Africa-Press – Liberia. A local farmer cooperative “Better Living Liberia (BELL), in collaboration with Todee Farmer Cooperative, have launched “Produce Food and Cash crops to better Family and Develop their Communities in consonance with Government of Liberia Agriculture and job creation program promulgated in a bill proffered by BELL known as ‘Small Business Empowerment Act, 2020.’
The Bill is currently in Committee room of the House of Representatives. The proposed bill highlights, highlighting 3.2.1 The Liberians Innovation Fund for Entrepreneurs (LIFE) is a capital support fund to empower indigenous Liberian Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) through the provision of financial guarantees for low-interest and long-term loans provided by authorized commercial banks to enhance the creation of economic middle-class in Liberia.
The bill also highlights section 3.3.1 of the Liberian Innovation Fund for Entrepreneurs (LIFE) to be funded from the National Budget of the Republic of Liberia and contributions from government bilateral partners, philanthropists, private equities and individuals.
Also in the bill section 4.2.1.states that only indigenous Liberian business (fifty-one percent shares owned by Liberian citizens) shall bid for Government of Liberia procurement contracts valued up to United Stated One Million Dollars (US$1 million), or its equivalence in Liberian Dollars.
Mr. Gbenimah Balu-Slopadoe Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of BELL said, the organization, will “engage community residents in the 73 electoral districts in the country. He also BELL promised to invite donors and stakeholders to participate in a “Community-Profiling-Engagement” exercise with an intent to produce a work-plan that covers a shopping list of the community needs which all stakeholders shall agree to work with.
Stakeholders and Community are expected to organize a farmer-cooperative and credit union of the community people to enhance their economic management and growth to achieve food security, increase income and create jobs, thereby producing farmer-entrepreneurs towards a national goal of creating Economic-middle-class in Liberia by the year 2030.
“BELL will ring five times at 5:00am for the community people rise up and go to work. On day one, following the launching, BELL will launch its first project known as “Clean Your Yard and Your Surrounding and Plant Food: 10,000 Community Individuals on the basis of Food-for-Work.” Under this project, 10,000 community individuals will be engaged to clean their yard and surrounding to plant food and cash-crops and receive food for compensation – making BELL and the community individual’s owners of the produce.”
