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Liberia: Govt Takes Measures in Response To Looming Global Food Crisis
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The NEWS (Monrovia)
22 May 2008
Posted to the web 22 May 2008
Jimmey C. Fahngon
Monrovia
Agriculture Minister Dr. J. Chris Toe says the government of Liberia has embarked on several measures aimed at addressing the increment in global food prices.
He said the government has developed a national response to address the global food crisis which is also affecting Liberia.
Minister Toe said the national response comprises of three components including mitigation of domestic price increase and ensure consistent food supply, access to food by vulnerable population and promotion of increases in domestic food production.
Dr. Toe said while the first two pillars are short term, it is the latter that would seek to make Liberia food secured once and for all.
Minister Toe spoke Wednesday at the regular press briefing of the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) held at its headquarters in Monrovia.
He said the 2008/09 budget appropriation to the Ministry of Agriculture would seek to accelerate essential poverty reduction strategy-based food and agriculture sector interventions.
The Agriculture Minister disclosed that US$500,000 has been provided for 25,000 farmers for the provision of agricultural materials and supplies with a focus on fertilizers and disease and pest management inputs.
According to him, the objective is to boost production and minimize Liberia's very high pre-harvest loss rate of over 40 percent.
He said government would embark on the multiplication of high quality, high yielding certified rice seeds and cassava cutting which is aimed at increasing production of these staple through yield increases without increasing acreage.
Minister Toe further said the government would provide US$1,555,000 that would be used for tools, small equipment, agricultural supplies and inputs, land transport as well as additional community based food security facilities.
He said these interventions respond to the call of the people for agricultural inputs, storage and processing equipment and transfer of appropriate agricultural technologies.
However, the Agriculture Minister said the long term solution to the rise in the prices of food commodities is for every Liberian to engage in agriculture activities.
Minister Toe: "No matter what we do, we cannot ensure that we are food secured unless we increase in a significant way the domestic production of food."
This, he said, is the only way to sustain post-conflict stability that Liberia is currently enjoying.
He said Liberia which imports 100 percent of its fuel product and over 60 percent of its major grains was vulnerable and its post-conflict stability could be imperiled by the global rise in the prices of food.
But he added that Liberia can be food secured once every Liberian buttresses government's effort by engaging in agricultural activities.
He said rumors of rice shortage in Liberia were false and misleading as there was enough rice in the country.
Dr Toe said there was no food crisis in Liberia as being speculated in some quarters.
The Agriculture Minister said government would not just ensure the availability of food in Liberia but at affordable price to low income earners.
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He said it was because of this that the government eliminated the consumer tax on imported rice of US$2.10 per bag.
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