Zwedru — As part of efforts to ensure effective project implementation and achievements of desired goals of the Smallholder Agriculture Development for Food and Nutrition Security, (SAFONS) ActionAid International in partnership with ActionAid Liberia, is carrying out a week-long impacts review of the Global Agriculture Food and Security Program (GAFSP) support to farmers in Grand Gedeh County Country.
The GAFSP impacts review started on Friday, November 6, 2025, with ActionAid Liberia's Team paying a one -day visit to AHWEHDE Farmer's Association in Dougee Town.
In 2022, AHWEHDE Farmer Association was among several farming groups that began benefiting from SADFONS project funded by the the Global Agriculture Food and Security Program (GAFSP).
Providing an overview of the review process during a one-day engagement with members of Farmer's Association over the weekend, ActionAid Liberia's Acting Program and Policy Manager, James Pewee, disclosed that ActionAid International is partnering the GASFP to assess the impact of the over USA 19 million dollars that was given to the Ministry of Agriculture to support Liberian farmers to boost food and nutrition, and help farmers adapt to the growing effects of climate change.
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Pewee said the assessment is being carried out across six counties in Liberia, which include Grand Gedeh County, River Gee, Maryland, Grand Bassa, Bomi, and Rural Montserrado Counties.
The engagement with the farmers focused on key concerns, including, but not limited to, the initial status of the group, current condition, assessing the successes of the SADFONS support to the group, existing challenges, and recommendations from the farmers in areas that need improvement.
"We do not work for the Ministry of Agriculture and we are not here to promise farmers, but we are doing this assessment to help the GAFSP clearly understand to what extend the support given to farmers in this part of the country under the MOA yielded result, and or what were the challenges, the gaps, and areas in which the project did not deliver and as well as areas of success."
During the meeting, the farmers drilled ActionAid Liberia's team through a series of concerns with the aim of gathering useful, authentic data required by the review team.
Speaking on behalf of the AHWEHDE Farmer's Association, the lead farmer, Amos Quiwea, praised ActionAid Liberia for the engagement, calling it a gateway to future project expansion and stronger collaboration with partners.
"We want to thank ActionAid for coming to hear from us. Amos Said. SAFONS gave us a cassava machine, and the machine is helping us, but some things SAFONS promised to do for us, up until now, they have not done them, and we are in 2025."
He praised the SADFONS project for the support they received. Amos stated that the Association started their cassava project with only three cassava processing machines, including a grinder, slicer, and compressor, to help process their harvested cassava, which they said has made the process much easier.
Other members of the association, mostly women, also shared testimonies about how the cassava grinder has greatly reduced the hard labor they faced before receiving the cassava equipment. At that time, they said they were grinding cassava using the old manual method with their hands.
"There are some good things the SADFONS Project did for us as farmers here, but we want them to do more and better. We need tools, we want to plan vegetable." Mamie Blamah, the treasure of the association said.
She narrated that the support provided to them since SAFON began working with them has helped increase their production of gari and fufu, and that they no longer face the stress of grinding the cassava by hand. The group also mentioned that additional support includes training for lead farmers.
However, Amos quickly pointed out that although the support from SADFONS has benefited the farmers, SADFONS has not delivered on many promises made to them.
Such promises he mentioned include training for Farmer's Feed School trainers, providing tools for cassava projects, outfits, establishing a mechanization center for the farmers, storage facilities, and creating linkages to existing markets.
The farmers' association, through its leaders, welcomes ongoing support and continued engagement with the SADFONS project to strengthen their capacities, boost productivity and yields, and enhance the nutritional vibrancy of its members.
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"We want to continue with the SADFONS project, but let the ministry do those things SADFON said they should do for us the farmer. We want to make our cassava farm bigger, but most of the promises they made, they have not fulfilled them." Amos and all the members of the association said.
The group also pointed out the lack of supervision and support system to maintain and service the equipment, coupled with the lack of storage facility for their produce and lack of market linkages as some of the pressing challenges they want SADFONS and MOA to address moving forward.
The group also expressed frustration over the lack of training and maintenance for the other cassava equipment that the Ministry of Agriculture provided. They say that because they lack the necessary skills and don't know how to operate the cassava slicer or repair the cassava compressor, these two pieces of equipment have been standing unused for several months.
The next phase of the Impact Reviews, ActionAid Acting Program and Policy Manager, James Pewee said will be conducted in River Gee, Maryland, Grand Bassa, and onward to Bomi Counties in the coming days.
