PHOTO: (L-R) Deputy Finance Min. Brunson and EPA boss, Prof. Tarpeh during the ceremony
By Augustine Octavius,
EPA Launches 2nd State Of Liberia’s Environment Report
The Environmental Protection Agency with funding from the World Bank and partners has officially launched Liberia’s second state of the environmental report in Monrovia.
The report is used for assessing Liberia’s environmental state which include territorial resource, aquatic resources and cross-section of resources.
The report, which coincided with the launch of the first national environmental action plan, also centers on environmental linkages and examines emerging environmental issues and concerns that are crucial to national economic and social development.
The state and issues include human trafficking, climate change, illegal fishing invasive alien species, the usage of chemical and solid waste management.
Speaking the official launching ceremony, EPA Executive Director, Professor Wilson Tarpeh said the agency will continue to make tremendous progress in addressing environmental and climate change problems in the country.
According to the EPA Executive Director, remarkable achievements have been made, including the steady awareness of environment and climate change issues in the country and mainstreaming of climate change in the national development agenda .
“I wish to extend my profound thanks and appreciation to the Government of Norway for the financial contribution that enable us to produce the second state of environment report and the first national environmental action plan.” Professor Tarpeh said; adding : “all these efforts made are intended to ensure that the EPA protect and manage the environment for the promotion of a resilient sustained environment.”
In remarks, Deputy Finance Minister, Tenneh Brunson reaffirmed government’s commitment in allocating the necessary funding through the national budget as the authority looks to donor partners for support to the EPA.
Minister Brunson, who is also the Chairperson of the EPA board of directors, disclosed that she will instruct the budgetary team at the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning to give serious consideration to program relating to the environment.
“We , the policy makers , technicians and government, need to use the recommendations as guide that will govern us in the implementation of the action plan,” she said adding: “ these individuals, institutional and collective government responsibilities that all of us must consider when making personnel and collective decisions,” the Deputy Finance Minister said.
In remarks, the Program Specialist on Energy and Environment at the United Nations Development Program, Moses Massah pointed out that environmental planning is crucial to sustainable development as it requires the evaluation of how social, political, economical and governing factors affect the natural environment when considering development.
“The ultimate goal of the environmental planning is to come up with a win-win society and the environment, “ he said ; adding: “ I urge all of us to ensure that these two very important environmental and developmental documents will not end on the shelves.”
“We must make efforts to make the document active and be used a reference for approving environmental and natural resources management proposals.”
For his part, the head of Climatic Change and Environmental Affairs at ECOWAS, Dr. Yao Benedict Koffi stressed the need for environmental protection agencies in the West African region to annex their efforts in combating the environmental challenges.
He thanked the EPA for the invitation to ECOWAS to participation in the environmental programs in Liberia and cautioned other countries in the region to follow the example of Liberia.
In 2016, the EPA secured funding from the Liberia Forest Sector Project to develop the second state of the environmental report and the first national environmental action plan.
The program was graced by stakeholders from a cross-section of the sector, local and international partners including the United Nations Development Program, the Economic Community of West African States, and the European Union, among many others.