Beneficiary farmer groups of the EU‑funded DeSIRA Integrated Rice‑Fish Farming System (IRFFS) Project have praised the technology after recording high yields. Augustine Moore, one of the farmers, reported three harvests per year—equivalent to 5 tons per hectare—since adopting IRFFS. He shared this achievement with journalists touring the project’s beneficiary farms in Margibi County over the weekend. The tour, led by DeSIRA‑IRFFS Project Coordinator Dr Inoussa Akintayo, allowed beneficiaries to narrate their adoption journeys and gave journalists a chance to observe other activities the project team is undertaking to meet its objectives.
Alfred Kollie, Assistant Farm Manager at Karsor Farm—another beneficiary—said his team received quality training on IRFFS technology after the project intervened in the county. “Before, we were growing only fish, but we adopted this technology after assessing the benefits it brings. The project team guided us during the construction of the first set of IRFFS ponds,” he explained. Seeing the positive impact, Kollie’s team later expanded the number of IRFFS ponds, noting that the technology could change the course of their operations for the better.
Agriculture remains the primary source of income for approximately 80 percent of Liberia’s population, according to the Liberia Institute of Statistics and Geo‑Information Services (LIGIS). Despite this reliance, productivity has been low due to climate change, low‑performing inputs, poor extension services, and limited farm‑to‑market linkages. To address these challenges, Project Communication Specialist George A. Harris said the European Union’s initiative aims to improve food and nutritional security while increasing farmers’ income through a climate‑smart approach that protects the environment. “The IRFFS project aims to transform low‑yielding, climate‑risky traditional rice‑fish systems into more climate‑resilient, high‑yielding, resource‑use‑efficient systems in Liberia,” Harris explained. “With the IRFFS technology, farmers can utilize lowland areas to produce food while keeping our environment intact.”
Harris also reported that 174 youths and 170 women‑head‑of‑households have adopted the integrated rice‑fish technology across the project counties—Gbarpolu, Grand Gedeh, River Gee, Maryland, and Gbarpolu. Agro‑Mechanic and Processing Specialist Dr Ahouansou Roger highlighted additional innovations, noting that the project has introduced a range of labor‑saving devices to reduce workload and boost productivity. Plans are underway to train farmers on the operation and maintenance of locally fabricated equipment, including power tillers, moldboard plows, disk ploughs, rakes, driving seats, drum seeders, upland seeders, and rice harvesters, which were displayed at the project’s headquarters in Suakoko, Bong County.
Earlier, Project Coordinator and AfricaRice Country Representative Dr Inoussa Akintayo emphasized that the team’s efforts are synergistic actions aimed at curbing the impact of climate change on food production. He welcomed the adoption of IRFFS technology, especially by women and youth, and urged the promotion of climate‑smart farming methods to discourage environmentally harmful practices. “We are preparing to improve our living conditions today, but we should also think about the next generation,” he said. “Today we have the forest, but the next generation may suffer if we poorly manage what we have now.”
The multinational organizations AfricaRice and WorldFish are implementing the initiative in partnership with national institutions, including the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Authority (NaFAA), the Central Agricultural Research Institute (CARI), and the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA). The project’s target groups are integrated rice‑fish farmers who benefit from access to research, innovations, and technologies that enhance the sustainability and productivity of their enterprises.
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