MONROVIA, LIBERIA – In a an ambitious move aimed at ending Liberia’s decades-long dependency on food imports, President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, Sr., officially launched “Operation Feed the Nation” Friday, at a packed ceremony at Monrovia City Hall. The initiative, a massive five-year undertaking, seeks to transition the country from subsistence-based farming to a robust, mechanized national enterprise.
From Subsistence to Sovereignty
Speaking to a diverse crowd of farmers, cooperative leaders, and international partners, President Boakai framed the initiative as more than just a policy—calling it a “national mission” for survival and dignity.
“Liberians must produce what we eat and eat what we produce,” the President declared. “For too long, we have outsourced our food security. Today, we begin the journey of taking it back.”
The program is spearheaded by the World Foundation International Multipurpose Agriculture Cooperative (WFI-MAC). According to WFI CEO Lincoln Cooper, the project has already begun cataloging over 52,000 farmers across all 15 counties into a centralized database. The goal is to provide these farmers with climate-smart technologies, high-quality seeds, and access to mechanization hubs that reduce the backbreaking labor of traditional farming.
The “ARREST” Agenda in Action
Operation Feed the Nation is a pillar of the administration’s ARREST Agenda (Agriculture, Roads, Rule of Law, Education, Sanitation, and Tourism). With Liberia currently spending an estimated US$200 million annually on rice imports alone, the government is betting on agriculture to be the primary engine for job creation—specifically targeting the 65% of the population under the age of 25.