President Sirleaf Ends Southeastern Tour

Sunday, 7th March 2010

Monrovia, Liberia - President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf returned to the Liberian capital, Monrovia, on Saturday, March 6, following a weeklong visit to the southeastern counties of Maryland, River Gee and Grand Gedeh.  The President also made stops in Nimba and Bong Counties.

In an interview Saturday with reporters, the President described the visit to the counties as rewarding.  The Liberian leader said she was very pleased about the outcome of the tour, because the people have caught on to the vision of development. “Our politics is development,” the President declared. She lauded the efforts of Liberians, particularly rural dwellers, toward Government’s national development initiatives in the areas of reconstruction and agriculture.

The President has, meanwhile, expressed satisfaction at the level of progress being made by Liberian farmers in Gbedin Town, Nimba County.  The farmers, working under the umbrella of the Dokodan Farmers Cooperative, are processing locally grown rice for school feeding programs in the country.  Addressing farmers and other partners collaborating with the Ministry of Agriculture, the President described the program as “one of the best projects that we have going in the country.”

The Liberian leader also thanked partners, including the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Food Programme (WFP), and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) for lending support to the program, which is also being supported by UNDP and SOCODEVI, as well as the CDA, in strengthening the capacity of farmers’ cooperatives in Liberia. She also commended the chiefs and elders for providing the land, and members of the National Legislature for budgetary allocation to support the program.

United States Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, in remarks, announced an additional contribution for the program.  She said the United States Government would provide US$6.4 million for the WFP, bringing U.S. total support to the program to US$10 million through 2010.  Under the program, the WFP is purchasing 1,000 metric tons of Liberian-grown rice to help respond to the food needs of the school feeding program.

Among President Sirleaf’s many activities, she also dedicated the Saclapea Central Market in Nimba County. The dedication was in fulfillment of a promise by the President to construct a market facility in the area.  The structure was constructed with funding provided by the Sirleaf Market Fund, a non-governmental initiative established by the President to assist local market women. The Liberian leader thanked donors for providing funding to complete the building, which was expanded to accommodate the high number of marketers in the area.

Hundreds of marketers, who are also benefiting from an adult literacy program being offered under the project, danced and sang songs, praising the Liberian President for fulfilling a promise which also includes the provision of other opportunities for the women of the county, including a day care center which authorities of the Fund intend to add to the new market building.

The President also inspected the construction, in Tappita, of a 100-bed hospital being undertaken by the Government of the People’s Republic of China.  She expressed satisfaction at the pace of the work, and thanked the people of Nimba for protecting the facilities.

China’s Ambassador to Liberia, Zhou Yuxiao, informed the Liberian leader that, unlike at other projects, no construction materials have been stolen since the project commenced. Ambassador Zhou promised that the hospital would be completed in time and handed over to the Government of Liberia before this year’s July 26 Independence Celebrations slated for Nimba County.

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