(LINA) – Relevant committees of the House of Representatives will in one week revert to Plenary upon revision of the concessional instrument titled “Financing Agreement – Tree Crops Extension Project II (TCEP II).
The ‘Financing Agreement’ between Liberia and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) was submitted to the House for ratification by President George Weah.
In its regular Tuesday session, Representatives voted that the committees on Ways, Means, Finance and Development Planning, Agriculture and Judiciary take an in-depth look at the Agreement which totals an amount of US$23,826,000 split into two, with one part being loan and the other a grant.
In his communication, President Weah indicated that the objective of the agreement is to increase income and improve the livelihood of poor smallholders cocoa producers and their households.
The Executive Mansion anticipates when ratified, the agreement could benefit about 15,000 households of which 10,000 will be cocoa smallholder farmers and the remaining 5,000 in the hinterland will benefit from improved roads, input supplies, market linkages and spill-over effects along the value chain under the operations of the Ministry of Agriculture.
The loan shall be free of interest but bear a service charge of three fourths of 0.75% per annum payable semi-annually on each February 15 and August 15 in United States dollars, and shall have a maturity period of 40 years, including a grace period of 10 years, starting from the date of approval of the loan by the fund’s Executive Board, according to the communication.
“Honorable Speaker, I trust that the legislature will ratify this Agreement which seems to provide employment and drive our Pro-poor Agenda for the good of our people,” the communication further reads.
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