National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan-II 2017-2025.

The preparation of this NBSAP is anchored in strong national vision, principles, and priorities geared towards ensuring protection of Liberia ‘s biodiversity heritage. The Strategy is also consistent with CBD strategic goals and the Aichi Targets. The Long-Term Vision of the strategy is to have a Society that lives in Harmony with its natural environment. Mission of the Strategy is to develop education and information programmes to raise the level of awareness of the population about the importance of biodiversity and place values on ecosystem goods and services through assessment and evaluation (4), and to develop a framework for mainstreaming biodiversity into national accounting systems, development policies, plans and programmes.

The implementation of the Strategy will be guided by the following principles: Ensure the continued monitoring and evaluation of biodiversity status and trends; Biodiversity programmes must address issues associated with governance, legal and financial modalities for equitable sharing of resources; Ensure development initiatives with potential adverse effects on biodiversity are subjected to strategic environmental assessment; Set balance between economic development and environmental consideration to ensure sustainability of natural resources; Build strong mechanism for awareness creation and education; Recognize, promote and uphold traditional and indigenous knowledge, practices and innovations for the sound management of natural resources; Biodiversity management and decision making will be people-centered approach; Biodiversity management and conservation will take into account economic, cultural and aesthetic values; Special emphasis will be placed on ecosystems and habitats management; Biodiversity management and conservation will take into account economic, cultural and aesthetic values; and Special emphasis will be placed on ecosystems and habitats management.

Biodiversity contributes to food security by ensuring availability and access to safe and nutritious food. Agriculture is dependent on biodiversity as it is at the origin of all crops and domesticated livestock and the variety among them. Food production and nutrition depend on essential ecosystem functions such as nutrient cycling, decomposition of organic matter, soil formation and rehabilitation, pest and disease regulation, and pollination that benefit crop and livestock production.

Five strategic goals have been elaborated to implement the strategy: 1.Address the underlying causes of biodiversity loss by mainstreaming biodiversity across government and society; 2.Reduce the direct pressures on biodiversity and promote sustainable use; 3.Improve the status of biodiversity by safeguarding ecosystems, species and genetic diversity; 4.Enhance the benefits to all from biodiversity and ecosystem services; 5.Enhance implementation through participatory planning, knowledge management and capacity building. Target 2: By 2020, at the latest, biodiversity values have been integrated into national and local development and poverty reduction strategies and planning processes and are being incorporated into national accounting, as appropriate, and reporting systems.

The diversity of genes and species in an ecosystem, and the ecological processes they are a part of, determines a forest ‘s stability against pressures such as rapid climate change and extreme weather events such as drought and catastrophic floods. The flow of genes and species within and between different forests – which allows species and genes not adapted to these pressures to migrate out, and more adapted genes and species to migrate in – is essential in maintaining this stability. It is evident from these realities to acknowledge and appreciate the contribution of biodiversity to forest health and sustainability. Biodiversity exerts a significant impact on climate change, among others, by sustaining forests so that they continue to capture and store greenhouse gases, carbon. In the support it provides to a host of ecosystems (e.g., agricultural and forest ecosystems), biodiversity significantly contributes to livelihoods and disaster risk reduction. In Liberia, as is true for other sub-Saharan African countries, agricultural and forest industries provide employment as well as meet the subsistence and income generating needs of millions of people. During the 14-year conflict in Liberia, people took refuge in the forest where they fed on wild fruits, root crops and bush meat for months. While no one wishes to see this cataclysmic event repeated, it is important to acknowledge this life-saving role of Liberia ‘s forests during the war without which hunger must have taken tens of thousands more of precious human lives. Without the forest, life would have been more disastrous for war-fled Liberians. Finally, there have been examples in Liberia where forests served as a shelter against storm and landslide in communities around steep sloping mining areas in Nimba County. There are hundreds of examples around the country where forests have been useful in disaster risk reduction which time and space could not allow us to discuss in this document.

The responsibility for implementing the strategy will be carried out by the Environmental Protection Agency of Liberia, which is the DNA for the implementation of Multilateral Environmental Agreements in the country. The Agency is assisted in the process, by Focal Points of the CBD and its related protocols and relevant thematic focal points such CHM, Financial Resource Mobilization, Protected Areas etc. The National Steering Committee, the highest decision-making body for the Convention ‘s programmes and activities nationally, is next in line and followed by the Rio Conventions National Steering Committee. Other important elements include the line ministries and agencies, conservation NGOs/INGOs, CBOs and local government structure in the communities. The Biodiversity Section within the Diversion of Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of Liberia will be directly responsible to conduct the monitoring of the implementation of the NBSAP, making use of national consultants/experts. The monitoring activities will focus on targets, its actions, and indicators to track progress and ascertain challenges in the implementation process.