Over 50 multinational stakeholders in the forestry and environmental sectors will convene in Monrovia on Tuesday, March 24, to review the implementation of the Payment for Stewardship program.
This initiative rewards communities for protecting their forests through an incentive-based approach, providing opportunities for forest-dependent communities to receive payments for maintaining their forest cover.
The project was launched in 2025 by Integrated Development and Learning (IDL), a Liberian NGO, in collaboration with the Forestry Development Authority (FDA) and funded by the Government of Ireland through its International Development Agency, Irish Aid.
Natural resource management practitioners believe that the “payment for standing forests” strategy has the potential to reduce unsustainable artisanal mining, commercial logging, and shifting agriculture within community forests. It is expected to improve the economic conditions of forest-dependent communities, foster biodiversity conservation, and help restore the cultural identity of approximately one-third of Liberia’s population who rely on forests for their livelihoods and traditional practices.
Under this model, over 50,000 hectares of tropical rainforest are currently being managed more effectively across underserved communities in the Wedjah and Jeadea Districts of Sinoe County.
Beneficiaries of the project have already received $150,000 in cash payments, which they are applying toward their community development priorities. Additionally, women in the project areas have received cassava processing equipment to enhance the value of their cassava products, along with motorbikes to improve market access.
The event is organized by Partners in Development (PADEV) in coordination with IDL, with a primary focus on assessing the efficacy of the approach and gathering informed feedback from stakeholders to enhance and replicate the implementation.
Mr. Saah A. David, Jr., from the European Forest Institute and former National REDD+ Coordinator at the FDA, will present the main findings and recommendations on how to strengthen the model.
Inception statements will be delivered by Madam Gertrude Korvayan Nyaley, FDA’s Deputy Managing Director for Operations, and Ambassador Joanna Markbrieter, Deputy Head of Mission and Development Counsellor of the British Embassy in Liberia.
