As part of efforts to improve food security, nutrition and income in rural Liberia, the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Authority (NaFAA) has entered a memorandum of understanding with AfricaRice and the Ministry of Agriculture to implement an EU sponsored Project titled, “Desira”, focusing on rice and fish integration.
According to NaFAA, the signatories to the MOU are Director General Glassco, Dr. InoussaAkintayo, Country Director AfricaRice, and the Minister of Agriculture Madam Jennie Cooper.
Integrated rice and fish farmers are the primary direct beneficiaries of the project, as they stand to benefit directly through access to research, innovations and technologies that will improve the sustainability and productivity of their products.
The project will be implemented in five counties, namely; Grand Gedeh, Maryland, Gbarpolu, Margibi, and Rivergee counties, respectively and will target three hundred sixty-five rural smallholder farmers.
Sixty percent targeted farmers will be women inclusive householders/families to build on their roles as food producers and ensuring food and nutrition for their families. The overall goal of the project is to enhance rice development and fish value chains for improved food, nutrition and economic security through targeted research and extension in Liberia.
The entire project will last for a period of 36 months and is put at 3.5 million Euros.
It will also draw on the initial lessons learned from the FAO AfricaRice, WorldFish, and other research organizations; including initiatives on climatic-smart agriculture to design/modify and test technologies as well as practices that sustainably increase productivity and enhance adaptive development outcomes in Liberia.
Worldfish and AfricaRice through this project aim to adapt improved rice-fish systems technologies and better management practices in the country, together with the National Agriculture Research Extension Systems (NARES), the private sector and other donor funded projects. Press Release
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