Grand Bassa County – Agriculture Minister Dr. J. Alexander Nuetah has clarified the status of a longstanding compensation arrangement involving farmers whose rubber trees were removed during the expansion of the Liberia Agriculture Company (LAC) plantation in Grand Bassa County.
The clarification was made during a meeting with community elders, residents of affected communities and representatives of LAC following concerns raised by residents of Compound #3 and surrounding communities, who recently wrote the Ministry of Agriculture seeking government intervention in the matter.
Addressing the gathering, Minister Nuetah explained that available records at the Ministry indicate that the compensation process originated in 2004 when a government committee established under the administration of former Chairman Gyude Bryant reviewed claims submitted by farmers whose rubber trees were affected.
The committee, chaired by then Minister of Agriculture George Karmea, determined that compensation for each mature rubber tree would be US$6.
Under the arrangement endorsed by the Government of Liberia at the time, responsibility for payment was shared between LAC, which agreed to pay US$3 per tree and the Government of Liberia(GoL), which committed to paying the remaining US$3.
“Based on the records available to the Ministry, LAC fulfilled its obligation under the agreement and made its payments to the affected farmers,” Minister Nuetah told the community.
He noted that the GoL has already paid approximately US$67,000 toward its portion of the compensation, but more than US$200,000 remains outstanding under the 2004 arrangement.
Minister Nuetah emphasized that the purpose of the engagement was to clarify the historical record and assess the status of the remaining payments.
“We are not coming here to discuss a new price or conduct a new assessment. What was agreed upon in 2004 as the price stands. Payments began in 2005, and in 2006, 2007, and 2008 the government made some payments,” he said.
The Minister assured community leaders that their concerns will be formally communicated to President Joseph Nyuma Boakai and relevant government authorities for further consideration.
He also committed to returning to the community within one month to update residents on the government’s position and the next steps regarding the outstanding balance.
