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MONROVIA — The Ministry of Agriculture (Liberia) has signed a nearly US$1 million strategic partnership agreement with eight higher institutions of learning to strengthen agricultural training and empower students with practical farming skills.
The agreement, implemented through the Rural Economic Transformation Project (RETRAP), is aimed at improving youth participation in agriculture by providing students with practical skills, modern farming equipment, and direct exposure to commercial farming practices. It also seeks to address rising unemployment by preparing young people for self-employment and careers along the agricultural value chain, including production, processing, storage, and marketing.
The initiative is also designed to boost domestic food production by strengthening institutional farms, increasing crop yields, and promoting sustainable farming methods, thereby reducing Liberia’s dependence on imported staple foods and strengthening national food security.
The partnership follows a policy statement made in September 2025 by Agriculture Minister Dr. J. Alexander Nuetah, who unveiled plans for a youth-focused agricultural empowerment program at the Africa Food Systems Forum in Dakar, Senegal. At the time, he said the Ministry was restructuring an existing project to create opportunities for young farmers.
According to the Ministry, the initiative is providing a comprehensive financial, technical, and logistical support to students by supplying farming equipment, improved seeds, fertilizers, and other essential inputs, as well as offering training in modern production techniques, farm management, and agribusiness development.
The program also includes mentorship, field demonstrations, and institutional support to help students translate classroom knowledge into practical skills. Through these interventions, the Ministry aims to reposition agriculture as a profitable and respectable career option, encouraging young people to view farming not merely as a subsistence activity but as a sustainable business and pathway to long-term economic empowerment.
Under the agreement, the Government of Liberia will invest a minimum of US$114,000 in each participating institution. The support includes tractors, power tillers, improved seeds, and other farming inputs to establish and strengthen demonstration farms.
The Ministry said the program is designed to move agricultural education beyond traditional classroom theory by giving students direct, hands-on experience in modern farming techniques. Through the establishment of demonstration farms at each participating institution, students will be able to operate tractors and power tillers, test improved seed varieties, practice crop rotation, and implement mechanized cultivation methods
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Agriculture Minister Dr. Alexander Nuetah said empowering young people is critical to the future of Liberia’s agriculture sector.
“The future of agriculture lies in the hands of our young people who are today being trained at our higher learning institutions,” he said. “If we cultivate in them a passion for agriculture through practical exposure, innovation, and mechanization, then we secure the future of the sector.”
The agriculture minister added that mechanization is key to attracting young people to farming, explaining that modern equipment such as tractors, power tillers, and irrigation tools can significantly reduce the physical strain and labor-intensive nature of traditional agriculture.
“Students must be able to practice what they learn. When agriculture becomes practical and productive, young people begin to see it as a business opportunity,” he said.
Representatives of the participating institutions welcomed the initiative and described it as a major boost to agricultural education and practical learning. They also pledged to support the long-term sustainability of the program.
The eight participating institutions in the partnership are African Methodist Episcopal University in Montserrado County, Grand Bassa University in Buchanan, Stella Maris Polytechnic University in Monrovia, and Bomi Community College in Bomi County. Others include Lofa County University, Bong County University, and Nimba University, which serve major academic and agricultural training needs in Liberia’s northern and central regions, as well as Cuttington University, one of the country’s oldest private institutions.
Together, these universities and colleges represent a nationwide network of learning centers that will serve as hubs for practical agricultural training, research, and youth empowerment under the new Ministry of Agriculture initiative.
Liberia’s unemployment rate, particularly among the youth, remains among the highest in the region. Agriculture, with its potential for value addition across the supply chain, offers one of the fastest routes to job creation. The new program is thus framed as a dual-purpose intervention: tackling joblessness while boosting domestic food production.
