile land and substantial agricultural potential and should not have to spend $20 million annually to import rice, its staple food.
He pledged the Bank’s support to Liberia through the smallholder agriculture productivity enhancement and commercialization project, to create special agro-industrial processing zones close to farmers, where there would be power and water supplies, roads, and facilities to produce and process staple crops, creating more jobs.
More than 60 percent of Liberians depend on agriculture for their livelihood. But the sector has languished due to low productivity, forcing Liberia to import more than 80 percent of its staple foods.