PONDS FOR PEACE: RESURRECTION OF AQUACULTURE IN LIBERIA

Liberia was established in 1822 on the west coast of Africa for freed slaves from the United States. Prior to the U.S. Civil War, hundreds of former slaves were relocated to Liberia. They did not intermingle well with indigenous Africans which resulted in many conflicts that culminated in a two-phase, protracted civil war that devastated the country (1989-1996 and 1999-2003). A fragile peace has been established, which requires access to education, health care, job opportunities, and food security to become sustainable.

Aquaculture can play an important role in achieving a sustainable peace. While a tradition of fish culture exists in Liberia, much infrastructure and expertise was lost during the civil war. To help resurrect and expand aquaculture in rural Liberia as a route to sustainable peace, Salem State University (SSU) and the United Methodist University (UMU) in Liberia developed a Memorandum of Understanding in 2011. While aquaculture efforts in developing regions are not uncommon, the long-term, approach which brings together rural farmers with educational networks and administrators is unusual. This personalized approach, facilitated by SSU faculty and UMU personnel has brought people together that share a common goal, possess compatible personalities, and provide needed skills. The team approach has made pond construction and fish production possible in a manner consistent with cultural ethos and extremely limited resources. Immediate objectives are to expand production and availability of fish, to increase assistance to subsistence farmers, to train a cadre of Liberian aquaculture extension specialists, and to rejuvenate the aquaculture concentration within the School of Agriculture. These objectives are being realized (Figure 2). The goal is to establish a viable and sustainable aquaculture capability to increase supply of critically needed animal protein, to create jobs and generate revenue in rural Liberia, and to promote food security. A viable aquaculture industry will reduce the need to import 80% of seafood consumed and reverse the unsustainable rural migration to Monrovia. It will also reduce consumption of bush meat thereby promoting conservation, ecotourism, and avoiding the threat of Ebola. The long-term commitment and personalized approach employed in Liberia, may prove broadly transferable.