MONROVIA – Liberia spends scarce foreign exchange feeding itself from abroad. Agriculture Minister Dr. J. Alexander Nuetah wants the 2026 National Agriculture Fair to help change that. The fair opens December 10 in Voinjama City, Lofa County, one of Liberia’s traditional breadbaskets. It promises machinery, finance forums, food festivals and a World Bank compact. Yet the fair now enters its third revived edition with no published scorecard. Pressed on outcomes from 2024 and 2025, Nuetah cited processed goods on market shelves. He offered no production figures, investment totals or farmer counts. That gap matters. A national fair cannot be judged by its displays alone. Lofa’s farmers deserve measurable results, not another showcase, as THE ANALYST THE ANALYST’s GEORGE C. FLOMO reports.
Agriculture Minister Dr. J. Alexander Nuetah has officially launched Liberia’s 2026 National Agriculture Fair (NAF), announcing that the three-day event will take place from December 10–12 in Voinjama City, Lofa County. He renewed his call for farmers, agricultural entrepreneurs, processors, and other stakeholders to expand local food production and strengthen the country’s agricultural value chain.
Speaking Tuesday at the Ministry of Information’s regular press briefing, Nuetah described the fair as an important national agricultural undertaking intended to bring together farmers and other actors across the country’s 15 counties to showcase their products, exchange experiences, attract investment, and explore opportunities within the agricultural sector.
The 2026 edition will be held under the theme of growing and producing more, a message the Minister said is directly connected to the Government’s efforts to empower farmers, improve domestic food production, and reduce Liberia’s dependence on imported agricultural commodities.
Fair Rooted In 1956 Law
According to Nuetah, the NAF is not a newly established initiative but an activity rooted in the mandate and agricultural law of Liberia, dating back to 1956. Historically, the event brought together farmers involved in the production of agricultural commodities, as well as businesses engaged in processing and adding value to locally produced goods.
He explained that the administration of President Joseph Nyuma Boakai has sought to revive traditional agricultural activities as part of efforts to strengthen the sector, leading to the resumption of the fair in 2024 and its subsequent hosting in Nimba County in 2025. The Agriculture Minister said the decision to take this year’s edition to Voinjama City, Lofa County, is particularly significant because the county is among Liberia’s traditional food-producing areas and has considerable potential to contribute to national food security.
Nuetah emphasized that the fair is expected to benefit not only farmers but also suppliers of agricultural inputs, aggregators, marketers, transport operators, processors, and young people involved in different stages of the agricultural value chain. He noted that increasing agricultural production requires a coordinated system in which farmers receive the necessary support to produce, while other actors ensure that harvested commodities are transported, processed, marketed, and made available to consumers.
The Minister cited the example of local pepper processors and businesses that purchase fresh cassava roots from farmers and transform them into garri and other processed products, stressing that their activities are equally important to the development of agriculture. He argued that strengthening these interconnected activities would help create more economic opportunities, retain financial resources within Liberia, and reduce the foreign exchange spent on importing food.
“If we succeed in importing less, we succeed in generating more revenue or more foreign exchange that stays in our economy,” Nuetah indicated. He added that resources otherwise spent on food imports could instead be directed toward productive investments within the country.
Three-Day Program Unveiled
Providing details of the program, Nuetah disclosed that the fair will run for three days, beginning Thursday, December 10, with a World Food Day celebration organized in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Although World Food Day is globally observed on October 16, the Minister explained that Liberia’s national celebration will be held during the fair, with FAO supporting the activity.
The celebration will be held under the theme “Innovate Today, Flourish Tomorrow,” which he said highlights the importance of innovation and technology in transforming agricultural production. He particularly encouraged young people involved in technology and innovation to develop solutions that can help farmers communicate, access markets, and trade their agricultural commodities more effectively.
Nuetah also announced that the opening day’s activities will include a Food Festival featuring traditional dishes from all 15 counties. He said under the arrangement, each participating county will have the opportunity to prepare and display its traditional food, allowing visitors to appreciate Liberia’s diverse culinary heritage while recognizing the contribution of locally produced agricultural commodities to the country’s food culture.
The second day, Friday, December 11, will feature an Agricultural Finance Forum organized by FAO, bringing together farmers, cooperatives, agricultural businesses, and other stakeholders to discuss financing challenges. The forum is also intended to identify opportunities to improve access to financial services for agricultural activities.
The Minister disclosed that the Government is also preparing to showcase approximately 304 pieces of agricultural machinery expected to support productivity across the sector. He said the Ministry has already undertaken preparatory work by establishing agricultural mechanization service centers across six counties, with Lofa County hosting four of the centers.
The mechanization initiative, according to Nuetah, is intended to improve farmers’ access to equipment and strengthen agricultural production through increased mechanization. He further disclosed that the third and final day, Saturday, December 12, will be dedicated primarily to agricultural exhibitions, during which farmers and other value-chain actors will display their produce, livestock, and processed agricultural products.
Visitors will also have the opportunity to interact directly with exhibitors, purchase locally produced commodities, and support businesses operating within the agricultural sector. One of the major highlights of the closing day will be the recognition of former Ministers of Agriculture dating back to 1983, including President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, who previously served as Agriculture Minister.
Nuetah said the recognition is intended to acknowledge their respective contributions to the development of Liberia’s agricultural sector while providing an opportunity for current policymakers and agricultural stakeholders to learn from their experiences. He described the engagement as an important learning opportunity, particularly for those currently managing the sector, as the country seeks to build on previous agricultural initiatives and experiences. The fair will also conclude with awards for outstanding farmers and other agricultural actors across different categories, including crop production, livestock, and processed agricultural products.
Impact Questions Remain Unanswered
Meanwhile, responding to concerns about the tangible outcomes of the previous editions of the NAF, Nuetah pointed to the growing presence of locally processed agricultural products on the Liberian market as an indication of progress. The Minister was responding to this reporter’s question on what concrete outcomes had emerged from the 2024 and 2025 editions in terms of increased agricultural production, farmer empowerment, investment, and market access.
This reporter further asked him how the Ministry was measuring the impact of the fairs beyond the exhibitions and public displays. In response, Nuetah argued that improvements could be observed in the increasing availability of locally processed agricultural commodities, explaining that the growth of value-added products reflects the activities of farmers supplying the raw materials needed by processors.
He maintained that when farmers increase production, businesses involved in processing also benefit because they depend on locally sourced agricultural commodities to sustain their operations. According to the Minister, the growing presence of processed Liberian agricultural products in local markets suggests that the message communicated through the NAF is reaching farmers and encouraging them to improve production.
He also referenced the increasing availability of locally produced rice and other agricultural commodities as evidence of changing consumer and production patterns. However, while highlighting these developments, the Minister did not provide specific statistical figures or a detailed assessment of production increases, investments secured, farmers directly supported, or new market opportunities generated as a result of the 2024 and 2025 editions.
His response largely emphasized observable market developments and the relationship between local agricultural production and value addition. It left questions about the Ministry’s specific impact-measurement indicators open.
World Bank Agro-Connect Compact
Beyond the exhibitions and other scheduled activities, Nuetah disclosed that the World Bank is working with the Liberian Government to develop what he described as the Agro-Connect Compact, an initiative expected to be launched on December 12, during the closing activities of the NAF. He said Liberia is currently developing the compact with support from the World Bank and expressed the Government’s expectation that the process would reach an important milestone by the conclusion of the fair.
The Minister encouraged journalists and other stakeholders to attend the event and help promote the activities of farmers and agricultural entrepreneurs whose work contributes to the country’s food supply. Calling on farmers across the 15 counties to participate, Nuetah urged them to bring samples of their agricultural products to Lofa, assuring them that the fair would provide an opportunity to showcase their production, connect with potential buyers, and receive recognition for their efforts. He particularly encouraged farmers and agricultural businesses to take advantage of the event to demonstrate the potential of locally produced commodities and strengthen commercial relationships within the sector. With the fair expected to bring together farmers, processors, investors, development partners, Government institutions, and other agricultural stakeholders, the Ministry says the December gathering will provide a platform for advancing its broader objective of increasing domestic food production and strengthening Liberia’s agricultural economy