By Augustine Octavius
Two officials in the Liberian Senate and the Agriculture Ministry have acknowledged that there have been flaws in awarding of concessions and acquisition of forest land in Liberia by concessions.
The Sustainable Development Institute (SDI) early this week released a damning report on the clearing of a large portion of forest land by the Golden Veroleum Liberia (GVL).
The report, entitled: “High Risk in the Rain Forest,” said the GVL and the Liberian government have violated the laws of the land, violated the human rights of the inhabitants and damaged the rain forest in the country.
Presenting the report at a well-attended forum in Monrovia, the Program Director of the SDI, Gleadae Harmon- Hoskins, accused the government of land grab without consideration to the inhabitants who at the custodians of the land.
According to the report, the Golden Veroleum Liberia’s operation and the Golden Agri-Resources’ investment constitute violations of international standards including the United Nations Guiding Principles on Businesses and Human Rights.
However, the Asian oil palm company is yet to react to the SDI report.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Land, Mines and Energy, Lofa County Senator George Temgbeh said these problems can only be corrected when the Land Rights Act is passed.
SDI said given GVL’s on-going violations, GAR’s creditors and investors may also be Aa violation of international norms guiding responsible financing including guidelines on responsible business conduct.
The investigation, according to the report, discovered that 350,000 hectares or 2.3 percent of rain forest was cleared by the GVL since 201o when the agreement was signed between the company and the Liberian government.
Based on these findings, the SDI has proposed a round table discussion involving the GVL, the Liberian government and the civil society organizations on the Palm sector in order to harmonize the problem
The CSO also said given the inability of the GVL to comply with it as own sustainable policies as well as international business norms related to preventing deforestation and respecting human rights and land rights.
Senatoe Temgbeh assured the CSO that the national legislature will thoroughly examine the report and visit the sites in order to ascertain the problems
He thanked the SDI for its investigative analysis on the GVL operation on forest land in rural Liberia.
According to him, when some lawmakers and management of concession companies meet to hold talks about problems affecting the people, lot of things can happen behind the scene.
For his part, the Coordinator of Palm Farm at the Ministry of Agriculture, Francis Mwah, admitted that there were errors in giving forest land to concession companies over the years.
The forum was graced by media practitioners, officials of the Ministry of Agriculture, National Bureau of Concession, representatives of civil society organizations among others.