Background to the Development of
National Forest Forum (NFF) in Liberia.
Vision of the NFF LIBERIA
A National Forest Forum, linked to the 15 County
Forest
Fora
(CFF),
legally
recognized
and
facilitated by the Forestry Development Authority
(FDA), holding dialogues on a regular basis where
all
forestry
related
stakeholders
have
an
opportunity to meet and to identify key issues
affecting Liberian forests, forestry and forest
dependent people so that activities are streamlined
and do not overlap, aiming towards an equitable and
fair distribution of benefits, building in this way
synergies and a transparent forest sector decisionmaking
process,
improving
sustainable
forest
management and enhancing the livelihoods of those
dependent upon forests.
Background
Liberia is endowed with rich forest resources that are important to
the livelihoods of Liberians, particularly for those in rural
communities. About one third of the population lives in forested areas
and depends upon forests. Fuel wood and charcoal production employ
numerous people and these products remain by far the most important
sources of energy for over 98 percent of Liberians. Similarly, the
harvesting and sale of bush meat makes a significant contribution to
local income and employment, as well as providing a protein source for
estimated three-quarters of the population.
In this current post-conflict era, the need for livelihood
improvement amongst Liberians is urgent. Forests in Liberia have a
potential role in future job creation and are therefore of vital
importance to rural communities for their survival. The demands placed
on the forestry sector have increased, however, at a time in which
existing forestry institutions and infrastructure is least capable of
responding effectively. Hence the involvement of the communities in
the sustainable management of the country’s forests is critical.
Historically, the forestry sector in Liberia primarily focused on
the commercial harvesting of timber. The current Liberia forest policy
that was adopted in 2006 has recognized the problems related to this
past bias towards commercial forestry and a key objective in the 2006
Forest Policy is to ensure that the different forest uses are balanced
and, where possible, integrated to achieve maximum benefits for the
nation as a whole. The National Forest Management Strategy (NFMS)
takes into consideration that future reforms, rehabilitation and
development within the forestry sector must include communities as
partners in the sustainable management of forest resources. The four
strategies for implementing Liberia’s forest policy, as spelled out in
the NFMS of 2007, are consequently strategies for: community forestry;
commercial forestry and forest conservation (referred to as the 3Cs);
and inter-sector cooperation.
The following challenges have been identified with regards to
ensuring effective community participation in sustainable forest
management: inadequate community participation and representation;
lack of clarity of land/forest tenure and use rights of communities;
and difficulty in establishing democracy in rural areas in a post-war
context.
Rationale
The building, upgrading and strengthening of local community
institutions so they may effectively participate in the national
forest programme (nfp), as well as transparent and equitable
management of community affairs, are very crucial ingredients for
community livelihood improvement and poverty reduction. Until very
recently, however, the Liberian forestry sector did not have a
dedicated forum where stakeholders participate in joint decisionmaking or share information regarding the performance of the sector.
This fragmentation has consequently affected the performance of the
sector and isolated it from broader inter-sectoral processes.
Most initiatives or interventions in the nfp (such as the Community
Forest Development Committees (CFDCs), Forest Law Enforcement
Governance and Trade (FLEGT)/Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA), or
the Climate Change and Carbon Trading programs among others) tend to
reestablish a unique platform for stakeholder consultations. This
seems to have resulted in a proliferation of platforms on forestry
issues and possibility of confusing the forest communities on the
ground level. The communities, as well as all of these interventions,
would benefit from the establishment of a single platform where
consultations take place.
Context
Stakeholder participation and dialogue can not only ensure that
regulations are practical, appropriate and based on sound analysis of
economic, social and environmental issues, but they are also critical
if there is a to be buy-in in any policy changes and implementation.
These processes will help poor forest communities to improve their
livelihoods by increasing their investment preparedness and support
the maintenance of ecosystem services.
In March 2009, the Forestry Development Authority (FDA) entered into
a partnership agreement with the National Forest Programme Facility
(NFP Facility) in coordination with the Food and Agriculture
Organization (FAO) of the United Nations with the overall objective to
install effective mechanisms and structures that will ensure a fully
operational multi-stakeholder platform or forum for regular and
improved dialogues and consultations between stakeholders. These
dialogues would relate to i) the sustainable management of Liberia’s
forests, ii) equitable sharing of the benefits and responsibilities
from the forest; and iii) efficient conflict resolution during forest
management and utilization.
In the same year the Growing Forest Partnerships (GFP), through the
local IUCN and FAO representatives, began closely collaborating with
the FDA and the NFP Facility Focal Point. The overall objective of
GFP-Liberia is to complement the NFP Facility efforts and other
existing processes, like Liberia’s own nfp by strengthening the
capacity of the forest sector stakeholders including the forest
dwelling communities for effective participation and sustainable
forest management. GFP aims to reinforce sustainable forest management
and respond to newly emerging financing and other opportunities by
facilitating partnerships through multi-stakeholder, bottom-up
processes.
The NFP Facility and the GFP provided support to the FDA and other
key partners for the design, establishment and implementation of
various fora linked to different scales, yet integrated into one
platform that connects stakeholders from the ground up and
horizontally across stakeholder groupings. Having an integrated nfp
multi-stakeholder platform is key to the sector, as it will enhance
the consolidation of the sector initiatives. It will also create a
framework of governance that is essential in building and maintaining
the confidence of Liberian forestry stakeholders and institutions
willing to provide financial, technical, or any other support to the
forestry sector.
The Nfp Multi-stakeholder Platform
By setting up and establishing a national as well as county level
forest fora the NFP Facility and GFP support has catalyzed ongoing
government efforts. These fora were constituted to represent the full
spectrum of stakeholder groups from all the counties of Liberia. The
established nfp platform is composed of the nfp National Multistakeholder Steering Committee (nfp-NMSC), the National Forest Forum
(NFF) and the County Forest Forums (CFFs). On the national level there
are the nfp-NMSC and the NFF. The NFF is primarily a space to be used
by stakeholders and for stakeholders. It is a platform created for
multi-stakeholder dialogue and consultation; it is not meant to be an
information-sharing network or to act as a political force. The nfpNMSC, although directly linked to the NFF through its membership, is
meant to overlook the implementation of the nfp and its activities. It
concerns the forest sector and the nfp as a whole by guiding its
strategy and implementation so that it is coherent and well
coordinated. The CFFs correspond to the fifteen counties in Liberia
and they feed directly into the NFF structure.
These structures have had an interesting development as they came
about concurrently but have each followed their own yet parallel
tracks. Since these platforms were conceived only two years ago and
are being created through participatory consultation they continue to
be a “work in progress” as they continue to define their distinct
roles and functions and relationship to each other. This report
attempts to provide a snapshot of the nfp platform and outline how it
came about to better understand its structure. As this report deals
with platforms meant to increase the inclusion of communities in
sustainable forest management and decision-making processes it will
also describe how the Community Forest Development Committees (CFDCs)
link to the nfp platform.
Characteristics, Roles and Responsibilities of National
Forest Forum (NFF)
During the launching Workshop of the National Forest Forum in Liberia,
the focal point was mandated to constitute a committee from the
stakeholders to define the roles and responsibility of the National
Forest Forum. The committee came up with the following:
Characteristics of CFF
 perform complementary function to the mandates of the Forestry
Development Authority (FDA);
 Large in size;
 Established at National level;
 Broad and general in focus;
 Should compose of a range of stakeholders including County Forest
Forum/community-based organizations, civil Society Organizations,
Public sector/government ministries and agencies, NGOs, private
sector,
Academia/Research
Institutions,
Youth
and
women
groupings, and donor agencies;
 Stakeholder retains its independence or legal status, property
rights and objectives;
 Constitution and By-laws which supports NFF principles, is
generally required.
 Should obtain legal status with the GOL thru the registration of
its Articles of Incorporation
Roles and Responsibilities:
The main roles and responsibilities of National Forest Forum are but
not limited to the following:
 To ensure that SFM policy and principles are put into practice;
 To encourage and assist stakeholders to participate in the
management and conservation of Liberia Forest through decisionmaking processes and other activities;
 To assist FDA in creating awareness on the National Forest
Reform Law (NFRL) of 2006, Regulations and sustainable
management of forest resources;
 Facilitate the resolution of conflict amongst stakeholders and
other affected parties;
 Ensure and Co-ordinate with FDA the integration of participatory
Forest Management approaches into all forest related planning,
activities and initiatives;
 Ensure the Sharing of information, lessons learnt and
experiences with all stakeholders;
 Facilitate the formation of fifteen (15) County Forest Forums;
 Facilitate training and capacity building for all NFF & CFF
stakeholders;
 Keep up-to-date records and track of the County Forest Forums
and other stakeholders and ensure that they operate within the
limit of their mandate and jurisdiction.