Development is the sustainable availability of socio-economic opportunities for everyone in a particular society. The Government has the authority and responsibility to ensure this happens.
This simply means that development must be inclusive, and rights based and intentionally deliberate. I chose to define development in such simple manner because I want my readers to grasp the context of this paper from the very beginning.
There is a need for social economic opportunities for all Liberians. When all Liberians thrive, Liberia will prosper. Liberia’s longstanding development strategy has not worked for centuries because it has focused on the exportation of primary goods or commodities.
The ongoing Liberian development plan that is being formulated should therefore be focused on a social economic and environmental phenomenon that relies heavily on the export of finished products and manufactured commodities rather than primary products from the country.
In Liberia, the population that lives in areas where natural resources are extracted from for export are worse off than the Center that is better off in terms of all opportunities. The gap between the rich (Center) and the poor (periphery) has been widening for decades. It still grows bigger today.
Majority of Liberians survive on subsistent agriculture. Agriculture is therefore one of the key investment sectors that the Government needs to invest in as an economic growth corridor. When the country invests in Agriculture, food crop farmers and their cash crop counterparts will live profitably and the middle class in the country could grow bigger.
Farmers’ income might increase; their living standard might equally improve, and their lifespan could rise. Thankfully, President Joseph Nyuma Boakai comes with huge experience from the agricultural sector. Therefore, his campaign agenda, the ARREST Agenda, begins with an “A” (which stands for Agriculture).
AS I SEE IT, to score significant points in reducing poverty and inequality in the country, Liberia needs to increase the production of food. Once the country can produce more for its own consumption, the surplus or excess products could be exported. Increase export from Liberia will bring in more foreign currency (fx).
When the country exports more and attracts increased FX, its balance of trade condition might improve. This might lead to an increase in the income of all including rural farmers. This means that the income of those rural farmers would rise once they are able to freely access both domestic and international markets and easily transport their excess goods to markets locally and internationally.
This is why the Government needs to invest massively in economic infrastructure especially roads or transportation. Connecting rural farmers to local and international markets is quintessential to bridging the poverty and inequality gap in Liberia. If other countries can lift millions of their citizens out of poverty, why Can’t Liberia lift its entire population of a little over 5 million citizens out of poverty?
AS I SEE IT, huge investment the agricultural sector might lead to balanced political and socio-economic national development. With adequate linkages to other existing sectors, Liberia could develop into a private sector driven economy with inclusive and strong political and economic institutions.
This could lead to the creation of more economic opportunities including job creation. Liberia needs to therefore invest heavily in agriculture to create a larger middle class. An investment in agriculture requires substantial investment in the construction of roads across the country. Therefore, the National Legislature needs to place a priority on Agriculture and Roads in the 2nd National Budget of the country under this Government.
You may wish to ask, does Prof. Kaydor farm? Yes, he owns over 20 acres sugarcane farm in Harrisburg, Montserrado, his birthplace. He also engages in other agricultural activities in his home county, Grand Kru.
About the Author: Prof. Tom Kaydor, Jr. serves as an Assistant Professor at the IBB Graduate School of International Studies. He holds a PhD from the Department of Government and European Studies, the New University, Slovenia where he specialized in International Development and Diplomacy (with Security Aspects). His dissertation topic was ‘Reconceptualizing Africa’s Regional Integration for Peace and Sustainable Development.’ He earned a Master of Public Policy (MPP) specialized in Development Policy or Development Economics with Distinction from the Crawford School of Economics and Government (now the Crawford School of Public Policy), Australian National University, Canberra, Australia. He also obtained a Master of Arts (MA) in International Relations (Highest Distinction) and Bachelor of Arts (BA) Magna Cum Laude in Political Science from the University of Liberia. Tom holds a Diploma in Leading Economic Growth from the Kennedy Graduate School, Harvard University, USA; and he holds other diplomas and certificates in professional fields from Italy, UK, Pakistan, China and Israel, Prof. Kaydor is also an Adjunct Professor of Development Studies at the AME University Graduate School. Dr. Kaydor is an evidence-based researcher, a blogger, a columnist, and a published author. One can reach him via (kaydorth@ul.edu.lr or thkaydor@gmail.com).
