The Ministry of Agriculture through its Rural Economic Transformation Project (RETRAP) Livestock Value-chain Development has concluded a one-day public-private dialog on the challenges and opportunities of commercial poultry farming productivity.
The RETRAP Project, sponsored by the World Bank, brought together stakeholders in the commercial poultry farming industry across the country in Careysburg District, rural Montserrado County.
Giving the significance of the project on Friday, May 17, 2024, the Livestock Development Specialist at RETRAP Dr. Etagegnehu D. Belayneh said the project is currently being implemented in seven counties including Montserrado, Bomi, Cape Mount, Nimba, Grand Bassa, Bong and Grand Gedeh.
Dr. Belayneh said the day-long event was intended to align key stakeholders in the commercial poultry farming to brainstorm ideas on the challenges and opportunities within the sector, in order to come up with productive alliances for individual farmers to play their unique roles.
“So, we brought the key poultry value chain actors together to discuss ideas on the challenges and opportunities. It will be helpful for us to create productive alliances; even though there are some key productions, others are involved in raising chickens; some are service providers. Everybody should know the role they play in the sector,” she said.
Dr. Belayneh said the primary objective of the RETRAP project is to improve productivity and market access for small holders’ farmers and agri-enterprises for selected value chains in project counties.
The livestock development specialist explained that one of the key challenges facing the poultry industry the lack or a harmonized government policy in terms of importation of frozen food like chickens, etc.
For his part, former Senator of Bong County, Henry Yallah, a key stakeholder in the commercial poultry farming sector, lauded the Ministry of Agriculture for organizing the insightful training for poultry farmers.
According to him, the poultry farming industry is a hanging fruit that needs to be tapped upon.
“I see poultry farming as a business and low hanging fruits. We consume a lot of poultry products in the country,” Yallah stated.
He said the workshop will help them to identify major challenges and opportunities in commercial poultry farming and ways to solve them.
“It has been my dream to work in the poultry sector that will help solve Liberia’s feeling problem,” he told the gathering.
During the course of the training, participants highlighted key challenges and proffered recommendations to the ministry of Agriculture in order to enhance and improve productivity in the poultry sector, especially chicken production.
