The Forestry Development Authority's (FDA) decision to halt the gazettement of the proposed Foya National Park has ignited a fresh debate over the future of forest conservation in Liberia, raising alarm among conservationists, donor partners, and forest-dependent communities who see the move as a direct threat to both livelihoods and the country's international environmental commitments.
On Saturday, January 31, 2026, FDA Managing Director Rudolph J. Merab announced an immediate suspension of all conservation activities in the proposed Foya Protected Area (FPPA), a vast forest landscape spanning parts of Lofa and Gbarpolu counties. The announcement came without prior consultation with key stakeholders and has been widely described as a shock reversal of years of policy direction and investment in conservation-led development.
Liberia holds some of the largest remaining tracts of the Upper Guinean rainforest, a globally significant biodiversity hotspot. Over the past decade, the country has pledged--through international climate and biodiversity frameworks--to allocate at least 30 percent of its forest estate to conservation. This commitment aligns with global efforts to curb deforestation, protect endangered species, and help keep global temperature rise below 1.5 degrees Celsius.
The proposed Foya National Park is a critical part of that pledge. Covering approximately 104,628 hectares, the FPPA forms an ecological bridge within the Greater Gola Landscape, linking Liberia's conservation efforts with those of neighboring countries in West Africa.
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Scientific surveys underscore Foya's exceptional ecological value. The forest hosts at least 184 bird species, 40 amphibian species, and 313 plant species, making it a living repository of West African biodiversity. It is also home to several threatened and endangered species, including the Forest Elephant, Chimpanzee, Zebra Duiker, and Western Pied Colobus.
Beyond biodiversity, the forest plays a critical role in climate regulation, watershed protection, and soil conservation--ecosystem services that extend far beyond the immediate region.
Impact on Community Livelihoods
The FDA's decision directly jeopardizes ongoing livelihood programs supported by the European Union through the Society for the Conservation of Nature of Liberia (SCNL). Millions of U.S. dollars have already been invested in biological research and community-based development initiatives around the proposed park.
SCNL has rolled out climate-smart agriculture projects in more than eight communities, supporting rice and cocoa cultivation, honey beekeeping, and small-scale agro-processing. A rice mill has been constructed in Zuie, and more than 100 jobs--many benefiting women and youth--have been created in line with the government's job creation agenda.
"These interventions are designed to ensure that communities see tangible benefits from conservation, rather than being pushed toward destructive activities," an SCNL official explained.
A halt to conservation activities threatens to reverse these gains, leaving communities uncertain about income, employment, and long-term development prospects.
Critics argue that Mr. Merab, who is widely known for his background in logging, is steering the FDA away from its long-standing "3Cs" mandate--Conservation, Commercial, and Community Forestry--toward an overwhelming focus on commercial logging.
Conservationists say this represents a dangerous policy shift that undermines Liberia's international commitments and risks accelerating deforestation at a time of mounting climate vulnerability.
Several community members, speaking on condition of anonymity, alleged that FDA officials have told them that only logging revenues can fund long-awaited road construction in the area. According to these accounts, communities were encouraged to "pay less attention to conservation" and support logging instead--an approach critics describe as coercive and misleading.
At a one-day stakeholder meeting in Kongba, Gbarpolu County, Internal Affairs Minister Francis Nyumalin attempted to reassure participants that the government remains committed to its international conservation obligations.
Minister Nyumalin emphasized that any move to convert proposed protected areas into commercial logging sites would require rigorous justification at the Cabinet level.
"Because of Liberia's international commitments, the FDA Managing Director will be required to present a comprehensive argument to Cabinet before any decision is taken to prioritize logging over conservation," he said.
He also stressed that conservation must go hand in hand with sustainable livelihood programs for forest-dependent communities, noting that biodiversity protection cannot succeed if local people are left behind.
SCNL Pushes Back
SCNL Executive Director Michael Garbo rejected claims that conservation partners should divert donor funds to infrastructure projects like road construction.
"Our work is to complement government efforts in meeting Liberia's international conservation commitments, particularly in key biodiversity hotspots such as the Gola Forest National Park and the proposed Foya National Park," Garbo said.
Since 2009, SCNL alone has invested over US$11.7 million in community livelihood programs around the Gola Forest landscape, including cocoa and rice production, micro-loans, climate-smart agriculture training, bridge construction, and the rehabilitation of health facilities such as the Kongba clinic, now powered by solar energy.
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Many believe halting the gazettement of Foya could set a precedent that threatens Liberia's entire protected area network. Development partners fear it signals policy instability, which could undermine donor confidence and jeopardize future funding for conservation and climate adaptation.
"Downplaying conservation at this stage looks like an intentional attempt to roll back hard-won gains in addressing deforestation and climate change," one conservation expert noted.
The controversy surrounding the Foya National Park underscores a deeper tension in Liberia's forest sector: balancing short-term economic gains from logging against long-term benefits of conservation, climate resilience, and sustainable livelihoods.
The stakes are high and immediate for the people of Foya--jobs, food security, and development pathways hang in the balance. On the national level, the decision will shape its credibility on the global stage and determine whether its forests remain a cornerstone of sustainable development or become casualties of policy reversal.
As the debate intensifies, many observers argue that the choice facing Liberia is not simply between conservation and development, but between competing visions of the country's future.
