UNDP Liberia Resident Representative a.i. Louis Kuukpen has briefed the Minister of Agriculture Alexander Nuetah on the progress of the government-led Accelerated Community Development Programme (ACDP). 

Initiated following feasibility studies in 2019, the ACDP was launched in 2022 at $3.91 million to reduce poverty and inequalities of which the Liberian government committed to providing $100 million over the first three years as a pilot phase.

Mr. Kuukpen reported that with the initial amount of 3 million received so far, the project has delivered farm tractors, post-harvest processing machines, and essential farming tools to cooperatives in targeted counties.

He also mentioned the disbursement of start-up grants, capacity training for cooperatives, communications and visibility initiatives, and the commencement of the installation of wash facilities including boreholes as part of the implementation stage of the project.

Responding, Minister Nuetah expressed gratitude to UNDP Liberia for the progress made so far on the implementation of the government initiative and informed Mr. Kuukpen of the Ministry's ongoing development of a roadmap for the agriculture sector, slated to be launched in June 2024. 

He emphasized plans to collaborate with cooperatives to enhance their capacity and provide additional training. Minister Nuetah added that the Ministry also intends to develop approximately 100 hectares of farmland for cooperatives in each county, focusing on food crops, cash crops, and livestock.

In a gesture of collaboration, UNDP Resident Representative a.i. Kuukpen handed over the project document and a financing agreement signed between UNDP, the World Bank and the Ministry of Agriculture.