with the Gbehlay-Geh Rural Women Cooperative based in Nimba County.

The grant is intended to increase the on-farm productivity and income of smallholder farmers in the county.

The Gbehlay-Geh Rural Women Cooperative is a local organization involved solely in the production and processing of rice for the local market and has a membership of at least one thousand farmers.

Under the agreement, loans will be provided the farmers through an innovative digital financial services platform that will be managed by Cellcom “Smile Mobile Service” due to the lack of a commercial bank in that part of Liberia.

The agreement notes that digital financial service will promote more efficient transactions by eliminating cash disbursement and the need for a physical office as well as provide easy financial transactions most especially in the micro-finance sector of the economy.

In brief remarks at the signing ceremony Thursday, LADA Chief of Party, Daniel Gies, expressed excitement about the grant, and promised to collaborate with local
farmers so that they can produce the quantity of rice that will reduce importation of the commodity on the Liberian market.

He pointed out that the signing ceremony is part of a bigger plan that will put more money in the hands of farmers so that they can produce what the country needs.

The USAID funded LADA, is a five-year US$3 million “Feed the Future Liberia Agribusiness Activity,” that is being implemented by Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture.

It seeks to accomplish this goal by expanding farmers’ access to and use of agricultural inputs and post-harvest handling, processing, packaging and marketing services at the local level.

The program currently operates in four of Liberia’s 15 counties - Bong, Lofa, Nimba and Montserrado counties.

The agreement was signed by Gies, LEAD National Director Allen Gwen, the Chairlady of the Gbehlay-Geh Rural Women Cooperative Annie Kruah and a representative of Cellcom GSM.
LINA BMK/TSS/PTK