This investment project, which mobilizes foreign capital, is also a boost for the implementation of the National Agricultural Sector Development Plan (NADP) adopted in 2024.

LIBERIA – Liberia has signed a partnership agreement with Vietnam’s Uniland Group of Companies as part of renewed efforts to strengthen domestic rice production and reduce the country’s growing dependence on imports.

The move comes as the country grapples with one of the highest per capita rice consumption rates in Africa, estimated at about 133 kg per person per year, far outstripping domestic supply.

Liberia’s Minister of Agriculture, Alexander Nuetah, announced that the government had entered into a memorandum of understanding with Uniland for the establishment of a 50-hectare pilot rice farm in Bong County.

According to information published by the Daily Observer on Thursday, December 11, the project will be implemented through Uniland’s local subsidiary, Unifarm Liberia, with rice production expected to start by May 2026.

The pilot farm is intended to serve as an entry point for technology transfer and productivity improvements in Liberia’s rice sector.

Peter Edward Dinning, Managing Director of Unifarm, said the initiative will focus on introducing modern production techniques drawn from Vietnam’s experience.

“Thanks to Vietnamese technology, the harvest could be ready just three months after planting the first crop,” he said.

Although the specific technologies to be deployed have not been disclosed, Vietnam’s position in the global rice market provides important context for the partnership.

Vietnam is currently the world’s fifth-largest producer of milled rice, after India, China, Bangladesh and Indonesia, with projected output of about 26.7 million tons in the 2024/2025 season.

The country is also the world’s second-largest rice exporter after India, supplying nearly 7.9 million tons to international markets in the same period.

The memorandum of understanding marks the first operational step in a broader investment plan that Uniland has been discussing with Liberian authorities for several months.

In April, the Vietnamese group announced plans to invest up to US$120 million in Liberia’s rice value chain during an official visit organized by the government.

According to official statements, the investment plan includes establishing commercial rice plantations across five counties, constructing two modern rice mills with a combined annual processing capacity of 50,000 tons, and training about 5,000 Liberian farmers in intensive rice farming techniques.

The objective is to raise local output, improve milling capacity, and strengthen skills along the rice value chain.

The planned investment responds to Liberia’s rising import bill for rice. FAO data show that the country’s rice imports more than doubled from 285,756 tons in 2019 to 658,192 tons in 2023.

Spending on these imports also doubled over the same period, reaching nearly US$239.9 million, underlining the economic cost of import dependence.

Beyond immediate production gains, the Uniland partnership supports the implementation of Liberia’s National Agricultural Sector Development Plan (NADP), adopted in 2024.

Under the strategy, the government aims to develop 50,000 hectares of lowland areas for rice cultivation by 2029, supported by public and private investment.

Published Date: December 15, 2025