Liberia: Forest Watchdog Urges More Vigilance in Forest Reporting

The Liberian media has been making steady strides in flagging flaws and other forms of malpractices in the forestry sector, a report said in January this year.

The analysis of the media coverage component of the report, which was produced by Sustainable Development Institute (SDI), National Union of Community Forest Development Committee (NUCFDC), fern and others, revealed that local media outlets such as the Daily Observer, The Daylight, Frontpage Africa and others, are persistently highlighting illegalities in the perennially exploited forestry sector.

The efforts by the local media, which began taking a foothold nearly three years ago, shed light on issues that have plaque this perennially exploited sector, especially challenges with illegal logging, noncompliance to social obligations, corruption through community leadership, political interference and lack of information, being the most pressing issues.

 Leading this trend is the Liberia Forest Media Watch, the lead forest watchdog in the country. LFMW, which has solely dedicated itself to forest reporting, also produces and airs the “Forest Hour” , its flagship radio program.

And in continuation of its leading roles in the sector and building on the progress of the media, LFMW recently conducted a day-long refresher training for journalists reporting on Forest and environment.

“We thought this refresher is necessary because we want to build on the gains that we are already making in the sector as media practitioners,” the head of LFMW, Paul M. Kanneh said at the opening of the training.

Kanneh recounted the level of sacrifices reporters have made in recent years that led to the exposure of dubious acts by loggers and other concessionaires as well as local and national leaders across the country. “We need to keep up the moment. We have done a lot and we can still do more,” he said.

The training however brought together reporters from some rural communities as well as others based in Monrovia. It was facilitated by experts in the areas of investigative journalism, law, research and monitoring.

Participants and facilitators at the LFMW refresher training in Monrovia in a group photo

University of Liberia's Masscommunication Department Outstanding Faculty for 2023,Danicius Kaihenneh Sengbeh, Forestry Development Authority Legal Counsel, Yanquoi Dolo and forestry research analyst Abraham Billy facilitated the training. The theme of the training was: "Enhancing the understanding of journalists to report on the FLEGT VPA program".

In his presentation, Sengbeh drilled reporters through investigative journalism, editorial judgment, accurate and balanced news reporting, and fact findings. He Layed out methodologies and techniques that reporters need to utilize in order to successfully unearth malpractices in the sector. 

Dolo reacquainted the participants with the forest laws and regulations and benefit sharing–breaking down the various legal instruments that govern the sector.

Billy, through his experience in independent forest monitoring,shared with reporters on the work of advocates in the forestry sector and how they find issues that affect the sector and. The training was sponsored by the European Union through the French Development Agency. 

Meanwhile, according to the brief summary of the analysis SDI and NUCFDC report that was released in January, 134 identifiable issues were tracked between June 2021 and May 2022. The issues were analyzed in three ways: The most common issues; the companies most often involved, and counties where most issues arise.

“The most common issues, according to the report, refer to the government's actions or inaction — meaning cases of action, or a failure to act, by government officials or agencies,” said the report..

However, media coverage of forest issues in Liberia has been tracked since January 2021, and collated in an online, publicly accessible database, using Airtable technology. All media reports found online, and all episodes of Forest Hour are included.

This database therefore provides an alternative way to systematize issues that have been presented to the public. The database catalogs all illegalities searchable by company, location and issue, so offers an opportunity to improve monitoring and review progress or lack thereof in forest governance as well as preparing the ground for submitting complaints, when — as required by the VPA — a complaints mechanism is established.