Jalay Town, Sinoe – The Act Adopting the National Wildlife Conservation and Protected Area Management Law of Liberia aims to maintain, protect, and preserve Liberia’s unique biodiversity in a way that supports both the recovery of wildlife and the sustainable use of wildlife products by forest-dependent communities.
The same act also assigns full responsibility to the Government of Liberia, through the Forestry Development Authority (FDA), to properly manage and safeguard the park. However, illegal activities continue to rise.
Poaching and mining are among the major illegal activities occurring within Sapo National Park, the country’s oldest biodiversity hotspot. The situation is believed to be worsening due to the government’s failure to implement effective measures to protect the park, as well as the lack of livelihood programs for local communities. Although several national and international organizations are partnering with the government through the FDA, providing financial and technical support, there remains an alarming increase in illegal activities in the park.
Bush meats on sale around surrounding communities of the national parks
In August 2023, the government, through the FDA, declared the park a “No-Go Zone,” meaning it had cleared the park of illegal occupants following a three-week intensive collaboration with the southeast traditional team. However, currently, the park is exposed as illegal activities have resurfaced, leaving wildlife and other forest resources increasingly vulnerable.
During a recent field visit, several affected community dwellers spoke to the Liberia Forest Media Watch, blaming the FDA for the ongoing illegal activities. They added that the government’s failure to introduce livelihood programs as an alternative for affected communities is a contributing factor to the increase in illegal activities in the park.
Augustine Tarlue, a youth representative from one of the affected communities in Sinoe, stated that the park will continue to be exploited by hunters and miners simply because they have no other means for their upkeep and survivability.
FDA Region Five office in Greenville, Sinoe County
“Because we don’t have any other means for living, we see the forest as our own where we go to trap, hunt, and do gold mining in order to put food on the table and address other basic needs for our families,” he said.
“We are here with nothing to do; we depend on the forestry for farming and other activities for our upkeep. Every day, FDA officials say we should not go in and around the park, but they do nothing to help us since they are stopping us from going into the park for hunting, mining, and other activities,” Joseph Pyne, another affected resident from Wedjah, told our investigators.
Elder Joseph Pyne said that introducing livelihood programs for affected residents would ease the tension on the park. He added that no community member would focus on going into the park once they are engaged in something that provides them income for their upkeep.
“If we are empowered to sustain ourselves and our families, no one will go into the park. In fact, we ourselves will be the security helping the FDA to protect the park even more,” he stressed.
For his part, Emmanuel Wesseh, who heads the traditional council in Sinoe County, wants the FDA to recruit affected community residents to beef up the strength of the park rangers. According to him, this is another means of empowering the locals.
Chief Wesseh believes that because affected community dwellers are not involved in the activities of safeguarding the park, many of them feel disenfranchised and do not consider the park as their own.
“Until the government through the FDA considers the decision of recruiting more affected residents in various capacities to serve the park, illegal activities will continue to exist there,” Chief Wesseh explained.
Meanwhile, surrounding residents from Sinoe, River Gee, and Grand Gedeh that border Sapo National Park are also accusing agents assigned by the Ministry of Mines and Energy of receiving bribes from those engaging in illegal mining. They allege that these agents allow the miners to operate covertly with no regard for the fact that the park is protected by law.
Chedepo District’s former commissioner and senior elder of River Gee County, Bokon Dweh Swen, said there is a need for the government through the Ministry of Mines and Energy to enforce monitoring of those assigned as agents around the surrounding communities of the park and in rural Liberia as a whole.
Illegal mining site within the Sapo National Park
“While it’s true we are calling on the government through the FDA and partners to introduce livelihood programs for our people around the park as a means of preventing illegal activities, the Ministry of Mines should also enforce monitoring of their agents. These guys are undercover, taking money from the miners in the name of protecting them while they carry out their activities even in protected areas of the park,” he explained.
Dweh Swen believes that the alleged actions of the MME agents undermine government and donor efforts to safeguard the park.
When contacted for comment on the issue, FDA Technical Conservation Manager Jerry Yonmah confirmed in a telephone interview that indeed his agency is aware of the current illegalities at the park but said a roadmap plan has been developed as part of new measures to safeguard the park.
“We are aware that the ‘no-go zone’ established after the clearing in December 2023 is now being violated, but we have set up a roadmap from the national level to the local level to ensure that we collaborate to protect the park,” he said.
The FDA Technical Conservation Manager stated that financial challenges are a key factor affecting the entity’s operations. Following the design of the roadmap as part of new measures, they have written to donors for funding and are waiting for a response to begin the rollout of its new strategies aimed at safeguarding the park.
Yonmah disclosed that plans are underway to recruit one hundred persons who will be trained and employed to beef up the rangers’ force at the park. He mentioned that regarding livelihood programs, the agency is working with partners behind the scenes to ensure that something positive is done in this direction.
He noted that since the closure of the West Africa Biodiversity and Climate Change Livelihood Community Initiative project, there has not been anything major.
Jerry Yonmah said despite government and partners’ efforts in protecting the park, some Liberian citizens are the ones leading the influx of foreign nationals into the park, noting, “Having people who are antagonistic to government policy doesn’t speak well for the country, and such behavior needs to be prohibited.”
FDA Technical Manager for Conservation Jerry Yonmah
The FDA Technical Manager believes that until Liberian citizens around the country’s rich natural reserves can join forces with the government, illegal operations in protected areas will continue to undermine revenue generation and render Sapo Park vulnerable to degradation.
Yonmah said from the very beginning, the government of Liberia through the FDA instituted a civil approach through broader community consultations with surrounding counties of the park as a first step but this failed. He added that the government will now use force to remove illegal miners and poachers from the park, and confiscate their equipment and tools as well.
Meanwhile, civil society organizations working to promote conservation, forest governance, and accountability are calling for swift government intervention to ensure the protection of species and other forest resources.
Lawrence Bloh, Executive Director of the Sinoe Natural Resources Rights Movement, a civil organization based in Greenville, said there is an urgent need for the Government through the FDA to institute measures to safeguard the park.
“The protection of the park is a national concern, and we are calling on relevant actors to act,” Bloh said.
Lawrence attributed the increase in illegal activities at the park to weak enforcement and limited manpower (rangers) who are tasked with monitoring through regular patrols.
Meanwhile, some concerned citizens in Sinoe County want the national legislature to pass new laws that will enable park rangers to carry firearms. According to them, this will help enforce proper regular monitoring and patrols within the park.
A similar suggestion was recently made by former FDA Managing Director Harrison Kanwea when he served as the keynote speaker during the celebration of World Wildlife Day, calling on the Government of Liberia to equip park rangers with firearms and other necessary logistics to enhance the effectiveness of safeguarding protected areas and national parks across the country.
Mr. Kanwea believes that by equipping park rangers with firearms, it will help reduce illegalities. He added that because of the lack of protection and logistics, rangers are not enforcing monitoring through regular patrols, thereby posing threats to the wellbeing of endangered species within biodiversity hotspots and zones.
“When I was at the FDA, we made these recommendations but they didn’t materialize. I think if this government can provide logistics and training for the use of firearms to rangers, it will help enforce their regular patrols and monitoring,” he said.
The former FDA Boss stressed the need for the overall protection of the protected areas in Liberia, adding that the protection of conservation areas and wildlife is key to boosting revenue for the country.
Up to press time, efforts made to get a word from chairpersons and committee of the lower and upper house on autonomous agencies were not materialized after several engagements through texts and phone calls.
From every standpoint, there is a need for swift government intervention aimed at instituting measures to safeguard the park and its plant and animal species.
Established in 1983 as a protected area, the Sapo National Park is globally known for its containment of important plants, animals, and other valuable resources. The park remains susceptible to degradation due to the uncontrollable influx of illegal miners aided by residents around the park despite global attention. The FDA, charged with the responsibility to manage the park, has proven less capable of doing so. The Authority has, however, attributed its incapacitation to a lack of adequate financial and logistical support to monitor the forest sector.
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