• Liberia seeks to replicate Jigawa’s model for large-scale rice production

• Talks focus on investment, technology transfer, and joint ventures

• Move comes as rice imports more than doubled in recent years

Liberia seeks a partnership with Nigeria’s Jigawa State to strengthen its rice sector and reduce reliance on imports.

In that effort, Agriculture Minister Alexander Nuetah met on April 8 in Monrovia with Umar Namadi, governor of Jigawa State, for talks aimed at deepening agricultural cooperation between the two sides.

Discussions focused on improving food security, attracting private investment, sharing technical expertise, and exploring joint ventures in rice processing and distribution.

“Liberia is seeking to improve productivity by adopting best practices from Jigawa State, particularly in mechanization, irrigation systems, and structured farmer support programs,” local outlet The New Dawn quoted Nuetah as saying.

In Nigeria, Jigawa accounts for about 3% of the country’s rice cultivation area and has maintained steady output growth. Data from the National Agricultural Extension and Research Liaison Services (NAERLS) show that paddy rice production in the state rose 7.56% over five years, from 203,000 tons in 2020 to 218,000 tons in 2024, with average yields of about 1.67 tons per hectare.

By comparison, Liberia’s rice production averaged 287,400 tons over the same period, according to the FAO, but with lower yields of about 1.1 tons per hectare.

The partnership comes as Monrovia seeks to scale up domestic production to curb rising imports. FAO data show that Liberia’s rice imports more than doubled, from 285,756 tons in 2019 to 658,192 tons in 2023.

Stéphanas Assocle