Abuja — Nigerian agro-development company, JR Firm Group has signed a $60 million (about N81.6 billion) 20-year partnership deal on coffee production with the government of Liberia.
The agreement will revitalise the Liberia's coffee sector, expand exports and benefit over 200,000 farmers, expected to develop over 250,000 hectares of coffee plantations over the next two decades.
The initiative, signed in Monrovia by Liberia's Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Alexander Nuetah, and the Founder and Group Chief Executive Officer of JR Farms Group, Olawale Rotimi Oyeyemi, will support the planting of at least 200 million coffee trees and is projected to generate more than 300,000 direct and indirect jobs across Liberia's coffee value chain.
Liberia, renowned for its unique Liberica coffee variety, possesses favourable agroecological conditions and fertile soils suitable for cultivating Liberica, Arabica, and Robusta coffee.
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Under Nuetah's leadership, coffee has been identified as one of the priority crops to drive agricultural transformation, economic growth, and export diversification.
The partnership also aligns with Liberia's National Agriculture Development Plan (NADP), which targets the development of 15,000 hectares of new coffee farms over the next five years as part of efforts to revitalize Liberia's coffee sector and expand agricultural exports.
Speaking during the signing ceremony, Nuetah said the partnership was a major milestone in Liberia's efforts to reposition itself as a competitive coffee-producing nation.
"This partnership represents a major opportunity to revive Liberia's coffee sector, empower farmers, create jobs, and unlock new economic opportunities for rural communities across the country," he said.
The CEO of JR Farms, Olawale said the deal was a historic journey to revitalize and reposition Africa as global powerhouse for coffee, one country per time.
"Historically, Liberia is a known as a coffee producer with its unique variety called Liberica. With this partnership, the country's coffee sector will be revitalized and repositioned for growth, value chain development, job creation and revenue generation for the nation," Olawale said.
