By Bill W. Cooper
BudgIT Liberia, a non-governmental organization, has concluded a one-day knowledge-sharing meeting under its Land Reforestation Project for 15 beneficiary communities in Bomi County.
The project, funded by the United Nation Development Program (UNDP), brought together 15 participants from 15 towns including Vortor, Nyama, Kanikuna, Wolakor, and Tombekai, among others.
During the meeting, BudgIT Liberia Country Lead, Abraham Varney, expressed his gratitude to the residents of the project host community for their support, which resulted in the successful implementation of the project over the past nine months.
Varney stated that the purpose of the day-long gathering yesterday, April 24, 2024, was intended to share the knowledge gained during this project and discuss the challenges encountered, along with strategies for addressing them in the future.
He maintained that it was also intended to distribute 50,000 seedlings among the five towns and to formalize agreements for the management of these seedlings and accompanying materials by the respective town leadership.
Varney further underscored that BudgIT has transferred the management of the seedlings but could render technical support to the communities when needed, encouraging the beneficiaries to make use of the knowledge acquired during the project.
He added, “As beneficiaries, it is your role in sustaining the project by nurturing and utilizing these seedlings to improve livelihoods, to care for the crops, engage into eco farms, and discourage shifting cultivation that is impacting our environment and climate.”
Meanwhile, some beneficiaries expressed delight at the knowledge gained from the development of a permanent nursery site and the acquisition of soap making skills facilitated by BudgIT during the project.
The beneficiaries explained that soap making is now an alternate source of income for their families, noting that income from the soap making is also being used for village saving loans which is helping them immensely.
Hawa Konneh, on behalf of the beneficiaries said, “My son was sent out of school for fees but because of the village saving loan which is possible through the proceeds generated from the soap that we had in Tombekai, I was able to take out a loan to pay my son’s fees.
The Vortor Town Chief, Mohammed Kiazolu, expressed gratitude to BudgIT Liberia and UNDP for the positive impact they have had on the community and said, “I want to begin by thanking BudgIT Liberia for the impact they have made on us.”
“I have been a farmer since birth, but I lacked the skills to establish a nursery for seedlings and the methods to maintain them for optimal growth. Today, I can proudly say that I am now able to establish my own nursery and implement the necessary preventive measures against pests,” he expressed.
“The training and materials provided have been put to good use and we produce soap and offer it to members of our community on credit. Previously, we could only wash our clothes once a week due to the long distances we had to travel to obtain soap, all thanks to the training,” he added.
Meanwhile, at the end of the meeting, BudgIT Liberia also distributed over 50,000 cocoa seedlings among the five beneficiary communities to be utilized to establish farms within the communities, aiming to generate income while reducing communities’ pressure on the forest that has been the core source of their livelihood.
The beneficiary communities further signed an agreement with BudgIT Liberia for a land waiver concerning each of the community’s farm projects, and expressed their willingness to provide seedlings to neighboring communities interested in establishing their own farms, as stipulated in the agreement that will be sold at a low cost.
