Review of Liberia’s Forest Conservation Agreement

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Situation

Liberia’s National Forestry Reform Law of 2006 set a target of conserving at least 30% of Liberia’s forest resources by 2020. Realising that clear conservation actions, including those of local forest-owning communities, would be needed to achieve this, the Liberian legislature entrenched communities’ interest in forest resources with the enactment of the Community Rights Law (CRL) in 2009. Under the CRL, rural communities are able to self-manage their forests or manage them through third parties, which has led to a rapid increase in communities’ participation in forest management. In recent years, several forest-owning communities have entered Third Party Commercial Use Agreements, primarily timber harvesting contracts. Other communities are interested in conserving their forest resources while receiving sustainable benefits, but there is currently no uniform contracting approach for the conservation of forest resources.

However, there is no clear conservation agreement contracting framework nor any guidelines to implement and monitor these agreements, which often results in challenges and setbacks for communities, such as lack of incentives to conserve the forest, inadequate legal protections and exploitation. With the increasing recognition of the value of forests and the marketability of the ecosystem services they provide, there is a need to develop a guide informing stakeholders, particularly communities, how to negotiate conservation agreement, including how to clearly identify the scope of conservation activities, the incentives and benefits for the communities, and the duration of conservation projects.

ILP’s Action

In partnership with the Liberian Forestry Development Authority, ILP and its volunteer lawyers assisted with the development of a Forest Conservation Agreement framework. This framework will inform and guide the contracting of forest resources for conservation purposes, help minimise the occurrence of contractual disputes, and increase the sustainable management of forest resources, especially in community forests. The framework and guidelines were drafted by a Liberian lawyer, with input from internationally based volunteer lawyers on relevant international laws and best practices.

Impact

The Forest Conservation Agreement framework has enhanced the government’s ability to ensure that the CRL and other related laws protect and benefit marginalised communities and are properly implemented. The development of the framework not only strengthens forest owning communities’ ability to participate in forest conservation and negotiate their rights and benefits, but it will also minimise disputes related to the conservation of forest resources, increase revenue for both the government and local communities, and contribute to Liberia’s commitment to forest and biodiversity conservation.