Published: February 6, 2025
Monrovia – The Sustainable Development Institute (SDI) and three other African Civil Society Organizations from Cameroon, Ghana, and the Republic of Congo, in collaboration with Fern, are urging their respective governments to join them in calling on the European Commission (EC) to reconsider its unilateral decision to terminate Liberia’s Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA).
Last week, SDI representatives traveled to Brussels and Paris to engage with European policymakers. The European Parliament and the European Council hold the authority to decide on the VPA’s termination. However, discussions with Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) across the political spectrum revealed that many were either uninformed or misinformed about the EC’s decision. Similarly, meetings with Council representatives from European member states indicated a lack of adequate consultation and information.
Given the VPA’s critical role in addressing illegal logging and deforestation in Liberia, SDI is calling on the EC to revise its proposal to terminate the agreement. Instead of replacing the VPA with a legally non-binding “Forest Partnership” of unclear scope and ambition, SDI advocates for a coexistence model where both frameworks complement each other. This coexistence approach is already successfully implemented in Guyana, the Republic of Congo, and Honduras, where Forest Partnerships function as coordination tools reliant on VPA implementation.
SDI’s Call for Collaborative Solutions
During SDI’s trip to Brussels and Paris from January 27–30, 2025, the EC acknowledged the feasibility of the coexistence model. Jonathan W. Yiah, Forest Governance Program Team Leader at SDI, emphasized the need for dialogue between governments, civil society, and industry stakeholders. “We are convinced that the coexistence approach will foster dialogue and ensure the VPA’s objectives are achieved. The VPA should be enhanced with a Forest Partnership, not replaced by it,” Yiah stated.
He further highlighted that Liberia’s VPA has been instrumental in improving forest governance, ensuring stakeholder participation, promoting transparency, and combating illegal logging. Terminating the VPA, he warned, would undermine these achievements, reversing progress and returning Liberia to an era where forest exploitation failed to benefit the broader population.
The Stakes for Liberia
The SDI warned that canceling the legally binding agreement would harm Liberia’s environmental protection efforts, weaken its economy, and devastate forest-dependent communities. Yiah urged the EC to invest in multi-stakeholder dialogues aimed at strengthening the VPA through a complementary Forest Partnership. “Sustaining the VPA and encouraging a coexistence approach is the best way forward,” he said.
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