IITA and partners make history in Liberia’s agricultural transformation
September 8, 2025
Stakeholders, Liberia’s Minister of Agriculture, Dr Alexander Nuetah, and seed producers during the seed distribution event.IITA–CGIAR and its partners have achieved a historic milestone in Liberia’s agricultural sector through the Seed4Liberia Project. For the first time in the country’s history, breeder seeds of improved IITA cassava varieties were exported in large quantities, used to establish breeder seed fields, and distributed to 27 pioneering foundation seed producers. These seed entrepreneurs will play a pivotal role in developing a sustainable commercial cassava seed system within the formal seed framework introduced by the BASICS-II project.
The symbolic seed distribution ceremony brought together key stakeholders, including the AfricaRice Center, the Central Agricultural Research Institute (CARI), policymakers, farmer cooperatives, seed producers, processors, and development partners across the country’s cassava value chain.
A female seed producer receiving breeder seed from Liberia’s Minister of Agriculture, Dr Alexander Nuetah.
Liberia’s Minister of Agriculture, Dr Alexander Nuetah graced the event, underscoring the critical role of private sector engagement in ensuring that research innovations reach farmers sustainably.
This landmark achievement represents more than the distribution of cassava planting material, rather it reflects a turning point for Liberia’s agricultural transformation. By improving access to quality cassava seeds, the project aims to enhance productivity, strengthen food security, and uplift the livelihoods of farmers and rural communities.
Seed producers, facilitators and participants during the training.
Key highlights at the event include:
First-ever breeder seed distribution: Improved IITA cassava varieties made available to 27 foundation seed producers across Liberia.
Commercial seed system development: Trained seed entrepreneurs to drive a sustainable cassava seed industry.
Private sector commitment: The Minister of Agriculture emphasized the importance of market-driven approaches to research and innovation.
Collaboration and partnership: The event demonstrated the power of multi-stakeholder collaboration in shaping Liberia’s agricultural future.
Empowering seed producers in Liberia
As part of the initiative, IITA organized a technical and business training program for seed producers under the EU-funded Seed4Liberia project. The training was designed to equip Liberian seed producers with the skills required to meet the demands of a modern seed industry while ensuring profitability and sustainability.
Modules included:
Early-generation seed production technologies
Seed health and quality assurance
Seed regulatory frameworks
Seed business development and financial management
By leveraging innovative seed system instruments pioneered in Nigeria and Tanzania under the BASICS-II project, Liberian seed producers are now positioned to scale their operations, improve profitability, and contribute significantly to national food security.
The adoption of these systems will also promote sustainable agricultural practices, ensuring both environmental conservation and improved farmer livelihoods.
Contributed by Mercy Diebiru-Ojo
Olamide Deborah Nwanze is a Senior Research Associate specializing in gender mainstreaming research to inform participatory and inclusive breeding, variety development, and seed systems policies regarding root, tuber, and banana (RTB) crops in the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture Headquarters, Ibadan, Nigeria. She is a PhD candidate at the University of Ibadan and holds an MSc and B. Agric in Agricultural Extension and Rural Development. Olamide is a fellow of the African Women in Agricultural Research and Development – Gender Responsive Agricultural Systems Policy (AWARD-GRASP) and the Gender Responsive Researchers Equipped for Agricultural Transformation (GREAT). She seeks to apply her gender-mainstreaming learnings, gender-responsive research, and policy development, and review expertise to facilitate women, youth, children, and vulnerable social group’s access to and adoption of agricultural Innovations that guarantee food, nutrition, income, and livelihood security in Africa. Her current roles include mentoring research fellows, development of guides and training manuals, implementation and adaptation of gender frameworks and tools, value chain actors’ engagement as citizen science partners, policy review and redesign, data management, and analysis. Her current research explores mixed methods and participatory and interdisciplinary approaches to capture and highlight gender dynamics, needs, preferences, and challenges stakeholders face within the agricultural livelihood value chain to prioritize gender-inclusive strategies in breeding programs, policy design, and implementation.
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