In rural Liberia and Sierra Leone in West Africa, where the supply chains are very undeveloped and unreliable, AMI is working with local youth and farmers groups to develop independent local food systems which are not dependent on the rudimentary food supply chains which may or may not exist. In these instances it is necessary to construct local food storage facilities coupled with increased production of local staple crops (grains and tubers). This will increase the overall quantity of food produced and available in the participating communities, thus reducing the levels of food insecurity throughout the year. In both countries, food insecurity is a recurring endemic problem caused , in large part, by the seasonal nature of agricultural production as dictated by the rainfall pattern. By constructing food storage facilities, it is possible to establish community based food reserves to decrease food insecurity during the "hunger season," just before the annual harvest. These food reserves are replenished annually.
Mikhiela Sherrod, PhD Executive Director Agricultural Missions Inc.
Dr. Sherrod is the Executive Director of Agricultural Missions, Inc., an 85 year old ecumenical organization that supports rural people in the US, Africa, Caribbean, Latin America in using advocacy and agriculture to address the structural causes of poverty and injustice. She has over 17 years of experience working as a community organizer with Black farmers and rural communities of color in the U.S. and developing countries. Dr. Sherrod leads a long-term development and capacity restoration agricultural program in Liberia and Sierra Leone that uses regenerative agricultural practices that reinforce adaptation and mitigation of climate change. She is also experienced leading research and evaluation projects that use a racial equity lens to assess and address disparities in health, access to food, and economic opportunities. Dr. Sherrod is vice president of the US Climate Action Network board of directors. She earned a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Tuskegee University and a PhD in Genetics from the University of Iowa. 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 1505 New York, NY 10115
msherrod@ag-missions.org agriculturalmissions.org
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