USAID-FED to hold Agribusiness Expo

The USAID Food and Enterprise Development (FED) concludes its work here after five years of operation with an Agribusiness Expo scheduled for September 13 and 14 at the Monrovia City Hall.

The Expo is being organized on the theme, “Building a Food Secure Future in Liberia.” Vice President Joseph Nyumah Boakai will deliver the opening remark. It is expected to attract 150 participants from the public and private sectors, farmer groups, local and international NGOs, and representatives from the multi-lateral and bilateral donor community.

According to a press release, FED is funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under Feed the Future, a U.S. Government’s global hunger and food security Presidential initiative active in 19 countries, including 12 in Africa. FED operates in Liberia in close collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture.

The release says the Agribusiness Expo will provide opportunities for agribusinesses (both formal and informal), farming clusters and support organizations assisted by FED to showcase their progress, products/services, and sustainability efforts. Besides offering opportunities for networking and business development, it is also designed to recognize, celebrate and highlight the work of the groups with whom FED worked over the past five years.

The Expo will demonstrate how a market-driven approach was used to assist Liberia as it transitions from subsistence-to-commercial agriculture for increased food availability, access and utilization.

Building blocks include an incentive structure to assist agricultural stakeholders in adopting commercial approaches thru: Improved technology for productivity and profitability; Expanded and modernized input supply and extension systems; Commercial production, marketing, and processing; Enterprise services; Workforce development; A supportive enabling (policy) environment as well as research and development.

USAID-FED has worked with the Ministries of Agriculture, Commerce and Industry, and Education, civil society, and the private sector in providing communities with access to agricultural inputs, extension services, nutrition messages, processing services, market information, transportation, credit, agro-business education, training, and business development services. More than 90,000 farmers and their families have benefitted from its interventions.

These initiatives have been implemented in Bong, Lofa, Nimba, Grand Bassa, Montserrado, and Margibi counties. USAID-FED focused on these counties because they are situated along regional development corridors crucial to promoting intra- and inter-county commerce with emphasis on improving food availability and access for all Liberians. Press release