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By: Nukanah Kollie/ IFAJ/ Alltech Young Leader & Fellow / [email protected]
A visiting United States soil scientist has challenged Liberia to rethink its approach to agriculture, saying the country’s future food security and economic growth depend on turning smallholder farming into a profitable business rather than merely a means of survival.
Dr. William Hare, Associate Dean of the College of Agriculture, Urban Sustainability and Environmental Sciences at the University of the District of Columbia (UDC), made the remarks during a visit to Dunbar Farm in Bong County, where he observed, a demonstration training for local farmers.
Dr. Hare, a Liberian who graduated from Cuttington University in 1983 before building a distinguished academic career in the United States, is a soil scientist by profession. At UDC, he oversees research and agricultural extension programmes aimed at helping farmers improve productivity through science, technology and practical demonstrations. He also manages a 143-acre research farm in Beltsville, Maryland, where sustainable farming technologies, renewable energy systems and value-added food production are tested and demonstrated.
His visit to Liberia was motivated by efforts to develop a modern model farm in Margibi County through the Scorpion Investment Group, an initiative formed by Cuttington University alumni living in the United States. The group has invested in agricultural projects designed to demonstrate improved farming methods that can be replicated by smallholder farmers across the country.
Impressed by Sankofa Farm
During his visit, Dr. Hare praised Sankofa Farm for its organization, cleanliness and healthy crops, describing it as one of the most professionally managed farms he has seen in Liberia.
“This is what a farm should look like,” Hare said. “You can clearly see that the crops look healthy, the soils look healthy, and the organization is impressive. Hopefully, farmers across Liberia can emulate this model.”
He noted that unlike many farms he had visited during his stay in Liberia, Sankofa Farm resembled professionally managed farms in the American Midwest.
“This reminds me of farms in the Midwest of the United States,” he said. “I love the diversity and how well everything is organized.”
Hare contrasted the farm with many others he had toured, saying numerous farms remain poorly organized, with tree stumps, inadequate land preparation and weak management practices that ultimately affect productivity.
“If you’re growing food, you want the food to be healthy, and you want the farm to look good. This farm is really impressive,” he said.
Farming Must Become a Business
Beyond praising the farm, Hare emphasized that Liberia’s agricultural sector must shift away from subsistence farming.
“Farming must be done as a business,” he said.
While food security remains important, he argued that farmers who cannot earn profits from agriculture will continue abandoning rural communities in search of opportunities in cities.
“If farmers are not making profits, they will remain subsistence farmers,” Hare said.
According to him, profitable agriculture could reverse Liberia’s growing rural-to-urban migration.
“If farmers can earn US$25,000 to US$30,000 from five acres of land growing the appropriate crops, people will stay on the farms. They’ll build homes, raise families and develop communities instead of moving to Monrovia looking for work.”
Government Policies Needed
Dr. Hare believes government policies play a decisive role in making agriculture commercially successful.
He proposed that government institutions such as hospitals, schools and correctional facilities prioritize purchasing food directly from Liberian farmers instead of relying on imported products.
“Government should not be purchasing rice or food for prisons and hospitals from outside when local farmers can supply those products,” he said.
He also recommended creating decentralized agricultural purchasing centres where farmers could deliver produce, receive immediate payment and allow government agencies or cooperatives to handle storage, processing and marketing.
“The farmer should focus on production, not marketing,” Hare explained. “They should bring their produce to one centre, have it weighed, get paid and return to farming.”
Additionally, he called for policies that reduce dependence on imported food while creating competitive opportunities for domestic producers.
Investing in Technology
Drawing from his experience managing UDC’s research farm in Maryland, Hare highlighted how technology can significantly improve agricultural productivity.
He explained that the university’s research farm integrates food production, food processing, value addition, marketing and waste recycling into a single operation. Food waste is converted into fertilizer and bio-energy, while solar energy powers irrigation systems and cold storage facilities.
Dr. Hare believes Liberia could adopt similar technologies, particularly solar-powered cold storage facilities, to reduce post-harvest losses.
“Small farmers could store their produce for up to a week while buyers collect and process it,” he said. “That becomes the purchasing centre instead of farmers travelling long distances to markets.”
Demonstration Is the Best Teacher
Hare stressed that convincing farmers to adopt new techniques requires practical demonstrations rather than classroom lectures.
“The way farmers change is by seeing and doing,” he said.
Instead of asking farmers to abandon familiar practices immediately, extension workers should establish demonstration plots alongside traditional farms, allowing farmers to compare results for themselves.
“When they see cleaner fields and better yields on their own farms, they’re more willing to adopt the new methods,” Hare explained.
Returning Home to Contribute
As he prepares for retirement from the University of the District of Columbia next year, Hare says he plans to spend more time supporting agricultural development in Liberia.
“I don’t know everything,” he said. “I’m here to learn as well. What Ms. Nyamah Dunbar is doing is incredible, and I want to learn from her.”
Through the Scorpion Investment Group, he and fellow Cuttington University graduates have already established 10-acre and 50-acre model farms in Margibi County. Their goal is to demonstrate modern agricultural technologies, train smallholder farmers and replicate successful practices across Liberia.
For Hare, Liberia possesses the land, people and potential to build a thriving agricultural economy. What remains, he argues, is the commitment to invest in organized farming systems, modern technology, supportive government policies and profitable markets that allow smallholder farmers not just to survive but to prosper.
