All Liberia’s large logging contracts are illegal, threatening the country’s EU, Norwegian, and EITI reform programmes. What can Liberia do and what can other VPA and EITI countries learn?

Global Witness finds that all 13 of Liberia's largest logging contracts are illegal due to beneficial ownership violations, tax evasion, and the employment of wartime loggers. The report warns that these illegalities threaten the credibility of the Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA), the Liberia Forest Sector Project (LFSP), and the Liberian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI). It recommends the cancellation of illegal contracts, the enforcement of beneficial ownership disclosure, and the prevention of FLEGT licenses for illegal timber.

• All 13 of Liberia's largest logging contracts—comprising seven Forest Management Contracts (FMCs) and several co-opted Community Forestry Management Agreements (CFMAs)—are fundamentally illegal.
• Several logging companies are illegally owned or controlled by members of the Liberian House of Representatives or their families, including Representatives Alex Tyler, Moses Kollie, and Ricks Toweh.
• Logging companies in Liberia have failed to pay over US$ 25 million in taxes and fees, representing nearly five percent of the national budget.
• Companies operating under large contracts have employed individuals who should be barred from the sector due to their roles in gun-running and human rights abuses during Liberia's civil war, such as Gabriel Doe.
• The log tracking system has been compromised by data manipulation and suspected bribery, specifically involving Atlantic Resources and an employee of the administrator, SGS.
• Five Community Forestry Management Agreements (CFMAs) were illegally awarded to logging companies without the free, prior, and informed consent of the communities.
• Companies linked to the Malaysian firm Samling, including Alpha Logging, Atlantic Resources, and Forest Venture, control half of Liberia's current logging area and have a history of legal violations.
• The Liberian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) has significant reporting gaps, with 40 of 89 resource companies failing to provide beneficial ownership information for its 2015 report.

APA

Global Witness (2017). All Liberia’s large logging contracts are illegal, threatening the country’s EU, Norwegian, and EITI reform programmes. What can Liberia do and what can other VPA and EITI countries learn? https://globalwitness.org/documents/112/Holding_the_line_-_Liberias_logging_accountability_report_2017.pdf

Chicago

Global Witness. All Liberia’s large logging contracts are illegal, threatening the country’s EU, Norwegian, and EITI reform programmes. What can Liberia do and what can other VPA and EITI countries learn? 2017. https://globalwitness.org/documents/112/Holding_the_line_-_Liberias_logging_accountability_report_2017.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Global Witness |title=All Liberia’s large logging contracts are illegal, threatening the country’s EU, Norwegian, and EITI reform programmes. What can Liberia do and what can other VPA and EITI countries learn? |date=February 2017 |url=https://globalwitness.org/documents/112/Holding_the_line_-_Liberias_logging_accountability_report_2017.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{globalwitness2017all, author = {{Global Witness}}, title = {{All Liberia’s large logging contracts are illegal, threatening the country’s EU, Norwegian, and EITI reform programmes. What can Liberia do and what can other VPA and EITI countries learn?}}, institution = {Global Witness}, year = {2017}, month = feb, url = {https://globalwitness.org/documents/112/Holding_the_line_-_Liberias_logging_accountability_report_2017.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }