Libya’s long-quiet coffee sector is set for a major overhaul after the Government of Liberia signed a 20-year public-private partnership with agribusiness company JR Farms Group Inc. on 8 June 2026 in Monrovia, a deal the Ministry of Agriculture says is expected to unlock more than US$60 million for coffee development.
According to the Liberian Ministry of Agriculture, the concession agreement will support the development of over 250,000 hectares of coffee plantations across the country over the next two decades, with at least 200 million coffee trees to be planted. The ministry’s press release states that more than 200,000 farmers are expected to benefit nationwide, and projects the creation of over 300,000 direct and indirect jobs along Liberia’s coffee value chain.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Minister of Agriculture Dr. J. Alexander Nuetah described the partnership as “a major opportunity to revive Liberia’s coffee sector, empower farmers, create jobs and unlock new economic opportunities for rural communities across the country,” in remarks reported by the Ministry of Agriculture. In further comments cited by Global Coffee Report, Nuetah added that the success of the agreement would be judged by “the number of farmers that will be empowered, the number of jobs that will be created, the number of young people engaged, the hectares developed, and the livelihoods improved as a result of this partnership.”
The initiative aligns with Liberia’s National Agriculture Development Plan, which targets the development of 15,000 hectares of new coffee farms by 2030, according to Global Coffee Report. The same outlet notes that coffee has been identified as a priority crop under the government’s agricultural transformation agenda, and that Liberia has favourable agroecological conditions for Liberica, Arabica and Robusta coffee.
Initial implementation will focus on Nimba, Lofa and Bong counties in the country’s interior, Global Coffee Report stated, citing government plans. The Ministry of Agriculture release explains that early activities will include establishing nurseries, distributing improved coffee seedlings, strengthening farmer training, and developing coffee washing stations, followed by grading and quality-assurance systems, digital farmer registration and structured out-grower schemes.
JR Farms Group founder and Group CEO Olawale Rotimi Oyeyemi said the agreement reflects the company’s confidence in Liberia’s agricultural potential and its commitment to working with government and farmers “to build a thriving and globally competitive coffee industry,” according to Global Coffee Report. In an interview with Shore Africa, Oyeyemi noted that Liberia “has a long history as a coffee-producing nation, particularly through its unique Liberica variety,” and said JR Farms believes the partnership can support the sector’s recovery, create jobs, strengthen value addition and generate new economic opportunities.
Shore Africa reported that the US$60 million commitment is one of the largest recent private-sector investments in Liberia’s coffee industry. The outlet also recounted that JR Farms, founded in 2013 by Rotimi and Jibike Opeyemi, began farming in Nigeria before expanding operations to Rwanda, Zambia, France and Canada.
Nigeria-based commercial law firm EandC Legal acted as lead transaction counsel to JR Farms on the agreement, Biznet reported, highlighting growing cross-border ties between Nigerian agribusiness and Liberia’s agricultural sector. Firm founder Omoruyi “Uyilaw” Edoigiawerie described the deal as exemplifying “the transformative power of strategic public-private collaboration in unlocking Africa’s economic potential,” according to Biznet.
Global Coffee Report notes that Coffee Liberica has been designated Liberia’s flagship product under the Food and Agriculture Organization’s One Country One Priority Product (OCOP) initiative, positioning the country’s distinctive species at the centre of the new investment program.
