Liberia Agricultural and Environmental Journalists Network (LAEJN) Promote informed journalism and public engagement on agricultural and environmental nalists Network (LAEJN)
Press Release
As Liberia moves toward establishing a national framework for carbon governance, a new community-led initiative is seeking to ensure that the people whose lands and forests generate carbon benefits have a meaningful voice in shaping the rules that will govern them.
NAMATI, Inc., a Delaware-based nonprofit and lead organizer of the Grassroots Justice Network, has awarded a grant to the National Union of Community Forestry Development Committees (NUCFDCs) to lead a year-long advocacy initiative aimed at strengthening community participation in Liberia’s emerging carbon legislation.
The project, titled “Shaping National Carbon Legislation,” is designed to bring community perspectives into national discussions on carbon governance, with particular attention to land rights, forest ownership, environmental protection, transparency and the equitable distribution of carbon-related benefits.
The grant agreement was signed by Andrew Y.Y. Zelemen, Head of Secretariat/National Facilitator of NUCFDCs, marking the beginning of an initiative that places local communities at the centre of conversations about Liberia’s growing carbon economy.
As global demand for carbon credits and forest-based climate solutions grows, Liberia is increasingly positioned to participate in carbon markets because of its extensive forest resources. But the expansion of carbon-related investments also raises important questions about who owns the resources, who makes decisions, who receives the benefits and how communities can protect their rights.
For NUCFDCs, these questions cannot be left to policymakers, investors and technical experts alone.
“This grant is a milestone for Liberia’s communities,” Zelemen said. “It ensures that local voices are not sidelined in shaping carbon legislation. Our people must be at the center of climate governance, with rights and benefits clearly protected.”
The initiative will therefore focus on strengthening the ability of communities to understand, participate in and influence national carbon policy discussions.
Under the initiative, NUCFDCs will conduct regional consultations in Grand Cape Mount, Nimba and Sinoe counties to gather community perspectives on carbon governance and proposed legislation.
The organization will also establish Carbon Justice Watch Committees and convene a national dialogue involving policymakers, government agencies, civil society organizations and other stakeholders.
The project will produce advocacy and public awareness materials, including policy briefs and radio jingles, to provide communities with information on carbon governance and amplify grassroots perspectives in national policy discussions.
Peer-learning activities with members of the Grassroots Justice Network will also be organized to facilitate the exchange of experiences and approaches on community rights and carbon governance across the region.
The initiative comes as Liberia develops its carbon governance framework amid growing interest in carbon markets and forest-based climate finance.
The project is expected to advocate for explicit recognition of community rights in Liberia’s carbon legislation and the establishment of transparent mechanisms for carbon accounting and benefit-sharing.
It will also seek to strengthen coordination between carbon legislation and existing frameworks governing land rights, forests and the environment.
NAMATI will disburse the grant in two installments. The first installment will be provided upon execution of the agreement, while the final installment will follow the submission of financial and progress reports in March 2027.
NUCFDCs will be responsible for implementing the project and submitting the required financial and progress reports, while complying with applicable grant requirements and U.S. nonprofit regulations.
The project is expected to contribute to stronger community participation in national climate policymaking and ensure that community rights and interests are considered as Liberia develops its carbon governance framework.
