Published: August 29, 2025
MONROVIA — Communities living around Liberia’s forest reserves are raising alarm over their exclusion from land use and conservation decisions, warning that government’s unilateral imposition of protected areas threatens their survival and deepens poverty.
At the launch of AICA’s Liberia Chapter in Monroviaa, gathering of local leaders, forest dwellers, and conservation actors, residents from Toto, Sarpo National Park, Gola Forest, Kpatawee Waterfalls, and the East Nimba Reserve recounted how decades of exclusion from forest governance have fueled mistrust, fear, and hardship for people whose lives and culture are rooted in the forest.
For many, the forest is more than trees. It is the birthplace of ancestors, a source of food and medicine, and a refuge during war or natural disaster. Yet when the government moved to convert large swaths into protected reserves, locals said they were not consulted and were treated as intruders on their own land.
“We Were in Fear” — Voices from Toto, Sinoe County
Speaking in an emotional testimony, Savana Jiffan, a resident of Toto in Sinoe County, explained that before the forest was declared a reserve, communities already had local systems of rules to protect the land.
“The forest is where our people were born, where they left us,” she said. “When government said they were coming to propose a forest, we were in fear. Because when government said they’re coming to stop people from going in, we don’t get no voice.”
Jiffan noted that villagers had long enforced strict local laws to regulate access to the forest. “We don’t just go into the forest to do anything. Even if you are serious, before you go in the forest, there must be permission,” she said.
Despite such practices, she lamented that communities still face neglect. “We’re facing a lot of challenges—no schools, no road, no safe drinking water. Our women in pain have no hospital to go. Even when our children go to school, there is nowhere else for them when they fail,” she said.
Recounting her own journey to the Monrovia meeting, Jiffan said she walked three days, from Friday to Sunday, before reaching Buchanan, arriving exhausted and hurting. “We are suffering. My people, you help us. Before government can take this forest, let us stand somewhere where we will benefit from our own land,” she pleaded.
Savana Jiffan, Resident Toto, Sinoe County
East Nimba Reserve: Negotiating Co-Management
Saye Thompson, chair of the Co-Management Committee of the East Nimba Natural Reserve, reflected on similar tensions when government declared the area a national forest.
“In those days, our people had their own system of regulating the forest. It was where we found food, where we hid during war, where we got medicine,” he said. “But when the government of Liberia decided to take this forest, there was no consultation.”
He recalled that disputes escalated in 2003 when the area was declared a protected site. But community resistance and negotiations later pushed the government to allow co-management.
“Community participation was accepted, and boundary lines moved further away from our towns,” Thompson said. “From that point, we established the Co-Management Committee. Conservation is important, but without communities, it cannot work.”
He emphasized that conservation must be seen as life itself, as forests regulate water sources, provide wildlife habitat, and sustain local livelihoods. “Commercial activities destroy forest, but conservation keeps it,” he said, appealing to international partners to support community-based conservation.
Kpatawee: Demands for Land Rights
From Kpatawee, Isaac Reedd Jr. highlighted how conflicts persist because of unclear land rights.
“Government has not yet formed a means to give off land rights. So we don’t know which part of Kpatawee actually belongs to the reserve site, and which part the community can use for livelihood,” he said.
He noted that community members often question why they should be restricted from logging, farming, or hunting in areas they have managed for more than 50 years. Without government enforcement and rangers to uphold agreed rules, conservation risks collapse.
Reedd called for a clear forestry management strategy and land-use mapping that designates zones for farming, logging, and strict conservation. “Deforestation is a major issue. We need to learn from the Gola model, where communities are part of the process,” he said.
Saye Thompson, Chair, Co-Management Committee of the East Nimba Natural Reserve
A Call for Shared Ownership
Across the testimonies, one theme stood out: communities want recognition, not exclusion. While they understand the importance of conservation, they argue that sustainable forest management must include their participation, respect traditional systems, and deliver tangible benefits like schools, clinics, roads, and clean water.
Observers note that Liberia’s forests, covering about 45 percent of the country, are among the largest remaining in West Africa and host rare biodiversity. But pressure from logging, mining, and farming—combined with weak enforcement and limited community involvement—pose major risks.
For now, forest dwellers stress they are not against conservation but want to be heard.
“Forest is life,” Thompson concluded. “But life must also mean people living around it can survive with dignity.”
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