Revitalizing Liberia’s Cocoa Sector

The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is implementing a flagship program to help Liberia get its cocoa industry back on track. Through the Sustainable Tree Crops Program (STCP), IITA and its partners are re-energizing the country’s cocoa sector by building the capacity of farmers and providing them with high-quality planting materials. Liberia’s cocoa industry has suffered a major blow because of the country’s civil war of 1989-2003, shrinking production by more than 50 percent. IITA estimates that improving cocoa production would benefit some 30,000 farm families, or 150,000 of Liberia’s 3.1 million people.

“Since its inception in 2006, the program has directly trained almost 7000 farmers on integrated crop pests and quality management (ICPQM) and responsible social behavior through the farmers’ field schools (FFS) methodology,” said STCP-Liberia Program Manager MacArthur Pay-Bayee. In addition to training, farmers receive seedlings of improved cocoa varieties from Cote d’Ivoire-based National de Recherché Agronomique (CNRA). These varieties are high-yielding, disease-resistant and early-maturing - producing fruits within three years if the recommended agronomic practices are followed.

For more information, visit http://www.iita.org/cms/details/news_details.aspx?articleid=1789&zoneid=81