RFP PROSPER

December 7, 2011

TO: Prospective Offerors

SUBJECT: Request for Proposal No. 669-12-000001 People, Rules and Organizations Supporting the Protection of Ecosystem Resources

Program

The United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) mission in the Republic of Liberia (USAID/Liberia) intends to award a Cost-Plus-Fixed Fee Completion contract to implement the People, Rules and Organizations Supporting the Protection of Ecosystem Resources (PROSPER) Program. The estimated period of performance is approximately five years from the effective date of the contract.

Liberia will serve as the place of performance.

Pursuant to Section L, the contracting officer anticipates the following schedule for this acquisition;

however, the contracting officer may amend the schedule at any time.

Action Date Request for Proposal Issue Date December 7, 2011 Offeror Questions Closing Date and Time December 15, 2011 (1:00 p.m., Eastern Standard Time) USAID Answers to Questions Disseminated December 22, 2011 Technical and Cost Proposals Closing Date and Time January 20 , 2012 (1:00 p.m., Eastern Standard Time)

USAID encourages your organization to indicate its interest in this solicitation by submitting a proposal in accordance with the instructions in Section L, “Instructions to Offerors.” The offeror must send its separate technical and cost proposals to Justin DiVenanzo at jdivenanzo@usaid.gov and oaaliberia@usaid.gov. USAID will evaluate the responsive proposals in accordance with the evaluation factors provided in Section M, “Evaluation Factors for Award.”

If you have any questions, please send them via e-mail to Justin DiVenanzo at the above e-mail address and Michael Boyd at mboyd@usaid.gov.

Best regards, /s/ R. Brian Aaron

R. Brian Aaron Contracting Officer Office of Acquisition and Assistance USAID/Liberia 111 UN Drive Mamba Point, Monrovia, Liberia

See SF 33 Attachment contained in PDF.

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL NO. 669-12-000001

People, Rules and Organizations Supporting the Protection of Ecosystem Resources—PROSPER

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PART I—THE SCHEDULE

SECTION B—SUPPLIES OR SERVICES AND PRICES/COSTS

B.1 Purpose B.2 Contract Type B.3 Estimated Cost, Ceiling Price, Fixed Fee, and Obligated Amount B.4 Budget Line Item B.5 Indirect Costs B.6 Cost Reimbursable B.7 Payment of Fixed Fee

SECTION C—STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES

C.1 Background C.2 The Development Challenge C.3 Relationship of Program to GOL, etc., C.4 Statement of Objectives C.5 Gender Statement C.6 Implementation Plan C.7 Monitoring and Evaluation

SECTION D—PACKAGING AND MARKING

D.1 Marking D.2 Branding D.3 Branding Implementation and Marking Plan

SECTION E—INSPECTION AND ACCEPTANCE

E.1 Notice Listing Contract Clauses Incorporated by Reference E.2 Inspection and Acceptance E.3 Performance Standards

SECTION F—DELIVERIES OR PERFORMANCE

F.1 Notice Listing Contract Clauses Incorporated by Reference F.2 Period of Performance F.3 Place of Performance F.4 Key Personnel F.5 Authorized Work Day/Week F.6 Periodic Progress Reports F.7 Reports F.8 Deliverables

SECTION G—CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION DATA

G.1 Administrative Contracting Office G.2 Contracting Officer’s Authority G.3 Contracting Officer’s Technical Representative G.4 Technical Direction G.5 Acceptance and Approval G.6 Paying Office G.7 Documentation of Payment G.8 Invoicing Instructions G.9 Accounting and Appropriation Data

SECTION H—SPECIAL CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS

H.1 Notice Listing Contract Clauses Incorporated by Reference H.2 Language Requirements H.3 Emergency Locator Information H.4 Authorized Geographic Code H.5 Source, Origin, Nationality Requirements H.6 Worker’s Compensation Insurance (Defense Base Act) H.7 Defense Base Act Insurance and Services H.8 Medical Evacuation (MEDEVAC) Services H.9 USAID Disability Policy—Acquisition (DEC 2004) H.10 Reporting of Foreign Taxes (JUL 2007) H.11 Personnel Compensation H.12 Additional Requirements for Personnel Compensation H.13 Salary Supplements for Host Government (HG) Employees H.14 International Travel Approval and Notification Requirements H.15 Leave and Holidays H.16 Employment Costs of TCNS and CCNS H.17 Nonexpendable Property Purchases H.18 Information Technology Resources H.19 Management of Information Technology Resources H.20 Title to and Care of Property H.21 Government Furnished Facilities or Property H.22 Logistic Support H.23 Contractor-Mission Relationships H.24 Disclosure of Information H.25 Organizational Conflicts of Interest H.26 Organizational Conflicts of Interest Discovered After Award H.27 Executive Order on Terrorism Financing H.28 Homeland Security Presidential Directive -12 (HSPD-12) (SEP 2006) H.29 Disclosure of Ownership or Control by the government of a Terrorist Country H.30 Subcontracting with Firms that are Owned or Controlled by the Government of a Terrorist Country H.31 Prohibition on the Promotion or Advocacy of the Legalization or Practice of Prostitution, etc., 78 H.32 Foreign Government Delegations to International Conferences H.33 Environmental Compliance H.34 Standards of Conduct—Improper Business Practices H.35 Cancellation Ceiling Under Multi-Year Contracts H.36 Consent to Subcontract

PART II—CONTRACT CLAUSES

SECTION I—CONTRACT CLAUSES

I.1 Notice Listing Contract Clauses Incorporated by Reference I.2 52.209-7 Information Regarding Responsibility Matters (JAN 2011) I.3 52.209-9 Updates of Publicly Available Information Regarding

Responsibility Matters (JAN 2011) I.4 52.222-50 Combatting Trafficking in Persons (FEB 2009) I.5 752.219-8 Utilization of Small Business Concerns and Small Disadvantaged Business Concerns .. 87 I.6 752.219-70 USAID Mentor-Protégé Program (JUL 2007) I.7 752.225-71 Local Procurement (FEB 1997) I.8 752.7101 Voluntary Population Planning Activities (JUN 2008)

PART III—LIST OF DOCUMENTS, EXHIBITS, AND OTHER ATTACHMENTS

SECTION J—LIST OF ATTACHMENTS

J.1 Branding and Implementation Plan and Marking Plan J.2 Local Compensation Plan for Foreign Service Nationals J.3 Contractor Performance Report—Short Form J.4 Identification of Principal Geographic Code Numbers J.5 Summary Budget Format J.6 Initial Environmental Examination

PART IV—REPRESENTATIONS AND INSTRUCTIONS

SECTION K—REPRESENTATIONS, CERTIFICATIONS, AND

OTHER STATEMENTS OF OFFERORS

K.1 Notice Listing Contract Clauses Incorporated by Reference K.2 52.204-8 Annual Representations and Certifications (NOV 2011) K.3 52.209-5 Certification Regarding Responsibility Matters (APR 2010) K.4 52.230-1 Cost Accounting Standards Notices And Certifications (OCT 2008) K.5 52.230-7 Proposal Disclosure—Cost Accounting Practice Changes (APR 2005) K.6 Insurance—Immunity From Tort Liability K.7 Authorized Negotiators K.8 Agreement On, Or Exceptions To, Terms and Conditions K.9 Signature

SECTION L—INSTRUCTIONS, CONDITIONS, AND NOTICES TO OFFERORS

L.1 52.252-1 Solicitation Provisions Incorporated by Reference (FEB 1998) L.2 Notice Listing Contract Clauses Incorporated by Reference L.3 52.215-1 Instructions to Offerors—Competitive Acquisition (JAN 2004) L.4 52.216-1 Type of Contract (APR 1984) L.5 52.233-2 Service of Protest (SEP 2006) L.6 Acquisition Schedule L.7 General Instructions to Offerors L.8 Instructions for the Preparation of the Technical Proposal L.9 Instructions for the Preparation of the Cost Proposal L.10 Instructions for the Preparation of the Branding Implementation Plan and the Marking Plan . 119

SECTION M—EVALUATION FACTORS FOR AWARD

M.1 Award Without Discussions M.2 Source Selection M.3 Determination of Competitive Range M.4 Technical Proposal Evaluation Factors M.5 Evaluation of Cost Proposals M.6 Contracting with Small Business Concerns and Disadvantaged Enterprises

PART I—THE SCHEDULE

SECTION B—SUPPLIES OR SERVICES AND PRICES/COSTS

B.1 Purpose

The Office of Economic Growth in the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID or Agency) mission in the Republic of Liberia (USAID/Liberia) requires technical services to implement the People, Rules and Organizations Supporting the Protection of Ecosystem Resources (PROSPER) Program. PROSPER will introduce, operationalize, and refine appropriate models for community management of forest resources for local self-governance and enterprise development in targeted areas in Liberia as described in Section C below.

B.2 Contract Type

USAID will award a Cost-Plus-Fixed-Fee Completion Contract. For the consideration set forth in the contract, the contractor must provide the deliverables and outputs described in Section C and Section F below. The contractor must also comply with all other contract requirements.

B.3 Estimated Cost, Ceiling Price, Fixed Fee, and Obligated Amount

USAID estimates the following price range for this contract: $20,000,000-21,000,000.

(a) The total estimated cost and ceiling price for the performance of the work required for the base period of the contract, exclusive of fixed fee, if any, is $[•]. The fixed fee for the base period, if any, is $[•]. The total estimated cost plus fixed fee, if any, during the base period is $[•].

(b) The amount hereby obligated for this contract is $[•].

(c) USAID will not pay the contractor any sum in excess of the ceiling price.

(d) Funds obligated hereunder are anticipated to be sufficient through [•].

B.4 Budget Line Items

Line Item Total Total Direct Labor $ Fringe Benefits $ Travel $ Equipment and Supplies $ Subcontractors and Consultants $ Allowances $ Other Direct Costs $ Indirect Costs (e.g., Overhead, G&A) $ Fixed Fee $ Cost-Plus-Fixed-Fee Ceiling Price $

(a) The inclusion of any costs in the above budget does not obviate the requirement for prior approval by the contracting officer of cost items designated as requiring prior approval by any of the terms and conditions of this contract, including the applicable cost principles (see FAR § 52.216-07, “Allowable Cost and Payment”); nor does it constitute a determination of allowability by the contracting officer of any item of cost, unless specifically stated elsewhere in this contract.

Also, these amounts may not be adjusted without a written modification signed by the contracting officer. The contractor will not bill any amounts against this contract in excess of the amounts specified for each line item.

(b) The contractor agrees to furnish data that the contracting officer may request on costs expended or accrued under this contract in support of the budget information provided herein.

B.5 Indirect Costs

[To Be Determined at Award]

(a) Pending establishment of revised provisional or final indirect cost rates, USAID will reimburse allowable indirect costs on the basis of the following negotiated provisional or predetermined rates and the appropriate bases pursuant to the contractor’s current executed Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement:

Description Rate Base Type Period % 1/ 1/ 1/

1/Base of Application:

Type of Rate:

Period:

(b) The contractor will make no change in its established method of classifying or allocating indirect costs without the prior written approval of the contracting officer.

B.6 Cost Reimbursable

(a) The U.S. dollar costs allowable will be limited to reasonable, allocable, and necessary costs determined in accordance with FAR § 52.216-7, “Allowable Cost and Payment,” FAR § 52.216- 8, “Fixed Fee,” FAR § 52.232-20, “Limitation of Cost,” and FAR § 52-232-22, “Limitation of Funds,” if applicable, and AIDAR 752.7003, “Documentation for Payment.”

B.7 Payment of Fixed Fee

USAID will pay a proportion of the contractor’s fixed fee each month pursuant to FAR § 52.216-8, “Fixed Fee,” upon the receipt of an invoice deemed proper by the Office of Financial Management in USAID/Liberia.

END OF SECTION B

SECTION C—STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES

As provided in Section L, the contractor’s proposed statement of work will become Section C in the resultant contract.

C.1 Background

Liberia is home to two of the largest forest blocks remaining in West Africa, accounting for nearly half of the remaining Upper Guinean rainforests in the region. Dense forests cover about 36 percent of the country’s land area, or 3.4 million hectares. Liberia is a recognized global hotspot for biodiversity harboring over 2,900 different vascular plants (including 225 tree species), 600 bird species, 150 mammal species, and 75 reptile species1. The country’s forests provide important ecosystem services to maintain soil fertility for agricultural production; ensure reliable water flows for drinking water, irrigation, and hydroelectric power generation; provide habitats for plants and animals utilized for income generation and food security purposes; and serve as carbon sinks that help regulate climate change effects. In spite of the pivotal role that Liberia’s forests play in the nation's economy supporting local businesses, national income, employment, and export revenues, current and emerging land and resource uses threaten forest resources and could undermine their contributions to economic growth.

Throughout Liberia’s history the country's rich natural resources have only benefited a small number of Liberians. In the years leading up to the civil war this situation was so pervasive that Liberia became the world’s leading example for the “growth without development” paradigm of economic development2.

Over the course of the 14-year long conflict, the country’s Gross Domestic Product per capita fell by 64%3 creating hardship and deprivation for Liberians. As a result nearly 40% of children under five are malnourished4 and approximately 84% of the population ekes out a living on less than US$1.25 per day5, in spite of Liberian’s extensive and valuable forest, mineral and petroleum resources. This growth without development strategy did not produce broad-based economic development, but rather served as a contributing factor leading to the protracted civil conflict. The threat of further growth without development remains a trigger point for political destabilization.

Historically Liberia has placed a strong emphasis on larger scale commercial exploitation in the forestry sector, with comparatively little attention paid to substantive engagement with foresters, farmers and other natural resource managers in rural communities who should also benefit from economic development based on sustainable forest management. Under successive regimes, especially that of Charles Taylor, Liberia’s forests were not managed in a sustainable or transparent manner and their globally important biodiversity resources were not protected effectively. Concession holders routinely deprived surrounding communities of much needed financial and social assistance by failing to comply with their community obligations. The government agency responsible for overseeing forestry operations, the Forest Development Authority (FDA), was not ensuring that fee payments were made such that by the end of the Taylor regime in August 2003 there were over $64 million dollars in arrears owed to government. Evidence later revealed that many forest concessions were awarded without regard to legal procurement practices, other concessions were nullified without due recourse, and not one of the 47

1 Conservation International and Fauna and Flora International. Liberia Forest Re‐Assessment Project. April 2004.

forestry concession holders had followed the rule of law regarding the correct management of their concessions. There also was strong evidence that the Taylor administration used revenues from commercial forestry to purchase weapons to fuel conflict in the region, particularly in neighboring Sierra Leone6.

On the basis of this information and two unsuccessful attempts to conduct a proper review of the situation, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in May 2003 instituted a temporary ban on the importation of Liberian timber from all member states7. The UNSC later extended the ban three times and stipulated that lifting this ban was conditional to the government allowing an independent and internationally verifiable Forest Concession Review Committee (FCRC) to substantiate mismanagement in the sector and then acting on this committee’s recommendations to institute much needed reforms. The UNSC believed that these severe measures were required in order for the international community to be assured that the forest sector in Liberia could begin to operate in a legal and transparent manner. With proper management the forest sector could even transform itself from a source of corruption and conflict in Liberia and the region to an engine for broad-based economic growth8. In an effort to prepare the country for the eventual lifting of sanctions the National Transitional Government of Liberia (NTGL) and its donor partners began to develop a reform agenda to be implemented soon after the FCRC completed its work.

To this end, members of the NTGL met with key donor partners in April 2004 to create the Liberia Forest Initiative (LFI), a multinational initiative including the FDA, donor partners, Liberian civil society organizations and international NGOs organized to institute reforms in the Liberian forestry sector that would ensure transparent and sustainable forest management and effective forest resource allocation. A key product of this collaboration was the development of a policy of allocating forest resources among three principal purposes - commercial forestry, community forestry, and conservation (often referred to as the “3 C’s Approach”). This approach was introduced in order to balance the need for the Government of Liberia (GOL) to award commercial concessions as a means of generating much-needed revenues with other important values of forests for poverty reduction and livelihood support in rural communities and for the protection of the country’s unique and globally important biodiversity. Community forestry was the most recent addition to the forestry sector and was defined as a process of increasing community involvement and ownership in the management of forest resources, including natural forests, plantations, and agroforestry systems adjacent to forests, in order to promote sustainable use of these resources, increased revenue generation, devolution of authority, improved democratic governance processes and more secure tenure and property rights for communities.

Three key governance developments in the forest sector since the lifting of sanctions have been the implementation of the timber chain-of-custody system (LiberFor), the introduction of the Liberia Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (LEITI) and the enactment of the Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) with the European Union (EU). The LiberFor system ensures effective log tracking from stump to port and assures that proper fees are collected for government, including fees directly for support to communities affected by commercial logging operations. The LEITI Act of 2009 ensures transparent tracking of payments to government from extractive industries (which in Liberia includes the timber industry) so helps provide verification that funds destined for communities can be monitored effectively. Finally the VPA, basically a trade agreement between the GOL and EU, will work to ensure

that all timber exported to the EU from Liberia meets sustainable management, legal harvesting and improved resource governance laws and policies of the GOL.

The beginning of a serious dialogue to address land tenure and property rights concerns stems from an issues paper put forward by the Governance Reform Commission in early 20079. This document laid out a strategy to build a national consensus on how to address land tenure and property rights issues, which included the establishment of a national land commission to investigate land tenure and property rights in more depth and make policy recommendations to the government on possible approaches to improve the situation. The Land Commission was created in August 2009 and has been working to address these issues, including the issues of customary land tenure and property rights.

Broader issues of environmental compliance and management have also emerged as a GOL priority in the last decade. In 2004, an act was passed to create the Environmental Protection Agency of Liberia (EPAL).

This ambitious legislation called for better protection of the nation’s natural resources, including forest resources, and training of Liberians to be better technical stewards of their environment. Also, climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies, including carbon markets, emerged as important issues and GOL leadership began to consider how to address them through policy development and “green approaches” to economic growth.

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the US Forest Service (USFS) have played leadership roles in promoting community forest management and land tenure reforms in Liberia. While the USFS worked alongside the FDA and civil society on the implementation of reforms in the forestry sector to make community forestry a GOL priority, USAID provided funding to the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) and the World Agroforestry Center (ICRAF) to conduct a series of applied research and program development activities to establish the foundation for community forestry actions in Liberia. This work culminated in a December 2005 workshop on community forestry that produced the “Monrovia Declaration,” which defined a shared vision and action frame for community forestry in Liberia10. From this meeting a number of organizations began to prepare to implement pilot community forestry programs in Liberia.

USAID’s Land Rights and Community Forestry Program (2007-2011)

In support of community forestry, USAID developed the Land Rights and Community Forestry Program (LRCFP) and awarded a contract to implement it in December 2007. Originally a two-year program, the overall goal of LRCFP was to “advance the policy and practice of land and forest management in Liberia through the introduction of adaptive management and learning-based approaches in targeted areas of the country”11. The three principal objectives for LRCFP have been to work with partners in Liberia to 1) develop and strengthen the legal and policy framework needed to support community management, sustainable use of natural resources, and biodiversity conservation in forests; 2) craft and improve land tenure and property rights systems for forest lands to secure rights for natural resource users and owners;

and 3) enhance management of community forests and conservation of their biodiversity to increase economic opportunities for communities and other user groups. Ultimately LRCFP was extended by USAID and was operational through October 2011.

LRCFP has improved the legal and policy environment for secure and equitable community rights to forest lands. It has also informed partner and stakeholder understanding of this legal and policy framework through activities at the community level. In four pilot clan areas in two counties, LRCFP improved the capacity of communities and their GOL and nongovernmental partners to implement sustainable community-based natural resource management. In those communities LRCFP has also increased environmentally sustainable and socially equitable options for greater economic security and increased incomes.

LRCFP supported a number of efforts at the national level. A benchmark program outcome at the policy level was the passage of the Community Rights Law with Respect to Forest Lands (CRL) of 2009, which established the parameters for community exploitation of forest resources. LRCFP supported the process of drafting regulations to implement this law, and building the awareness and institutional capacity of communities and the FDA to manage forests in a manner conforming to this law. LRCFP also provided assistance in the development of the Land Commission and its work in rural land issues. In addition, LRCFP helped the University of Liberia’s College of Agriculture and Forestry (CAF UL) and the Forestry Training Institute (FTI) complete institutional self-assessments and begin a process of curriculum development to improve their ability to train professionals in support of the “3 C’s Approach” to forestry management. These self-assessments proposed redesign of the institutions as well as developing leadership within the institutions to coordinate the restructuring and establishment of external advisory boards. LRCFP also provided support for the creation of the National Benefit Sharing Trust Board, which administers community development funds derived from land rental fees of commercial logging concessions for use by communities impacted by logging activities.

In its four pilot implementation sites LRCFP facilitated the establishment of forest management committees and helped build their organizational and technical capacities, including providing assistance to these forest management bodies in developing their constitutions and by-laws. LRCFP helped the communities develop rules for the management of the use of forest resources through the enactment of formal community forest management plans. With project assistance, forest resources were demarcated and mapped using GPS and participatory mapping methodologies. LRCFP also promoted the adoption of alternative livelihood activities, in the form of a Farmer Field School (FFS) program; the testing of an oil palm and cassava processing technologies; and the collection, propagation, and marketing of NTFPs.

Complementing these activities, LRCFP helped negotiate an agreement on the boundaries of the East Nimba Nature Reserve and a framework MOU among communities and the FDA for the co-management of the Reserve. LRCFP has supported both policy and field level activities through community awareness campaigns, including some support for gender awareness.

11 USAID Liberia, Request for Task Order Proposal under the PLACE IQC. August 2007.

A final evaluation of the LRCFP program was conducted in August 2010 and this site contains that evaluation, as well as the documents used in it.

Other donor activities in community forestry

In addition to LRCFP a number of other donor-supported programs were also begun after the Monrovia Declaration to advance the concept of community forestry in Liberia:

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), a global environmental network, funded community resource management activities in one village in Grand Bassa County and another in River Cess County. Program interventions were done in partnership with FDA and focused on building community institutions to promote sustainable management of key natural resources and promote community development. IUCN presently is actively looking for funding to continue its support of community forestry in Liberia. IUCN also funded a study on chain sawing (an activity widely practiced in communities) and provided recommendations for incorporating this practice into the legal system for log tracking.

The European Union is supporting the VPA implementation in Liberia. The implications for community forestry relate to the legality definitions embedded in the agreement and support the rights of communities impacted by large-scale commercial logging activities. Specifically, the VPA will provide assistance to develop systems and institutional capacity to ensure that informed consent and benefit sharing arrangements outlined in the social agreements developed between communities and logging companies are respected. This assistance will closely align with PROSPER activities in support of the activities of the National Benefit Sharing Trust Board.

The World Bank, in partnership with the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and FDA, funded the work of a local NGO, Save My Future Foundation (SAMFU) to assist communities in Grand Cape Mount and Lofa Counties to identify and develop enterprises based on the sustainable use of forest resources. It also provided technical and logistical support to the FDA in law enforcement, institutional restructuring, protected area development, community forestry, communications and decentralization. The Bank is considering another forestry support program in Liberia, funded through a low-interest loan rather than through grants, and is determining how to include community forestry.

UN FAO also provides funding through small grants for a number of initiatives in the forest sector. It supports the creation of a national forest platform to increase the inclusion of all actors in the sector as well as increasing coordination and communication at both the national and county level. It is also funding a pilot activity to improve community-based monitoring of logging concessions to ensure that sustainable management practices are being followed by logging concession holders. It is also provides assistance to multi-stakeholder fora to support VPA legality assurance and law enforcement systems.

The International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) is working with the FDA to improve curricula at the Forestry Training Institute and to develop appropriate reforestation and afforestation policies for Liberia, both of which could involve community forestry support under curriculum development or for forestry plantations.

Fauna & Flora International (FFI), an international conservation organization, worked with FDA around Sapo National Park to establish a management structure at the park and develop community forests in communities located on the park’s periphery. FFI has also supported review of forestry sector legislation to incorporate and balance community, conservation and commercial interests. A bush meat study is nearing completion that will present more detailed information about current harvesting pressures and the involvement of communities in this trade.

The European Union has been a lead donor for these activities and may provide additional funding to FFI to continue this work.

The Community Forestry Partnership (CFP) is a collaboration between three NGOs - Skills and Agricultural Development Services (SADS); the Farmers Associated to Conserve the Environment (FACE); and the Nature Conservation Research Centre (NCRC) based in Ghana.

CFP has established community forestry pilot programs within or surrounding key proposed protected areas of Liberia, particularly in Lake Piso and Wonegizi.

The Sustainable Development Institute (SDI), a Liberian NGO that promotes equity in the sharing of benefits derived from natural resource exploitation, has been working with communities impacted by commercial logging concessions and assisting them to negotiate with these actors on a more equal footing. SDI has also provided training for local people to participate in decision-making processes related to natural resources. SDI participates in national discussions about forest management, including community forestry, and publishes information about the impact of forest management on communities.

Green Advocates, an association of environmental lawyers in Liberia, reviews current environmental laws, regulations and practices, proposes new legislation and provides general and specialized education and awareness on the environment, environmental laws, and practices.

Green Advocates also seeks to give voice to local peoples through education about property rights and legal claims based on the unique connection between local peoples and the environment.

The Liberia Democratic Institute (LDI) has also worked with communities impacted by commercial logging concessions and assists them in negotiations with these operators and the FDA. LDI is involved in advocacy for increased stakeholder involvement in the natural resources sectors and in defense of community rights vis-à-vis commercial concessions.

The African Development Bank (AfDB) did an assessment of potential support to the forest sector in Liberia earlier this year, but given that this assistance would be in the form of a low-interest loan rather than a grant, the GOL may elect to focus on other priorities such as infrastructural investments. Donor partners will have to work with AfDB and other GOL partners to make a compelling case for funding in the sector though it is not clear what support would benefit community forestry.

Swedish Sida is interested in supporting community forestry in Liberia and has sent several missions to investigate opportunities for engagement. Like USAID, Swedish Sida is also working with the GOL on land tenure and property rights and supports the work of the Land Commission through a grant to UN Habitat.

C.2 The Development Challenge

Liberia’s extensive forest resources present real opportunities for national development, but there are significant risks as well. Development efforts to promote sound management of natural resources in post-conflict Liberia are daunting due to constraints such as destroyed and poorly maintained infrastructure;

incomplete understanding of the value of natural resources and the threats facing them; weakened public and private sector institutions, including civil society organizations; insufficient funding, staffing and training for the effective operation of natural resource management agencies; a legacy of distrust among stakeholders; disrespect of the rule of law; and unresolved socioeconomic issues surrounding land tenure, access and use rights. In this context the exploitation of the country’s extensive timber and non-timber forest resources, the protection of its biodiversity endowment and the devolution of effective forest management to communities are vulnerable to the abuse of power, capture by elite interests, and renewed conflict. However, all the key actors – GOL, civil society, communities, private sector, training institutions, donors – have some expertise and resources to help address these challenges.

The GOL has demonstrated a commitment to reform in the sector through stronger forestry policy and legislation; the introduction of more robust environmental compliance measures; and the promotion of more broad-based access to and use of natural resources to increase rural incomes and promote job creation. However, there is still a lack of financial resources to operate natural resource management agencies, including funding for training programs, public outreach efforts, enforcement, and human capacity to regulate the natural resource sectors. GOL leaders emphasize the need for their natural resource agencies to generate government revenues, but do not adequately support the strategic investments required to ensure that they meet their management responsibilities. Government economic policy is creating a bifurcated economic growth strategy with large-scale commercial concessions and community-based or small-scale enterprises potentially competing with one another for access to and use of natural resources. Insufficient oversight and management of the burgeoning array of mining, forestry, and agricultural concessions currently awarded or under development will lead to overlapping concessions, heightened tensions, and increased pressure on natural forests. Clear land tenure and property rights systems, which are vital to greater investment, remain vague in both the statutory and customary systems. Interventions with the GOL will require that donor assistance efforts directly address these issues; help to clarify land tenure and property rights; and improve coordination with other sectors such as mining and agriculture to ensure better land use planning. USAID and other partners must call on the GOL to provide adequate financial and human resources to ensure the viability of the GOL’s land and natural resource management agencies and the sustainability of donor support.

Encouragingly some private sector investments are being made in the natural resources sector despite poor infrastructure, weak institutions, and corrupt practices. However, private sector investors, particularly Liberia’s export-oriented logging companies, have demonstrated limited financial capital and institutional capacity. In addition, even less is known about the capacity of private sector players active in the domestic timber and charcoal markets, as well as domestic and regional trade in non-timber forest products, including wild game or “bushmeat.” To date these stakeholders have developed minimal processing and value-added components and are operating informally with little return to government in the form of taxes and fees. Interaction with civil society, communities, donors, and other stakeholders has been minimal. Therefore, donor and GOL investments will need to address these concerns directly by increasing due diligence and effective oversight of private sector actors as well as including private sector actors more fully in discussions concerning the management of natural resources and enterprises derived from their use.

Civil society organizations have been active in the natural resources sector and have played an important role in holding the GOL accountable in meeting its legal obligations as outlined in the reform agenda.

However, they are generally few in number, inadequately trained, and usually lack the communication links required to interact effectively with stakeholders outside Monrovia. Despite their genuine goodwill and relevant work objectives, these organizations often operate as if they represent constituencies all over the country, when in fact they are generally known only in Monrovia or in those limited areas of the country where they have programs. Many of these organizations have also been highly influenced by the agendas of international organizations, undermining their legitimacy with GOL, local private sector, and community actors. Support to civil society must build their capacity to more effectively play their important watchdog role; increase their relevance to local constituencies; and help them establish independent identities.

Liberian academic institutions that provide training in natural resource management and land management are reemerging from many years of conflict in which most of their teaching and administrative staff fled the country, their infrastructure deteriorated, and their students did not receive a quality education to enable them to contribute effectively to the country’s development. These institutions are now reestablishing themselves, but are hampered by management challenges. Support to these institutions must help them train and retrain teaching staff; develop appropriate curricula to meet current needs and GOL policies; and interact effectively with potential employers in government, civil society, community-based organizations and the private sector to ensure that training meets current and future workforce needs.

Liberia’s forest-dependent communities have a long history of successful natural resource management systems that allowed for extraction and conservation practices to operate sustainably over centuries. They also employed their own dispute resolution mechanisms to address natural resource access and use rights.

However, a history of inequitable growth has left communities poorly prepared to benefit from modern forms of natural resource management. They lack the capacity to develop management plans, create enterprises, work through bureaucratic hurdles, successfully negotiate contracts, and manage legal instruments such as deeds and contracts. Collaborating with government agencies, donors, civil society and the private sector actors to sustainably manage their forest resources will require them to open themselves up to new ideas; build trust with government agencies and other partners; overcome traditional constraints based on gender and age; negotiate tenure and property rights claims; aggressively gain technical and entrepreneurial skills; learn how to influence policy making and the legal framework for natural resource use; and master the functioning of new institutions created to represent their interests.

Traditionally, natural resources such as forests have been owned and controlled by the state in most African countries and Liberia is no exception. Often communities have not been consulted about land use decisions made about their forests in distant Monrovia and have no idea that their rights may have been undermined without their knowledge. As in many tropical countries in the developing world, the Liberian government elects to concession off large areas of forests for large-scale commercial forestry, typically under selective harvesting regimes, and then controls access to these areas as well as the revenue they provide. This revenue is supposed to be used for the provision of much needed government services such as education and health care, however, these systems can be rife with corruption and returns to the national government are always subject to misappropriation as was the case under the administration of former President Charles Taylor.

At the same time rural Liberians, like millions of other rural Africans, depend on forests for their livelihoods and they perceive forests where they harvest wood, game, construction materials, foods, and medicines as belonging to them. Over time the idea of community land and resource ownership has slowly gained ground with Africa’s leaders. This has led to the introduction of decentralized resource tenure as well as co-management strategies for forest resources across the continent. Liberia was in the throes of its civil conflict when this process really started to take off in places such as Niger, the Gambia, Cameroon, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia and leaders here have only recently starting to consider these concepts and approaches.

Sound and equitable governance of land and forest resources must be developed so that rural Liberians can move out of poverty. When combined with other objectives such as improved educational opportunities, increased capacity to implement more effective land and forest management practices, and better access to markets and diversification of incomes it can be transformative. A legal and institutional framework that allows rural Liberians to make productive investments in their lands and forests is a cornerstone of development. Stewardship of forests and other natural resources is more likely to follow from more secure land tenure and property rights if accompanied by clear delineation of responsibilities, appropriate dispute resolution opportunities, capacity building for community enforcement and sustainable economic growth opportunities.

In 2007, the World Bank’s Investment Climate Advisory Service Group (FIAS) released a study on Liberia’s informal employment sector. While statistical data concerning the size of the informal sector does not currently exist, the low business registration and formal employment figures (only 15% of the workforce) suggested that informal business activity is prevalent in the country. While they benefit by evading taxes in the short-term, these informal sector businesses are unlikely to grow and create new employment opportunities. Economic actors in the three most lucrative forestry-based value chains – chain-sawed wooden planks, charcoal and bushmeat – operate in this manner. Unclear land tenure and property rights regimes compounded by these other issues result in little to no incentive to make investments in the management of these lands and resources and perpetuate an open access regime. In addition, all informal small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), including those in the forest sector, are constrained in their ability to access credit, new markets and training.

Liberia’s protracted civil war largely destroyed an already low quality educational system. More than 30 percent of public schools were completely destroyed by the war; classroom furniture and text books disappeared; teachers fled; and many thousands of children and youth missed the opportunity to get an adequate education. Today, almost half of all adults are functionally illiterate with almost twice as many women as men unable to read or write. Only one-third of primary public school teachers have a teaching certificate. The University of Liberia’s College of Agriculture and Forestry as well as the Forestry Training Institute in Tubmanburg were also closed during this period and many of their instructors fled the country never to return. The introduction of community forestry training and environmental education will require an approach that takes into account these real short-term limitations and includes efforts to help rebuild these shattered institutions.

The approach proposed to address the development challenge is based on a hypothesis that strengthening institutions charged with community-based forest management will generate more equitable and transparent benefits from forests leading to improved forest management and biodiversity conservation.

In addition, forest management will be improved by increasing the authority and responsibility of communities to manage forests and by transforming the relationship between communities, governmental agencies, private sector entities, civil society, and NGO actors. Key assumptions include:

By providing broad-based environmental education and awareness raising in Liberia in concert with complementary actions in sustainable natural resources management; promoting sustainable use of forest resources for livelihood and commercial purposes; and establishing clearer, more secure land tenure and property rights Liberians will be more knowledgeable about and more interested in better environmental management and will hold their government more accountable to protect these resources;

By bringing management closer to those whose livelihoods depend on the continued productivity of forest resources, sustainability will be given serious consideration when decisions are made;

By transferring management to representative institutions located in their constituent communities, transparency and equity will increase;

By assuring stronger land use and property rights for community-based producers who will exploit those forests across a wide range of productive industries, overall investment in forest based enterprises will grow and more sustainable management practices will be encouraged;

By undertaking community forestry activities the economy will grow as new value chains can be developed and existing ones strengthened for timber and non-timber forest products resulting in direct local benefits in forest dependent communities and increased government revenue through appropriate taxes and fees; and

By strengthening the economy at the base, there will be multiplier effects spreading the benefits of this approach beyond the target communities such that Liberia’s extensive forest resources will provide a genuine opportunity for national development.

Key concerns in advancing community forestry in Liberia

Policy, regulatory and legal environment for community-based forest management, land tenure and property rights: Although the CRL has been passed and its regulations approved by the FDA Board, there will continue to be challenges in operationalizing community forestry. Given that there has only been one round of applications for community forests a great deal more questioning of the application process can be expected as communities in different areas of the country consider applying for their own community forests. Therefore, more awareness and education will be required to advance that process. Also as the regulations are applied and community forestry management begins to take place there will be a need to amend and refine them to achieve better results. In addition, the land tenure and property rights systems of the country are under review by the Land Commission and so there could be changes in distinctions among and between categories of land ownership for private, public and communal ownership that will either provide new opportunities for community forestry or present new challenges.

Land tenure and property rights conflicts: In post-conflict Liberia, land and property rights disputes are widespread. In rural areas there are conflicts between returning displaced populations and local communities; among smallholders; between smallholders and private sector interests (particularly around the concessions related to timber, rubber, oil palm and mining); and, given the current rate of concession awards, possibly between private sector interests who acquired rights under different political administrations and for different land uses (e.g., mineral concessions overlapping other mineral concessions, and mineral concessions overlapping forestry concessions). These conflicts and overlapping claims will undermine investment, could lead to localized or more widespread civil instability and could undermine emerging community-based forest management in Liberia.

Enforcement of…