Executive Order – 2006 – Executive Order No1 GOL Forest Sector Reform – Liberia

The 2006 Executive Order was triggered by the lack of transparency, accountability, civil society participation and equitable sharing of benefits generated by the industry which prevailed in the natural resources sector over the last two decades in Liberia. Indeed, illicit trade in natural resources had fuelled and prolonged the country’s civil war. From 2001, an embargo on the diamond and timber sectors of Liberia was imposed by the UN Security Council, which instructed the Government of Liberia to carry out reforms in the forest and other resources sectors so their operations conforms to internationally accepted standards and that revenue arising is used for the benefit of the Liberian people. The massive number of non-compliance and mismanagement cases reported led the President of Liberia to declare all purported forest concessions null and void ab-initio including “concession agreements”, “management contracts”, “non-concession operator permits”, “forest management utilisation contracts” and “salvage permits”. The Executive Order also establishes a Forestry Reform Monitoring Committee to be led by the FDA to monitor forest management reform. Among other tasks, the Committee is in charge of taking measures to institutionalise the participation of communities and civil society in forest management in a transparent manner, including without limitation access to information, mandated public participation, and the right to bring citizens’ suits to redress violations of law.