By Augustine Octavius,augustineoctavius@gmail.com
The African Capacity Building Foundation in collaboration with Liberia Micro Policy Analyst Center at the Ministry of Finance and partners have been training women entrepreneurs in Monrovia.
The training brought together twenty Liberian women entrepreneurs.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Director of LIMPAC at the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, Francis Wreh said the empowerment of Liberian Women is one of the priorities of the government.
Mr. Wreh stressed that Liberian women entrepreneurs are critical towards the growth and development of the nation economy.
He noted that despite the economic challenges facing the nation, Liberian women entrepreneurs continue to strive in doing their businesses across the country.
Margibi County Representative Ellen Attoh Wreh said the empowerment of Liberian women in the agriculture sector should be prioritized in the country.
Giving the keynote speech, Representative Wreh stated empowering women in the agriculture sector with the requisite skills and financial resources will go a long way to enhance entrepreneurship in the country.
Quoting the Mapoto Declaration of 2003, she said that all members of the African Union (AU) should allocate 10 percent of their national budget to the agriculture sector to improve food sufficiency.
Rep. Wreh pointed out that investing in the agriculture sector with the relevant financial resources will engender the socio and economic development of the people and the nation
The Liberian Lawmaker maintained that requisite survey needs to be conducted within the agriculture sector to determine the actual amount require to pump the needed capital to revamp the sector for effective and efficient production.
For his part, the Senior Officer of the African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF), Mr. Dickson Antwi said Liberia is one of the six countries selected to support women cooperative in entrepreneurship.
Antwi said that the ACBF is mandated to build capacity for women, men, youths and institutions in various skills in entrepreneurship and provide a seed grant to strengthen their enterprises.
According to him, the capacity building of Liberian women by the ACBF is intended to buttress government Pro-Poor Agenda for Development and Prosperity (PAPD)
He stressed the need for Liberian women to take advantage of the training to improve their enterprises which are critical towards the growth and development of Liberia.
The Second Phase Training Project Women Entrepreneurs Empowerment is held under the theme “Strengthening the capacity of Liberian Women Entrepreneurs to enhance their role in the socio-economic development.”