–He meets rice importers in Monrovia
Liberia’s new President George Weah has said he is making serious efforts to ensure the reduction in the price of the country’s staple food, rice.
Liberia imports well over US$200 millon worth of rice annually.
President Weah on Thursday met rice importers in order to step up “efforts to ensure the price of the nation’s staple food is substantially reduced and made affordable for ordinary Liberians,” an Executive Mansion press release said.
The Liberian leader met with officials of the Association of Rice Importers in the presence of Commerce and Industry Minister Designate Prof. Wilson Tarpeh.
Among things on the table is possible reduction in tariff on the rice commodity.
The falling value of the Liberian dollar and the hike in the foreign exchange rate, the price of rice has soared in recent months, with the price of a 50kg bag of rice from Asia and other parts climbing to more than 2,000 Liberian dollars.
As a result, the average Liberian, most of whom live on less than a dollar a day, can now hardly afford to get a bag of the country’s staple.
Weah, who after his election declared that his government has a pro-poor agenda, said the CDC-led government was fully prepared to work with rice importers in every way possible to reduce the price of rice, which is also referred to as a political commodity.
The Liberian leader said it was intolerable that in the midst of acute hardship and mass unemployment, the price of rice continues to increase.
“I am ready to work with you and resolve all the issues that underpin the galloping price of rice so that our people will afford to buy,” President Weah said.
“If government-imposed tax is an issue, you can rest assure that my government is more than ready to grant reasonable adjustments in the tax regime to make the reduction of rice price possible,” the President said.
The President further said that the reduction in the prices of essential commodities is inextricably integral to his administration’s pro-poor governance agenda.
Meanwhile, the rice importers have told President Weah that they were willing to dialogue with government to ensure that the price of rice is reduced, according to the Executive Mansion release.