Nelson Is Rebuilding Post-Conflict Communities Through Farming In Liberia

Nelson Papi Kolliesuah is a social entrepreneur and changemaker who began driving impact during his university years. While pursuing his Master’s in Food Security and Community Nutrition at Gulu University in Uganda through the Mastercard Foundation TAGDev . Nelson led a transformative agricultural initiative at the Imvepi Refugee Settlement, where he led a team who trained over 100 refugees to construct and manage vertical gardens in an otherwise barren environment: an innovation, earning the Geneva Prize for Africa and securing 3rd place globally in the 2020 Geneva Challenge on social inclusion.

Noting that only 30% of Liberia’s population has access to electricity, Nelson founded Eco-Energy Liberia, a fast-growing social enterprise addressing energy poverty with innovation and inclusion. Since 2021, Eco-Energy has distributed over 6,000 solar products, reaching more than 30,000 people, electrifying 300+ rural communities, and replacing over 8,000 harmful kerosene lamps. Our dream is to scale and reach an additional 100,000 households over the next five years.

The enterprise has also created 7 full-time and 53 part-time jobs, mostly for youth and women.

Beyond lighting, Eco-Energy is advancing climate-smart agriculture. In collaboration with one of its partners, Eco-Energy has co-developed a portable solar water pump that enables smallholding farmers to irrigate their crops year-round without relying on fuel or electricity. To date, over 300 farmers have adopted this technology—boosting productivity, reducing costs, and strengthening food security in the face of growing climate variability.

Follow Nelson on his social platforms:

Eco Energy Liberia (@eco_liberia) / X

Eco Energy | Facebook

Eco-Energy Liberia:| LinkedIn