Ten new communities in Sehyi-Geh Clan, Sanniquellie Mahn District, Nimba County, are benefitting from a year-long empowerment project in sustainable agriculture, under the ArcelorMittal Liberia Biodiversity Conservation Program (BCP).
Agriculture Relief Service (ARS), a local non-governmental organization in Nimba, with the support of AML is providing training, farming inputs, implements, and machinery, among other support, to about 250 farmers and fifty students in the ten targeted communities.
Luogon P. Lah, ARS Executive Director, said the farming communities are involved in different farming activities, including swamp rice production, vegetable gardening, oil palm production, cocoa farming, animal husbandry, and chicken poetry. Others are into Village Saving Loan Assistant Programs, also known as VSLA.
Lah revealed that the goal of the project is to promote sustainable agricultural development and protect and maintain the natural forest environment, and its species.
He praised the locals for their cooperation and thanked AML for its continuous support to his organization, and its strong interest in sustaining and preserving the environment in which it operates.
Nimba County Assistant Superintendent for Development, Railey Myers, also praised AML for its support to the local communities and farmers.
On behalf of AML, the Biodiversity Officer, Linda Dolo, thanked ARS for the partnership in preserving the environment through the sustainability agricultural program. She encouraged the farmers to take advantage of the opportunity being provided, noting that it would also improve their livelihood through income generation from their sustainable agriculture activities.
“We encourage all our local farmers in this project to work diligently with our ARS partner and ensure that the program goes smoothly and becomes successful,” she said.
Prince Sibley, a vegetable farmer in Yekepa, commended AML for the support and promised to make good use of the opportunities being provided to them, as farmers.
Recently, AML also began the distribution of a set of machinery, including rice mail, rice thresher, de-stoner, and power generator, to four communities in Nimba. The communities are Bonla, Barpa, Bolo, and Luegbei.