A coffee project in Yei River State has been suspended due to insecurity in the rural areas, the state Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has said.

Last year, local farmers earned thousands of US dollars from the exportation of coffee beans.

In June this Year, the state Council of Ministers approved 1.8 million pounds for establishment of a major coffee project.

Officials say many incidents of insecurity in the state in recent months have resulted into displacement of the people and inaccessibility of farmlands.

The Director-General at the Ministry of Agriculture, Edmond Taban Gogo, told Eye Radio that they had planned to plant more than 600,000 coffee seedlings this year.

But he says such activities will only resume when there is peace in the area.

“We were on action to carry on with our activities but with the insecurity in most of the areas, we are unable to establish the coffee nursery for the time being,” Mr Gogo said.

Yei River state lies in the green belt region with fertile soils suitable for agricultural production.