USADF SIGNS PALM OIL GRANTS WITH LIBERIA

Investments to Increase Income for Farmers and Create Sustainable Social Structures

WASHINGTON - August 28, 2008

WASHINGTON, D.C. – August 28, 2008 – The United States African Development Foundation held a grant signing ceremony today at their Washington, DC headquarters which was attended by the Liberian Ambassador to the United States, Charles A. Minor. The two grants signed will benefit the Panta Multipurpose Farmers’ Cooperative Society and the Pulukpeh Farmers Rehabilitation Project, plantations producing palm oil in central Liberia.

 USADF is dedicated to working directly with marginalized groups in Africa and, as USADF President Lloyd Pierson stated, “The grants signed today focus on investing in African ideas with individual empowerment and economic security at the center of it all.” 

While both grants are similar in nature, USADF monies will fund the different needs of each grant. The 20 affected communities located in the Panta District of Bong County will collectively receive $163,936 dollars over three years to increase production potential from plantations and enhance their capacity to provide services and higher incomes to its members. The funding will pay for warehouse construction, employee training, oil palm seedlings, and a new truck.  Since Panta’s ability to transport its product is restricted by poor roadways, funding will also support local roadway rehabilitation and maintenance thus allowing freer and more efficient movement of the harvested and processed goods.  

Located in nearby Suacoco District, Bong County, Pulukpeh’s grant focuses more on acquiring new milling and transportation equipment, recruiting managers, and establishing a revolving credit fund, to provide working capital to purchase farm products. The four-year, $177,200 grant will improve salary levels for employees, generating funds for healthcare and education for families of the employees.   

In emphasizing the need to invest in the poor so that they may climb the ladder of progress, Ambassador Minor stated, “It is heart lifting to see what we are doing here today with the signing of these two grants.” 

A total of 525 members will directly benefit from improvements made to their plantations, with countless others to indirectly benefit from these changes. The grants were purposely designed to sustain local villages and improve living conditions of each resident.

The United States African Development Foundation (USADF) is a United States Government agency dedicated to expanding access to economic opportunity in Africa. Currently USADF operates in 18 African nations.  Over the past 25 years, USADF has directly funded nearly 1,100 African projects representing in excess of $150 million in support of African enterprises and local African communities.

For more information on USADF, its programs and application guidelines, visit www.usadf.gov.

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