In 2008 the Government of Liberia and the United Nations Joint Programme on Food Security and Nutrition designed a comprehensive three-year programme aimed at providing a coherent and coordinated response to the problem of food insecurity and malnutrition in the country.

A priority for the programme is the rehabilitation and construction of key roads, as a means to improve access to markets and basic social services. Within this framework, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) requested the services of UNOPS for the rehabilitation and improvement of essential ‘farm to market’ roads and bridges in Bong, Nimba and Lofa counties – linking vulnerable farming communities to market places, health centres and schools.

Rehabilitated roads in Dahnlorpa town, Liberia

The selection of the farm to market roads was carried out in close coordination with UNDP, the Food and Agriculture Organization, the World Food Programme and the Liberian Ministry of Agriculture. The European Commission is the main donor.

Improving livelihoods

Thirty-five kilometres of farm to market roads have been rehabilitated, 33 culverts have been installed and five bridges have been fully repaired. The rehabilitated roads link Wagliela, Davoiyee and Gblason towns to Sanniquellie, the capital of Nimba county, providing farmers with year round access to the main regional market place. The labour was hired locally under a cash-for-work programme to help boost the local economy.

An irrigation scheme in Gbidin has also been repaired and 100 workers have been trained to ensure its proper maintenance. Eight hundred farmers are now able to irrigate their rice farming land, leading to two harvests per year instead of one. 

Immediate impact on food security

Before the project, farmers had extremely poor access to Sanniquellie, particularly during the six months of the rainy season. During the dry season when access by foot was possible, women who carried their farming products on their backs and heads would travel half a day to reach the market.

Feeder roads under construction

Since the roads were repaired most travellers can now use local motorbike taxis to reach the town within 15 minutes. This has helped increase the market’s size and importance, creating jobs and raising incomes for farmers.

The project has also improved access to basic services including schools and healthcare, and allowed year round access to all three towns by emergency ambulance crews.

Local ownership

A key element of the project was ensuring local ownership and sustainability.

Due to the potential for damage caused by the long rainy season, the project paid great attention to sustainability and maintenance. High quality local materials and sound technical practices were used for all works. Road protection works were also completed, including building culverts, retaining walls and drainage channels along steep sections to reduce erosion.

Community maintenance teams were set up and trained in all aspects of rehabilitation works, including the use, maintenance and repair of compacting machinery. Basic tools and materials which were used for the project have now been donated to the community development committees in order to support their efforts to maintain farm to market access throughout the year.

The team on the ground actively engaged with local communities and authorities throughout the project. The communities themselves were responsible for choosing the people who would participate in the cash-for-work scheme.

Empowering women in communities

Women selling their locally-produced vegetables at Flumpa market in Liberia

Liberian women tend to sell the fruits and vegetables grown by the family. Being able to access markets easier, quicker and more regularly has a direct impact on their incomes, increasing their capacity to cover household costs, including food, clothes and school fees.

Warehouses were constructed near the markets to store the day’s unsold products, allowing the women to leave their heavy loads at the market when going home to sleep.

The cash-for-work scheme also included 30 percent women.

Quality control

UNOPS ensures monitoring and quality assurance throughout the project schedule. On this project, UNOPS appointed an international expert to provide quality assurance and assist with capacity building for national staff.

Monitoring activities included regular field visits and progress reports using extensive visual documentation and evidence. Financial transactions including the cash-for-work transfer to beneficiaries were completed through Ecobank.

The President of Liberia Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf visited the project, strongly endorsing its achievements. She also mentioned the employment it generated within communities that no longer live in isolation. Representatives from the European Commission also visited the sites on three occasions.

Achieving UNOPS contribution goals

During 2010-2013, four high-level goals are defining the work of UNOPS. They are called ‘contribution goals’, since UNOPS contributes to the work and results of its partners. This project is working towards the third contribution goal, the ability of people to develop local economies and obtain social services. It also meets UNOPS cross-cutting objective of gender equality and the empowerment of women.