Monrovia, Liberia: On a warm morning in Monrovia, voices from government, international partners, civil society, and forest communities came together around a shared conviction that Liberia’s forests can be protected without leaving communities behind.
That conviction took tangible form with the official launch of the Community Conservation Agreement (CCA) Guide, a new roadmap for community-led conservation under the EU-funded LEH GO GREEN (Let’s Go Green) Project, managed and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in partnership with the Forestry Development Authority (FDA).
For years, Liberia’s forests, among the most biologically rich in West Africa, have stood at a crossroads. On one side lay commercial forestry, supported by a well-established contracting framework. On the other hand, conservation forestry was growing rapidly, driven by communities eager to protect their lands for future generations.
Yet, despite the goodwill, conservation efforts often lacked a clear, standardized system to guide negotiations, implementation, and accountability. The launch of the CCA Guide following its validation, marks a turning point.
A Guide Born from Need—and Collaboration
“Community Conservation Agreements are more than just documents. They are a promise for a sustainable future,” said Salimatu Gilayeneh, Inclusive Green Growth Team Leader at UNDP, as stakeholders gathered for the launch.
She reaffirmed UNDP’s Commitment to CommunityLed Conservation placing communities at the center of conservation and climate action in Liberia.
“This new guide provides the roadmap to ensure that promise is kept with clear procedures, shared accountability, and, most importantly, with communities at the center of conservation efforts,” Gilayeneh noted.
She emphasized that the Community Conservation Agreement (CCA) Guide reflects UNDP’s broader mandate to advance inclusive green growth, ensuring that biodiversity protection goes handinhand with sustainable livelihoods.
“Through the LEH GO GREEN Project, UNDP is supporting Liberia to scale up conservation solutions that are participatory, equitable, and grounded in local ownership. This guide will empower implementing partners, government institutions, and community leaders to work together effectively to protect Liberia’s natural heritage while creating tangible benefits for the people who depend on it,” Gilayeneh added.
According to UNDP, the guide is not only a technical achievement but also a shared commitment to transparency, trust, and longterm sustainability—particularly in the Gola and GreboKrahn Landscapes, where communities face increasing climate and economic pressures.
“The launch of this guide is a reminder that climate action is strongest when communities lead. It demonstrates what is possible when partnerships are built on dialogue, respect, and a shared vision for a greener, more resilient Liberia,” Gilayeneh emphasized.
The need for such a guide was evident. Over the past decade, the FDA has granted forest management rights to 57 communities through Community Forest Management Agreements (CFMAs).
While most entered commercial logging partnerships, 11 communities expressed a growing interest in conservation-focused agreements, seeking alternatives that would protect biodiversity while still delivering local benefits.
Yet without a standardized conservation contracting framework, uncertainty persisted, making negotiations uneven and monitoring difficult. That gap is what the EU- funded LEH GO GREEN Project set out to address.
From Concept to Commitment
Speaking on behalf of FDA Managing Director Rudolph J. Merab, Nora G. Bowier, Deputy Managing Director for Conservation, Community, and Carbon, reflected on the journey that led to the development of the guide.
“For many years, the absence of a structured conservation agreement framework limited legitimate negotiation and effective implementation. That situation persisted until the formation of the EU- funded LEH GO GREEN Project,” she said.
Under this EU-sponsored initiative, communities in the Gola and Grebo-Krahn Landscapes began expressing strong interest in conserving their forests for climate mitigation and sustainable benefit-sharing.
At the same time, conservation organizations and private sector actors signaled readiness to partner with both communities and government.
The response was deliberate and inclusive. UNDP and FDA engaged a national consultancy to develop not only the Community Conservation Agreement Guide, but also a Negotiation Guide to help forest communities participate in discussions with confidence and clarity.
“These tools will enhance legal clarity, minimize disputes, and ensure fair benefits for forest communities,” Bowier stressed
Listening, Learning, Refining
The guide did not emerge from a desk, but rather it emerged from dialogue. Conservation experts at FDA, alongside partners such as Conservation International, the Society for the Conservation of Nature of Liberia (SCNL), the Wild Chimpanzee Foundation, and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), reviewed the draft through a rigorous process. Each round of feedback sharpened its relevance and practicality.
The final guide now offers a standardized, transparent, and participatory framework that: Strengthens understanding of the CCA process across all stakeholders; Improves consistency and quality in agreement development; Enhances community participation and ownership and establishes clear monitoring and accountability mechanisms. It is a document designed not only to guide action, but to build trust.
Conservation That Works for People
At its core, the CCA Guide reflects a simple truth that conservation succeeds when communities succeed.
The LEH GO GREEN Project, running for three years with funding from the European Union, focuses on combating climate change, restoring forest ecosystems, and improving livelihoods in the Gola and Grebo-Krahn Landscapes.
These areas are globally significant biodiversity hotspots, yet face mounting pressure from deforestation, unsustainable land use, and limited economic options. By aligning conservation commitments with livelihood opportunities, the new guide ensures that protecting forests also means investing in people.
“Through this framework,” Bowier emphasized, “we are empowering communities to manage their forests sustainably and reinforcing our commitment to collective stewardship of Liberia’s rich biodiversity.”
What Comes Next
The launch was not the end, it was the beginning. In the months ahead, partners will roll out community-level sensitization sessions to explain the benefits of CCAs, while robust monitoring systems will track progress, lessons learned, and opportunities for scaling up.
The event closed with a collaborative session that captured the spirit of the moment, shared ownership, shared responsibility, and shared hope. Declaring the guide officially launched, Bowier offered an invitation that resonated deeply across the room.
“This guide symbolizes our commitment to partnership and sustainable conservation. I invite you all to join us in this important task.” For Liberia’s forests, and the communities who call them home that invitation represents a renewed promise: to protect today, so generations tomorrow can thrive.
