By Tokpa Tarnue, tarnue82@gmail.com
VOINJAMA, Liberia- The Ministry of Agriculture on Saturday August 29 donated 13 brand new AG YAMAHA Motorbikes valued at US$58,500. to strengthen the capacity of the Young Professional in the northwestern Lofa County.
The presentation ceremony of the 13 motorcycles was done at the Ministry’s local office in the provincial capital, Voinjama City.
Presenting the bikes, the Administrative Assistant of the Tree Crop Extension Project (TCEP) Madam Helena C. Norman disclosed that the motorbikes were procured under the TCEP with funding from the World Bank and the International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD)
She said the project was pleased to present the motorbikes as part of its support to enhance the work of the Young Professionals (YPs) in contributing to the overall implementation of the project.
Madam Norman said the donation follows three days of training for the Young Professionals or YPs who are currently identifying farmers to benefit from the TCEP-Project in the county.
“This donation is an initial logistical support to the YPs in the county and the district agriculture officers will also be benefiting from additional motorbikes under this project,” Madam Norman emphasized.
The TCEP-Project is targeting about 10,000 cocoa smallholder farmers in Lofa County and it aims to improve their food and nutrition security and raise their incomes by modernizing cocoa farming, increasing production and developing markets.
She said the TCEPII focuses on enabling poor rural women and men to overcome poverty, and will promote economic empowerment that provides rural women with equal opportunities to participate in – and benefit from – profitable economic activities in the cocoa value chain.
TCEPII will try to reverse this situation by investing in the revitalization or replanting of abandoned plantations.
She said it also seeks to increase quantity and quality of cocoa sold by smallholders and will improve post-harvest handling and quality and that Crop diversity will also be promoted through intercropping which can improve food and nutrition security, shade management and income generation.
“Specific measures are being put in place to include women and youth and promote their access to benefits of the project such as training and financial service” she added.
Speaking at the Donation ceremony, the County Agriculture Coordinator Henry Darkolon, lauded the efforts of the Project for its continuous support to the MoA.
He said that the donation of the motorbikes is a clear manifestation of the government’s support to the agricultural sector as promised by President George Manneh Weah.
The new project will scale up the recently completed Smallholder Tree Crop Revitalization Support Project and complement the Tree Crops Extension Project I, both projects supported by the Ministry of Agriculture. It will enhance the delivery of quality services to cocoa farmers and guarantee sustainability through improved extension services and greater access to inputs and markets.
The Ministry of Agriculture projects and programmes have directly benefited 220,800 rural households.