In 2024, Entrepreneurs du Monde set up ELILI, a local microfinance institution accredited by the Central Bank of Liberia, to serve farmers living in Lofa county, near the Wolongozi-Wonegizi forest ecosystem conservation areas, as well as in Bong county. The mission of this project is to help these producers to increase their agricultural yields using agroecological practices so that the : - make a better living out of their work - improve food security for all - no longer need to deforest.
The agricultural sector contributes a third of the national GDP and employs 2/3 of the population. 80% of farmers are women. They face severe obstacles: limited access to land, inputs, advice, training and outlets. Besides, extreme weather events have a devastating impact on harvests. In addition, 90% of the population relies on wood and charcoal to cover its energy needs. The rudimentary stoves that use this energy cause dangerous inhalation and disastrous tree felling.
To bring about complete and lasting change in the daily life of the communities, ELILI provides farmers with comprehensive support: a free savings account individual loans tailored to the harvest cycle training every 4 weeks access to seeds and clean cooking equipment The training covers: economics topics: pricing, stock management technical skills: training in agro-ecology and farm advisory health and social topics: domestic violence, rights, nutrition environmental topics
ELILI will share its expertise in strengthening income-generating activities, which enable communities living on the outskirts of protected areas to improve their income without affecting biodiversity. ELILI also wishes to collaborate with other actors to ensure that the messages conveyed during the training sessions are disseminated more widely through its network of 2,000 beneficiaries.
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
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