1) Country Gets U.S$ 5.1 Million to Fight Climate Change, 2) Liberia: WMO Expert

Access Country's Meteorological Facilitates, 3) Cache of arms discovered in

Firestone, 4) President Sirleaf embroiled in land dispute - but advises

contending party to be calm, 5) US$300M Allocated for Road Networks, 6) Food

Security Underpins Peace, Sustainable Development, 7) Associate professor of

agricultural and resource economics dies, 8) LACC orders Albert Bropleh charged

and prosecuted, 9) How to Settle the 20 million Dollar Lawsuit Against Liberia,

10) Woods Sounds Caveat to Gov't Contractors -Says Lawsuit for Delayed

Completion, 11)See also: http://liberianature.blogspot.com/









1) Country Gets U.S$ 5.1 Million to Fight Climate Change

The Informer (Monrovia)



Akoi Dakala

7 December 2009



The Deputy Director of the Environmental Protection Agency, (EPA) Jerome Nyekan

has disclosed that Liberia received US$5.1M grant to fight climate change.



The EPA Deputy Director made the pronouncement at a launch of a week of action

on climate justice in Monrovia.



The program was organized by the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance in

collaboration with the fellowship of Christian Council & the Liberia Council of

Churches.



Mr. Nyenkan said the money was made available through the Least Develop

Countries institution as part of the under developed African Funds that is

allocated to help countries that are struggling to develop.



He said the money will be paid in two installments as part of the agreement

signed between the institution and the Liberian Government.



Mr. Nyenkan also revealed that his entity has received the first payment of the

amount of US$3M while the second installment in the amount of US$2.1M will be

received pending negotiation.



He said the money will target three Liberian cities including Monrovia, Buchanan

and Robert Sports.



He justified that the section of the cities to be targeted were based on the

alarming threat being posed on them by the Atlantic Ocean.



The EPA official said it would be important for all sectors of the society,

including churches and student communities to join in the fight against climate

change, saying, "It is critical."



Addressing the issue of the situation of the sea erosion in Buchanan, Mr.

Nyenkan made it clear that the EPA function is to prevent climate change and to

not to be cured.



Quizzed as to what could be done with the issue in Buchanan, where the sea has

washed away several communities, the EPA Executive maintained, "we will use some

of the US$5.1M through our partners to help with the process."



The Head of the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance, Thomas Tolbert Jallah said

a research done by a practical consultant based in Sweden suggests that Africa

is heavily faced with the threat of climate change.



He said the alarming rising temperature and sea rising in Africa has further

contributed to the situation of climate change.



Dr. Jallah also stressed that strange whether condition in some African

countries was one of the contributing factors outlined by the Swedish-based

institution that carried out the climate research on Africa.



He added that it would be difficult to achieve the intent of the Millennium

Development Goals (MDGs) in such a climatically affected society.



He said the report by his group was commissioned by Christian Aid and a

Swedish-base research center.



He announced that the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance was being lunched on

Wednesday, December 2, 2009, in two other countries including Lesotho and

Cameroon.



Dr. Jallah announced that the implementation of the fight of climate change,

according to their research, would cause Africa US$30M to fight the situation on

the continent.



For her part, an Executive of OXFAM-UK Ms. Tonia Wiles called for a "massive

participation" of female in fighting climate change.



She asserted that the issue of climate change has been widely scrutinized at a

very critical perspective and that women are unable to help with the fight

against the phenomenon.



She said it is necessary to listen to the voices of women in the fight against

climate change, because, according to her, their involvement with the process

would help at the community level.



Ms. Wiles also added that it would be necessary to help provide more training

for local women as a means of helping to control the process at that level.



Copyright © 2009 The Informer. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica

Global Media (allAfrica.com).

AllAfrica - All the Time



+++



2) Liberia: WMO Expert Access Country's Meteorological Facilitates

The Analyst

7 December 2009



The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) expert Mr. Peter Kato visiting

Liberia, has just concluded its assessment tour on the facilities of Liberia

National Meteorological Services



(NMS) and disclosed to journalists that there are prospects in the future of the

nation's meteorological service.



Mr. Kato told news men Friday during a press conference which climax his tour at

the Ministry of Transport on Broad Street. He said, there are few challenges

that are facing the NMS. He



named the lack of facilitates and inadequate manpower facing the ministry, but

these challenges, he added, the country stands in a better position to pick up

and make head ways in the meteorological industry.



Mr. Kato who concluded a two weeks' studies and is expected to leave the

country, praised the Transport Ministry authority for the level of support

received during his stay in the country..



In response, Transport Minister Alphonso Gaye expressed thanks and appreciation

for the successful completion of his mission to Liberia. He also thanked the WMO

for their latest assistance in the form of a mission to Liberia, which has

contributed to the preparation of a comprehensive development plan in support of

one of the Ministry of Transport's deliverables.



Minister Gaye noted that in the beginning of this year, WMO gave technical

assistance including training and office equipment to the government of Liberia

through his Ministry under which four staffs were trained at the regional

meteorological training center in Cairo, Egypt and computers.



He indicated that extreme weather and climate change have had a significant

impact and are among the most serious challenges to society in coping with

climate variability , adding that from the inter governmental panel on climate

change (IPCC), fourth assessment reports (AR4), confidence has increased that

some extreme will become more frequent.



"The sustainability of economic development and living conditions depends on our

ability to manage the risks associate with extreme events, in particular, the

infrastructures we depend upon for food, water, shelter and variables", he said.



He indicated further that the rainfall variability is an essential climate

factor which is significant to Liberia, especially so with its extreme

occurrences usually resulting into famine and floods which subsequently bring

about food, energy and water shortages; loss of life and property and many other

socio economic disruptions.



Copyright © 2009 The Analyst.



+++



3) Cache of arms discovered in Firestone

Written by Archie Weefur

Friday, 04 December 2009

STAR RADIO



Report reaching Star Radio says a cache of arms and ammunition has been

discovered in  Firestone, Margibi County.



According to our correspondent, the cache of arms and ammunition were discovered

on November 26.



Our correspondent says the disclosure was made in the Division Twenty-Nine area

by a woman who immediately notified security forces in the area.



The weapons which were sealed up in a yellow plastic include six AK-47 riffles

and one hundred rounds of ammunition.



Our correspondent says the joint security in Margibi County has launched a full

investigation to establish the source of the weapons.



+++



4) President Sirleaf embroiled in land dispute - but advises contending party to

be calm

Written by Sorbor George

Thursday, 03 December 2009

STAR RADIO



President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has surfaced at the center of a land dispute

with over twenty family heads of the Morris’ Farm Community.



Two Spokespersons for the residents told Star radio President Sirleaf has

ordered that they vacate the premises on grounds it belongs to her.



Jelson Kelman and Koiwu Scott explained President Sirleaf instructed the Lands

and Mines Minister to carry out a survey of the four acres of land.



The aggrieved Morris Farm Community residents claimed they have title deeds to

the area and alleged the President was using her power to dispossess them of

their property.



When contacted, Lands, Mines and Energy Minister admitted his ministry was

requested to carry out what he called an investigative survey to determine

President Sirleaf’s ownership to the land.



According to Minster Eugene Shannon the investigation showed the land belongs to

the president and that the residents were illegally occupying the premises.



The office of the Liberian Leader has also confirmed the president’s ownership

to the land.



Press Secretary Cyrus Badio told Star Radio President Sirleaf purchased the land

in the 1970s and has only requested the Lands and Mine Ministry to carry out a

re- demarcation of the property.



Mr. Badio however assured the residents the president was not prepared to evict

them now.



+++



5) US$300M Allocated for Road Networks

Published on Liberian Observer (http://www.liberianobserver.com)

By Anonymous

Created Dec 3 2009 - 11:15am



[photp: Kofi Woods.jpg Woods speaks to reporters in Ganta]

By:

Ishmael F. Menkor



GANTA – About US$300 million has been allocated for reconstruction of

Monrovia-Ganta border roads and the Bokay Town-Buchanan roads in Grand Bassa

County.



Speaking to reporters in the commercial city of Ganta during a recent tour of

the roads in Nimba County, the Minister of Public Works, Kofi Woods, said about

US$300 million had been set aside for the reconstruction of Monrovia-Ganta

border and Monrovia-Bokay Town roads to their pre-war conditions.



The bidding process, the Minister said, had been completed, and the evaluation

process was underway. He said the road reconstruction project would be completed

in three phases – Bokay Town to Buchanan, Paynesville to Gbarnga and Gbarnga

to the Guinean border in Ganta.



Woods, who was also assessing major roads in Nimba for possible rehabilitation

in preparation for the Independence Day Celebration in 2010, said while waiting

for the bids to meet international standards before the work commences, the

government will be spearheading some rehabilitation work to improve the living

condition of the people.



“We have the obligation to improve the living condition of our people. While

waiting for the constructors to start the road projects, we will be resurfacing

the Bokay Town-Buchanan roads as well as the Gbarnga-Ganta roads,” the he

explained.



When asked whether it was the World Bank that was providing the funding, he said

the funding was made available through a program called “the Liberian

Reconstruction Trust Fund,” which is being monitored by the World Bank. “The

World Bank is only the custodian,” he said.



Woods also disclosed plans for the reconstruction of the Fish Town-Harper

highway by an Ivorian company while other major projects take place in and

around Monrovia.



The Public Works Minister, who was in Nimba on Saturday, visited the Ganta

market area and held discussions with the Ganta City Authority. Several issues

pertaining to the building of a



market house and a city hall were highlighted, he said.



He continued his tour in Sanniquellie and inspected roads in need of repair

there. Woods was accompanied by one of his deputies, Johnson Gwaikolo.



In Saclapea, the minister inspected the Bailey bridge being jointly constructed

by engineers from the Ministry of Public Works and the Pakistani and Bangladeshi

contingents of the United



Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL). He also went on to inspect a bridge linking

Saclapea to Yarwin Messonnoh near a village called Findee.

0Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.





Copyright 2009 | Liberian Observer Online | www.LiberianObserver.com

Source URL (retrieved on Dec 5 2009 - 2:36am):

http://www.liberianobserver.com/node/3253



+++



6) Food Security Underpins Peace, Sustainable Development

Published on Liberian Observer (http://www.liberianobserver.com)



By Anonymous

Created Dec 3 2009 - 11:17am



[photo: 'This Government attaches importance to agriculture’-VP Boakai]



SUACOCO – Vice President Joseph N. Boakai has told a gathering of food

security experts that the Unity Party-led government takes the issue of food

security in the country seriously.



Boakai made the assertion at an official program marking World Food Day, held at

the Central Agricultural Research Institute (CARI) in Suacoco, Bong County.



The Vice President described CARI as “home to some of the most industrious and

hardworking citizens who, history records, have contributed immensely to food

self-sufficiency in Liberia during the formative and experimental years of our

agricultural development.”



Boakai added that agriculture is underscored in the government’s Poverty

Reduction Strategy (PRS) as the “cornerstone to lifting Liberia.”



The agricultural sector, Boakai said, has gained ‘impetus’ under the UP-led

government not only due to the quality of leadership, but also due to “the

resurgent partnerships that have produced effective strategies to maximize our

agricultural output.”



The Liberian Vice President said he was attending the event to renew the

government’s willingness to honor the six percent target in annual

agricultural sector growth, as well as the commitment of 10 percent of the

national budget to agriculture.



“Today, I reaffirm our government’s commitment toward that mandate,”

Boakai stated amidst applause.



“On November 10, 2009, I graced the opening of the second regional workshop on

Food Security through Commercialization of Agriculture, held in Monrovia, and I

stressed the enactment of measures and strategies aimed at enhancing food

productivity and access, which underpin peace and security – the sine qua non

for sustainable development,” the Vice President recalled.



He indicated that the government’s participation at these forums shows its

unwavering commitment to alleviating poverty through agriculture-led strategies

and to also maximize home-grown solutions in our approaches,



“Thus the theme of this year’s World Food Day program, ‘Achieving Food

Security in Times of Crisis’ reverberates with the government’s cherished

priorities,” he added.



“For us in Liberia, government has played a key role by not only providing

incentives to farmers and assurances of buying their produce but also [by]

accelerating support to institutions offering agricultural training and setting

up farms. Their status needs to be elevated, and we have a collective

responsibility to ensure that,” Boakai pointed out.



FAO World Food Day Message

Speaking on behalf of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO),

Director-General, Dr. Wilfred Hammond, FAO Representative to Liberia, said the

events of the last three years had been particularly tragic as they demonstrated

the fragility of the global food system. He said that for the first time in

history, more than one billion people were undernourished worldwide.



“This is about 100 million more than last year, and it means that one in every

six persons suffers from hunger every day,” he stated.



Hammond said the recent increase in hunger had not been the consequence of a

poor global harvest.



“Far from it; it was caused by the world economic crisis, which has reduced

incomes and employment opportunities of the poor and significantly reduced their

access to food,” he pointed out.



The FAO representative also indicated that the current crisis is historically

unprecedented in several ways.



“First, it follows a global rapid and sharp increase in staple food prices,

during 2006-2008. The recent downward adjustment should not be interpreted as

the end of food crisis. In sub-Saharan Africa, 80 to 90 cereal prices monitored

by FAO in 27 countries remain more than 25 percent higher than before the food

price crisis began two years ago,” he explained.



Agriculture Minister, Dr. Florence Chenoweth, pointed out that World Food Day,

which should be a day of celebration, has come with the “dreadful news of

hunger and suffering.”



One child dies from hunger every five seconds worldwide, she said, adding that

for too many persons, going without food every day is a way of life. The

Agriculture Minister disclosed that 17,000 children die from hunger every day

around the world.



“For us in Liberia, we take the issue of food security very seriously; that is

why it is a top priority of this government,” she asserted.



Chenoweth also used the occasion to announced the decentralization of her

ministry to other leeward parts of the country and said that Bong County would

the first to host a “fully decentralized” office of the Agriculture

Ministry.



She concluded by promising Liberian farmers that their crops will not be wasted

and that her ministry will do its utmost to help Liberian farmers realize their

dreams.



0Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.





Copyright 2009 | Liberian Observer Online | www.LiberianObserver.com

Source URL (retrieved on Dec 5 2009 - 2:30am):

http://www.liberianobserver.com/node/3257



+++



7) Associate professor of agricultural and resource economics dies



TUSKEGEE, Ala. (December 2, 2009) – Tuskegee University is saddened with the

recent death of Dr. Arthur T. G. Siaway, an associate professor of agricultural

and resource economics in the College of Agricultural, Environmental and Natural

Sciences. He died Nov. 15.



Siaway was an accomplished, admired, compassionate and respected academician,

particularly in the international development arena. In 1974, he completed his

initial training in Liberia where he graduated with honors from the University

of Liberia with a Bachelor of Science in mathematics education. He earned his

master's degree in statistics and economics, and Ph.D. in agricultural and

resource economics in 1987, both from Oregon State University in Corvallis, Ore.



Siaway began his career at Tuskegee University in 1987 as assistant professor of

agricultural and resource economics and was later promoted to associate

professor. He authored or co-authored over 20 professional publications. He was

also involved in research throughout his career involving international trade

policies, small and micro enterprise development, African women in economic

development, U.S. food aid, land and economic development in Africa, agriculture

diversification, marketing strategies for resource-poor communities and

countries, and institutional capacity building. He also served as consultant to

the Republic of Liberia, the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization

and the United States Agency for International Development.



Siaway's enthusiasm for international programs was evident. He was passionate

about international development, particularly in Africa. Most notably, he served

as coordinator of one of the most successful and long-running international

projects at Tuskegee, the Tuskegee University – Sokoine University of

Agriculture Linkage Project, for over 14 years. In spite of his extensive duties

in international contracts implementation, he also taught critically required

graduate courses in the department Siaway is survived by his wife, Vickie, eight

children, eight grandchildren, brothers, sisters, uncles, nephews, nieces,

cousins, in-laws and numerous friends.



A wake for Siaway will be held Friday, Dec. 4, from 7 to 10 p.m., and the

funeral service will be held Dec. 5 from 10 a.m. to noon, at the First Baptist

Church, 305 South Perry Street in Montgomery, Ala. Interment will follow at

Alabama Heritage in Montgomery.





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+++



8) LACC orders Albert Bropleh charged and prosecuted

Written by Matthias Daffah

Wednesday, 02 December 2009

STAR Radio



The Anti-Corruption Commission has recommended that the Former Chairman of the

Liberia Telecommunications Authority be formally charged and prosecuted.



In a letter to Justice Minister Christiana Tarr, the LACC recommended that Mr.

Albert Bropleh be charged and prosecuted for acts of corruption.



According to the recommendation, Mr. Bropleh must be charged in line with

Chapter fifteen subchapter F of the New Penal Law of Liberia.



A release issued said the decision to charge and prosecute Mr. Bropleh followed

months of tedious evidence-gathering by the Commission.



The release said evidence gathered by the Commission indicates that Mr. Bropleh

engaged in acts of corruption as defined under Part Two of the LACC act.



The act establishing the LACC requires that the prosecution of corruption cases

be carried out by the Justice Ministry in collaboration with the Commission.



+++



9) How to Settle the 20 million Dollar Lawsuit Against Liberia

Daily Observer

Publication Date: December 2, 2009 - 5:32am

Updated: December 2, 2009 - 5:43am



Here's a letter sent to Frontpageafrica and Daily Observer regarding lawsuit

against Liberia:



Mr. Editor,



What infuriates me is seeing all these scumbags (Snowe, Devine, Greaves, Sherif,

etc ) running around scot free, enjoying their loot from LPRC, and telling us

"screw you!"--- while we the people are on the hook for US$20 million!! (Re

"Danger! ‘Vulture Funds’ Files Lawsuit Against Liberia Over US$20 Million")



We the people shouldn't take it anymore: Instead of bending over, grabbing our

ankles and letting these scumbags have their way with us, why not sell off their

assets to settle the lawsuit??



After all, wasn't the defaulted loan (US$15 million) intended to finance the

acquisition of assets for the Liberian Petroleum Refinery Company (LPRC)??? So

why don't we the people "pierce the corporate veil" and hold the LPRC management

responsible to pay it (loan) back??



Martin Scott

Atlanta, Georgia



+++



10) Woods Sounds Caveat to Gov't Contractors -Says Lawsuit for Delayed

Completion

The Informer (Monrovia)

2 December 2009



Public Works Minister Attorney Samuel Kofi Woods, II warned government

contracted firms on infrastructure-related projects that there will be no

compromise for non-compliance to the terms of these contracts.



He said any company failing to comply with the time frame of contract "without

good cause" will be dragged to court as per the laws of .



Minister Woods made the strongly worded statement when he toured several

Ministry of Public Works (MPW) project sites in Nimba County over the weekend.



The infrastructure Minister challenged all firms that have signed

infrastructural-related contracts with the Liberian government to take advantage

of the dry season and progress with their works.



This is not the first time the Minister has cautioned contractors: upon taking

office at Public Works, Minister Woods has made several tours warning companies

including two Chinese firms CHICO and CICO to speed up with the rehabilitation

of roads in and around Monrovia including restoration of the crumbled Tubman or

Old Bridge.



About a week ago the Minister repeated his earlier calls when he toured several

infrastructural projects in Monrovia and five other counties including Margibi,

Montserrado, Bong, Grand Bassa and Grand Cape Mount.



The three-day visit to Nimba County took Minister Woods and team to Ganta,

Sanniquellie, Tiayee, Saclepea, and Fleedin.



The intent of the visit was to give booster to projects in these areas and also

discuss and pre-plan with Nimba County authorities ahead of the July 26, 2010

Independence Day celebration slated for Sanniquellie, Nimba County.



On Saturday, November 28, Minister Woods and team departed Monrovia and made a

brief stop at Nyanforla bridge, where Bailey bridges are been erected. He urged

Margibi County Resident Engineer to ensure proper maintenance of the bridge,

laying particular emphasis on the required tonnage of load plying the bridge.

The team later left the port city of Ganta, Nimba County.



At a brief meeting in Ganta with City Mayor Doye Cooper and marketers, Minister

Woods promised to support the market building project in Ganta, provided the

official deed for the site is available.



"Ganta is close to my heart because of some ties", Minister Woods maintained.

Earlier, the marketers asked Minister Woods to assist them with their market

building project because of the uncomfortable selling conditions at their

current location.



While in Ganta, Minister Woods inspected several projects including the

UNICEF-sponsored school project at the Gboyee Road and the Custom Post at the

Liberia-Guinea border.



He expressed happiness over the level of work done but urged community dwellers

to develop the sense of ownership of these projects because they are

stakeholders in the developmental drive in the county.



Minister Woods and team proceeded to Sanniquellie and were greeted by Nimba

County Superintendent Edith Gongloe Weh. Without delay, Minister Woods and Madam

Weh drove to Tiayee Town where the MPW is rehabilitating an 11.5 mile road with

15 separate lines of culverts being installed along the road.



TUTEX is a own company been contracted to rehabilitate the road while MPW is

playing the supervisory and monitoring roles.



Minister Woods expressed satisfaction with the level of work done but called on

the contractors to accelerate the job, taking into consideration time frame and

deadline. "We must take advantage of the dry season and speed up the job",

Minister Woods alerted.



On Sunday, November 29, Minister Woods and team visited several streets,

including Fingolo Street and the street leading to the Administrative Hall in

Sanniquellie with the aim of improving them ahead of next year's Independence

Day celebration slated for Nimba.



The tour in Sinniquellie also led the MPW team to the damaged Central High

School and other war-affected buildings in the City.



The MPW team later proceeded back to Ganta and met with the Contingent Commander

of Banengri II, Lt/Col Nurul Huda. Banengri II is the Bangladeshi Contingent of

UNMIL assigned in the Ganta region.



He thanked the Contingent for their support in rehabilitating major roads in

Nimba especially between Ganta and Sanniquellie as well as Ganta and Saclepea.



He urged the Contingent to develop policy in transferring the technical

knowledge to youth in the area for future benefit.



The Bangladeshi Engineering Continent in Ganta also supported the MPW in

launching a Bailey bridge over the Gunu River between Saclepea and Ganta.



He also thanked Banengra II for their extended support in clearing the

surrounding of the newly renovated market in Saclepea City, Nimba County. He

said the environment will allow cars to pack outside the main road as is done at

other market sites.



The team later proceeded to Fleedin to inspect the ongoing bridge

rehabilitation. Fleedin is 22 Km north of Saclepea City.



Welcoming Minister Woods and team to Fleedin, the Paramount Chief of Gbein

Chiefdom, Henry L. Kramia, said the administration of President Sirleaf has made

them to see Cabinet Ministers going deeper to the rural areas.



He said since the road and bridge construction in 1972, it was their first time

to see a Cabinet Minister visiting them.



He thanked the Government for targeting bridge construction in their community,

something he termed as heart touching.



For his part, Minister Woods thanked the leadership especially women for the

warm welcome accorded him. "I am deeply touched for women of this town to give

such a huge welcome."



He said although the bridge is not finished yet, there is a need for the people

there to take ownership of public properties for its protection. He promised to

make another visit in the future after the bridge has been completed.



At the end of the tour in Fleedin, Superintendent Edith Gongloe Weh asked the

citizens to clean alongside the road while the Government of Liberia strategizes

to improve the condition of



the road and other infrastructures



Copyright © 2009 The Informer. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica

Global Media (allAfrica.com).

AllAfrica - All the Time



+++



11)See also: http://liberianature.blogspot.com/



###



Complete archives at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Nature_Liberia/

1) Dispute settled between Managbokai residents and Construction Company, 2)

Africa aims to reduce carbon emissions, 3) French Logging Company Sued for Role

in Liberian Civil War, 4) Liberia: Over Bella Yella road construction, Woods

scores high point, 5) Purchasing "Made in Liberia" Product, 6) Malian expert

makes mixed review of democracy in West Africa, 7) Chinese Construction Company

gets seven-day ultimatum, 8) Bad Roads Partition Country, 9) Rubber Stakeholders

Amend Master Plan, 10) On Linkages In Concession And Int'l Agreements: Chamber

of Commerce Advances Recommendations To Gov't, 11) Ecowas Builds Liberia's Trade

Negotiation Capacity, 12)See also: http://liberianature.blogspot.com/





1) Dispute settled between Managbokai residents and Construction Company

Written by Anthony A. Stephens

Monday, 14 December 2009

STAR RADIO



Residents of Managbokai town in Bomi County have agreed to resolve their problem

with the Tarvarken Construction Company.



The dispute came about when the company failed to meet the deadline to complete

a public school in the area.



Tension between the town’s people and the company’s authorities intensified

when three pillars of the unfinished structure fell on Tuesday.



The company alleged the some unscrupulous town’s men detached the pillars.



Our reporter who travelled to the County says the dispute was resolved following

the intervention of Mrs. Hawa Goll Kotchi, a prominent daughter of the town.



According to our reporter, a team of Education Ministry engineers established

the pillars fell because the company used sub-standard materials on them.



The company acknowledged the problem and promised to ratify it.



Boimah Sando, the spokesman of the town expressed satisfaction over the

resolution of the problem.



+++



2) Africa aims to reduce carbon emissions

Green IT

By Rebecca Wanjiku

Created 2009-12-14 11:50AM





Africa technology companies are investing in renewable energy solutions to

counter erratic power and rising costs as well as lower the rate of carbon

dioxide emissions.



Most African countries in the tropics have potential for solar, wind and

geothermal power generation, but the options are not exploited because of high

capital and operational expenditure requirements, complicated licensing regimes

and high taxes for companies interested in investing in the sector.



According to Juniper Research, telecommunication base stations are responsible

for more than 70 percent of carbon emissions in the mobile arena.



"All of the telecom companies in Africa are planning extensive rollouts in the

next year; this expansion of cellular networks is predicted to result in 30,000

new cellular towers," said Tony Ng'eno, CEO of WinAfrique Technologies, a

renewable energy solutions company serving eastern and southern Africa.



Telecom sector growth is likely to encounter serious power challenges, and

according to the World Renewable Energy Council, sub-Saharan Africa has the

world's lowest electricity coverage.



In rural areas with no power, the traditional approach of powering the sites is

to depend on small to medium-size, standalone diesel generator sets (gensets),

with a small battery backup. The generators lower costs in areas where the

average revenue per user is low, especially in rural areas with low economic

activity.



"In Cote d'Ivoire we have implemented a hybrid generator solution consisting of

technology working in cycling mode from 12 hours on generator to 12 hour/24 hour

on batteries, depending on the load. As a result, the base station saves about

50 percent on fuel and 50 percent in maintenance fees, and CO2 output is also

reduced by 50 percent," said Nozipho January-Bardill, MTN group executive for

corporate affairs.



"These generator sets have a low initial capital cost and there is widespread

support and knowledge on how to operate and maintain them; however, experience

has shown that there are significant limitations and costs associated with this

method of generating power," added Ng'eno.



The limitation of operating these generators was demonstrated two weeks ago when

MTN Business' Gallo Manor data center was down for half an hour because the

backup generator went down.



Apart from technical challenges, diesel generators are expensive to manage and

usually require additional physical security. The fuel emissions are also making

generators less attractive to companies interested in green solutions.



Companies like MTN, Telkom Kenya and Telkom South Africa have invested in green

solutions for the base stations and data centers as a way to reduce costs and

cut the effects on climate change. Telkom SA launched its green data center in

Cape Town earlier this month.



"Telkom SA is now in a position to leapfrog many other players in this field;

for instance, our new data center -- in terms of design, capacity as well as our

environmentally friendly, energy-efficient features -- places it on par with the

top 10 percent in the world," said Reuben September, Telkom Group CEO.



MTN operates hybrid solutions of solar and wind in South Africa and Ivory Coast,

and pilots are ongoing in Guinea (Conakry), Rwanda, Liberia, Nigeria, Cameroon,

Sudan, Uganda and Equatorial Guinea.



"We have completed the implementation of an off-grid base station in Kleinaarpen

in South Africa, powered by solar and wind, with a hydrogen fuel cell supplying

the secondary power source," said MTN's January-Bardill.



While wind and solar are the most available sources of renewable energy, it has

been argued that a hybrid system is ideal because of backup in case of

insufficient sun or wind.



"Telecommunication stations are typically located on the top of hills or the

highest point in the area; the natural solution is to combine wind and solar

sources to create an annually constant energy flow," said Ng'eno.



The rising cost of powering base stations in Africa has forced competing

telecoms to devise ways to share infrastructure and reduce power bills. In

Uganda, Warid, MTN, Zain, Orange and Uganda Telecom have formed a rural power

consortium that will allow the companies to share costs incurred in electrifying

their base stations across the country.



The consortium revealed that urban base stations with relatively easy access to

roads and grid power can cost US$2,500 a month to run, while the rural bases

stations without access roads or the power grid can cost up to US$20,000 month

to run.



Rising power costs, the gaps between supply and demand, and the effects on the

private sector were the topics of discussion at a two-day conference organized

by the French Development Agency, the United Nations Environmental Programme and

the Kenya government two weeks ago.



After discussions on the challenges and opportunities in Kenya and the tough

licensing regime, it was resolved that the government should explore ways of

setting up a one-stop-shop office for all licensing processes of energy

projects, to review energy tariffs for energy producers and increase renewable

energy budgetary allocations.



The conference in Nairobi was expected to generate discussions for the ongoing

climate change conference in Copenhagen and lobby for increased renewable

contributions from the West.



As part of its contribution, the European Commission (EC) has announced a loan

of Euros100 million for Africa, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) countries for

projects in the energy sector as part of the Second Energy facility program.



The U.S.-based Climate Investment Fund (CIF) will release $1.1 billion in new

financing to six African countries to develop renewable energy alternatives.

Mozambique, Niger and Zambia will receive between $50 million and $70 million in

low-interest loans while Morocco, South Africa and Egypt will receive $150

million, $500 million and $300 million, respectively, to bolster investments in

clean energy.





Green IT



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Source URL (retrieved on 2009-12-15 01:16PM):

http://www.infoworld.com/t/green-it/africa-aims-reduce-carbon-emissions-201

Links:

[1] http://weblog.infoworld.com/sustainableit/?source=fssr

[2]

http://www.infoworld.com/newsletters/subscribe?showlist=infoworld_greentech&sour\

ce=fssr



+++



3) French Logging Company Sued for Role in Liberian Civil War

Liberian Observer

Publication Date: December 14, 2009 - 7:22am

Updated: December 14, 2009 - 6:37pm





By: Observer Staff



NANTES, France - At least three human rights organizations have lodged a legal

complaint before the Public Prosecutor at the Court of Nantes in France against

the French company, Dalhoff, Larsen and Horneman Group (DLH).



DLH-France, is the French arm of the one of the world’s leading international

timber and wood products wholesalers.



Global Witness and Sherpa, along with Greenpeace-France, Amis de la Terre and a

prominent Liberian activist say they have evidence that from 2001 to 2003, DLH

purchased, imported into France and distributed across Europe, wood originating

from Liberian timber companies that directly benefited the Charles Taylor

regime.



The complainants allege that the companies from which DLH purchased timber were

named in numerous UN reports as guilty of committing gross human rights

violations, breaching UN arms sanctions, and engaging in environmental

destruction and corruption.



It is alleged that their suppliers did not even have the legal right to fell the

timber DHL was selling.



The plaintiffs maintain that the exploitation of Liberia’s forests provided

the finance to fuel the devastating Liberian civil war by being a major source

of funding for the government’s extra-budgetary (unofficial) activities, such

as the procurement of arms and ammunition in breach of UN sanctions.



The complainants further alleged that because DLH imported timber from forest

concessions operated by specific Liberian companies, DLH-France and DLH-Nordisk

A/S will be guilty of ‘recel,’ a French legal term for the act of selling

and/or handling illegally obtained goods punishable under French criminal law.



Liability for the offense of recel arises from the illegal origin of the logs

purchased, imported and traded by DLH, acquired by means of corruption and

involving the destruction of the Liberian rainforest.



The parties to the complaint believe that DLH deliberately attempted to conceal

the origin of the timber, mislead the public and divert public scrutiny of its

Liberian purchasing and importation practices in order to make profits.



The complainants allege that DLH continued to purchase from Liberian suppliers

despite strong evidence of their involvement in corruption, tax evasion,

environmental degradation, UN arms sanctions violations and human rights abuses.



It was not until the United Nations Security Council embargo on Liberian wood

came into force in July 2003 that DLH ceased its Liberian wood imports.



According to the complainants, DLH has publicly stated that the company’s

suppliers "who operate in conflict zones, have a special responsibility for not

contributing to gross human rights violations."



"At the time that NGOs raised concerns with DLH, the company stated that it did

not want to purchase wood from companies which violated human rights or engaged

in destructive logging practices," the complainants added.



They indicated that on January 18, 2002, DLH issued a press release justifying

its trade with Liberia and assuring the public that "DLH has made an

environmental assessment by visiting various timber industries, forest

concessions, and the forest service."



On March 5, 2002, DLH further asserted the following: "We do not agree that our

suppliers contribute to ‘highly destructive logging practices and illegal

activities.’ DLH’s local forester makes regular environmental assessments of

our supplier’s forest concessions."



The allegations raised by the complainants are yet to be tried.



Over the weekend, Cllr. Alfred Lahai Brownell, lead campaigner of the

Environmental Lawyers of Liberia (Green advocates), one of the plaintiffs in the

case, confirmed to the Daily Observer that he and other international

campaigners have indeed instituted the lawsuit against the French entity.



The complaint was lodged with the prosecutor in last month, November 2009.



Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.



+++



4) Liberia: Over Bella Yella road construction, Woods scores high point

Dec 14, 2009

by Michael Kpayili / Staff Writer





Public Works Minister Samuel Kofi Woods, II has expressed satisfaction over the

level of work done at the Bopolu- Bella Yella road but called on engineers to

remain focus to the completion of the road.



Speaking during a one day team visit at the virgin Belle Yella road on Saturday

December 12, 2009, Minister Woods said with the level of cooperation and

motivation among engineers and workers on the road, the certainty for an

official opening of the road is imminent for December 18, 2009.



At the first stop of the visit, the Chief Engineer of PEALAT Liberia

Construction Company, Mr. Aaron Joboe expressed confidence that the road will be

completed before December 24, 2009 for the Christmas celebration. He said the

remaining 10 mile road will be aggressively worked on to reach the Town of Belle

Yella.



At the second and final stop, the general Administrative Manager of PEALAT

Liberia Mr. Aaron



Harris said the reason why the road has reached at an appreciable point is the

motto developed at the inception of the work. The motto put in place according

to him is "No nonsense, No tolerance." which workers used as guide to commence

work.



In response to statement made by field workers, Public Works Minister Samuel

Kofi Woods, II said the initial commitment made to the people of Liberia

concerning Belle Yella road is still on course. He said he trusted in the

ability of the workers on the field but will continue to encourage them as the

road reaches completion.



What is particularly important about the road is not only the historic nature of

the area but it is the first time for road to enter Belle Yella.



"Historically as student, I was afraid of Belle Yella, but when the president

visited the area, she felt that there was a need for road in Belle Yella and

this statement motivated me as Minister". Minister Woods maintained. The theme

for the initial opening of Belle Yella road was: "Respect Human Rights and

Dignity."



The acceleration of the road is predicated upon commitment made by President

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf to Chief Jallah Lone that she was going to spend the

Christmas in Belle Yella.



Those that accompanied Minister Woods on the tour were Deputy Minister for

Technical Services Mr. J. Jenkins Mens-Cole, Mr. B. Wion Kanteah Sr. Director

for Procurement Ministry of Public Works, Abraham Samukai, Comptroller Ministry

of Public Works and scores of Journalists.





About the Author:



Michael Kpayili is a staff writer for TheLiberianTimes.com. Kpayili has written

articles which have appeared on TheLiberianTimes.com since late 2005, and his

hard hitting investigative journalism has earned the respect of the Liberian

press community.



Michael Kpayili may be contacted at mkpayili@....



Contact Us

By Phone

1.646.225.9684 (USA) By Email

editor@...

TheLiberianTimes.com is a developingPress Company



www.developingpres.com



Copyright Notice

All rights, including copyright, in the content of these TheLiberianTimes.com

web pages are owned or controlled for these purposes by LoneStar Liberia.



+++



5) Purchasing "Made in Liberia" Product

Liberian Daily Observer

Dec 13, 2009

By: Alva Mulbah Wolokollie, Guest Contributor





The "Made in Liberia" annual trade fair has grown exponentially in both size and

significance. Over 500 small and micro-entrepreneurs and farmers from the

country's 15 political sub-divisions exhibited their products and services

during the third annual trade fair, hosted on the campus of Robertsport High

School in Grand Cape Mt. County. Liberia has rich potentials; our climate and

soil are rich for the production of almost any crop. Our hardworking and

creative people are now actively involved in one form of productive activity or

another. The country is moving on from mediocrity to economic development. The

third annual trade fair is an indication that we are preparing to be

self-sufficient and developmental. It is good to eat what you grow know and wear

what you produce/manufacture. U.S. Ambassador to Liberia, Madam Linda

Thomas-Greenfield, has followed the progress of the fair since its inception in

2007 in the port city of Buchanan, also in Gbarnga,

  June 2008, and now in Robertsport. She disclosed that all that she eats in

recent times is "Made in Liberia". She does not only eat "Made in Liberia" but

wears "Made in Liberia" It was amazing to hear this from a diplomat. Many

persons were seen purchasing artwork, furniture, food products and fresh farm

produce from Liberian vendors. I was captivated when I saw Amb.



Full text available to subscribers only.



Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.



+++



6) Malian expert makes mixed review of democracy in West Africa

African Press Agency

12 December 2009



APA-Grand Popo (Benin) After nearly two decades of democratization, the West

Africa region still appears as a volcanic area with seats on eruption and others

on standby, UNESCO Humanities and Social Sciences Program Officer, Ali Daou,

deplored Saturday at Grand Popo, about 100km south-west of the Beninese capital

Cotonou.



"After nearly two decades, the record of democratization is still very uneven in

West Africa. Almost all countries in this region have many signs of long-lasting

political instability, Ali Daou told APA in an interview.



According to the Malian national, some countries in West Africa, such as Cote

d’Ivoire, are plagued by conflicts not yet pacified while others, including

Liberia and Guinea Bissau, are seeking, with great difficulty, the path of civil

peace with the support of the international community.



Apart from these countries, he said, others are experiencing upheavals that

reflect the multiple effects of emergency periods.



"Even Senegal, which has evolved relatively stable with a peaceful democratic

changeover of power has been displaying for some time, indicators of instability

whose future will unveil all the dimensions," he revealed.



The Malian political scientist warns that the West African sub-region is

currently experiencing a specially stumbling democratic transition period.



"In countries ravaged by armed conflict, the democratic process is hampered by

several factors which will probably condition the development of the whole

society for a long time," he said.



He stressed that the focus on ethnic identities and regional conflicts have

distorted the nature of political competition between the players of the

democratic system in the sub region.



"The competition between political actors in the West Africa sub-region which

should have been on social projects based on inclusion of various segments of

the community of each country is lessened to a mere struggle for the exclusion

of the other," he lamented.



The development of democratic debate can only be a lure in such a context of

systematic mistrust, he said.



"Therefore, it is not pessimistic to argue that countries like Liberia, Sierra

Leone, Guinea Bissau and Cote d’Ivoire will take time to permanently move from

the serious injuries which they were victims of," he warned.



Ali Daou predicts that the pace of democratization in the West Africa sub

region, prey to doubt and socio-political unrests, will slow down.



MT/mn/ad/daj/APA

2009-12-12



African Press Agency - Copyright upon prior authorization



+++



7) Chinese Construction Company gets seven-day ultimatum



Written by Onesimus Leigh



Friday, 11 December 2009



STAR RADIO



Labor Minister Tiawan Gongloe has issued a seven-day ultimatum to CICO to

provide safety equipment for its over four hundred workers.



Minister Gongloe said drastic actions would be meted out against the company if

it fails to secure safety materials for its workers by next Friday.



The Minister’s ultimatum stemmed from the many complaints from workers that

they were vulnerable while at work.



Minister Gongloe spoke Friday when he paid a social dialogue visit to the

Management of CICO



Some of the workers told the Minister they are being paid lower wages than the

stipulated minimum wage by government.



They also claimed they do not have fixed salaries.



But CICO’s Manager Fu Liang Quan has denied paying lower wages to the workers.



Mr. Fu said the workers are being paid in different categories.



At the same time, Labor Minister Tiawan Gongloe has called on the business

community especially Lebanese and Indians to replace non-Liberians store boys

with Liberians.



Minister Gongloe said the mandate must take effect no later than January 2010.



According to the Labor Minister, the Ministry will issue no work permit to

non-Liberians to serve as store boys including other positions below General

Manager.



Ministry Gongloe also announced work permits will not be issued to non-Liberians

serving as branch managers, sole proprietors and partners unless no suitable

Liberians can be found.



The Labor Minister believes Government has an obligation to create employment

opportunities for more Liberians especially during this period of global

financial crisis.



Cllr. Gongloe made the closure Thursday when he met with the leaderships of the

Lebanese and Indian communities at his office in Monrovia.



Minister Gongloe informed the leaderships of the two business communities the

Labor Ministry would begin monitoring and enforcing   regulation Number

Seventeen.



He said the monitoring and enforcement  of regulation Number Seventeen of the

Labor Practices Law of Liberia is intended to ensure compliance.



+++



8) Bad Roads Partition Country



11 December 2009



Many parts of the country have become inaccessible due impassable roads.



The main area affected in the southeast of the country. "We are living in

another country. We get all our supplies now from Ivory Coast", said one

resident of the area who just arrived in Monrovia after spending and nights on

the road, often leaving the car and walking.



Grand Kru is one of the hardest hit Counties, although millions of dollars have

been pumped over the past two years into the County Development Fund for County.

Today, it remains cut off from the rest of the country because of treacherous

roads like this, while in some places, there are no roads at all. One can only

wonder what happened to those millions. Maybe, as elections is right around the

corner, politicians will come up with explanation for the people's vote.



Copyright © 2009 New Democrat.



+++



9) Rubber Stakeholders Amend Master Plan



The Inquirer



Melissa Chea-Annan



9 December 2009





Stakeholders in the Liberian Rubber Industry have amended the Industry's final

draft Master plan. The  amendments were made last Friday at the end of a two-day

retreat in Paynesville, outside Monrovia.   The final draft Master plan is

expected to be forwarded to the Ministry of Agriculture shortly for its 

implementation in January 2010. The Master plan which will last from 2010-2040

was prepared by Lakna Paranawithana,  with the collaboration of Industry

Stakeholders, with technical assistance provided by the Sustainable Tree Crops 

Program (STCP) in Liberia. The Industry Program, which is being managed by the

International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, is also being funded by the

United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Liberia.   STCP

Program Manager, McArthur Paybayee said changes made in the Master Plan will

allow rubber farmers receive  adequate benefits. He said the retreat has also

advanced a 30-year plan as a pre-condition

  for the future of the  Liberian Rubber sector.



According to Mr. Paybayee, in March 2008, a consultant visited Liberia to

conduct a one month preliminary study on the rubber sector at the request of

USAID and submitted a report that included several recommendations,  including

the Master Rubber Plan.   He explained that if the rubber sector, which makes

significant contributions to the economy is left  unattended, would decline

irreversibly causing much harm to the economy and Liberians.   The STCP boss

recalled that Liberia has a long and proud history of having the largest rubber

plantation  sector in Africa that has been the strongest, reliable and

sustainable economic anchor since it began yielding  measurable benefits after

the 1930s with the lasting involvement of the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company

in rubber  planting. He lamented that the rubber trees are old and most of them

were destroyed during the crisis and moreover, they  need to be replanted to

improve the sector. He also expressed

  the hope that all of the stakeholders would work  together to improve the

sector in the country





©2005 - 2009 The Inquirer Online



+++



10) On Linkages In Concession And Int'l Agreements: Chamber of Commerce Advances

Recommendations To Gov't

The Inquirer

9 December 2009

[photo: Mr. Seelaby, Membr LCC]



The Liberia Chamber of Commerce(LCC) has advanced several recommendations to the

Government of Liberia(GOL) relative to linkages in Concession and International

Agreements.   The LCC said it agrees with participants at its symposium held

from August 5 to 6 this year,  that concession  and international agreements

offer opportunities to support and spur national economic growth  and

development through procurement and service contracts, as well as other

ancillary business opportunities in the agriculture and industrial sectors.  

The LCC said notwithstanding these potent linkages,  when deploy,  the general 

view is that concession agreements involved in the use of natural resources must

reflect a broader participation of Liberians and domestic Businesses.



In this light, the LCC has recommended that the GOL should use negotiation as a

tool to ensure local content linkages in all concession agreements. The Chamber

of Commerce also urged government to develop an incentive system, including

fiscal ones for companies to encourage the use of local materials and labor in

concession agreements.   The government, the LCC said should survey the alluvial

mining industry to determine linkages to the overall economy and devise

mechanisms for formalizing the sector.  “Government of Liberia should develop

an economic growth strategy which promotes diversification in the development of

Liberia's resources” the LCC recommended.   At same time, the Chamber of

Commerce said the public and private sector should cooperate to create

sustainable economic activities that can go beyond closure of mining activities

and create economic corridor that integrate commercial activities within

physical and social infrastructures that

  can survive mining activities. The LCC said Liberia should link mining ventures

to the development of ancillary industries, such as agro processing and light

manufacturing.



Home | Advertise

©2005 - 2009 The Inquirer Online



+++



11) Ecowas Builds Liberia's Trade Negotiation Capacity

The Informer (Monrovia)

8 December 2009



At least 35 persons from government ministries and agencies and the business

community have gathered for a five-day trade negotiation capacity building

seminar in Monrovia.



Organized along the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the capacity building

seminar is being held under the auspices of the Economic Community of West

African States (ECOWAS), through the Community's trade negotiation capacity

building project.



Participants pulled mostly from the Ministries of Commerce, Finance, the

Liberian Chambers of Commerce and national trade unions, among others, will be

trained during the five days on how to negotiate trade-something Commerce

officials said Liberia was lagging behind in, as a member of the global

community.



In his opening statement at the start of the event yesterday at a local hotel on

Monrovia, acting Commerce Minister Dr. Fredrick Norkeh described the capacity

building seminar as being "very important for Liberia" at this time.



Dr. Norkeh, who is Deputy Commerce Minister for Trade, said limited of capacity

of the country's trade negotiation in the past led it to negotiating trades at

its own detriment. "We in the past signed an agreement for 99 years without

knowing what is in it and what it takes," the acting Minister noted, making an

apparent reference to the renegotiated 99-year Firestone Liberia agreement.



The Liberian Government and Firestone entered into the 99-year in 1926, with

little benefits reportedly coming to the country and its workforce, but the deal

has over the year been improved with the company providing more social services

to the Liberian people and its workers than ever before.



Dr. Norkeh indicated that had Liberians have the basic trade negotiation skills,

such agreement and others that did not benefit the state would not have been

signed.



He told participants that the world has become global with its economy growing

bigger, and trade negotiation has become fundamental in which people's skills

must be built to make sound decisions. "If we don't have the requisite skills to

do better trade negotiations, we will face the consequences," the Minister

advised, lauding the ECOWAS' aimed at helping Liberia build capacity in trade

policy formulation.



"The current workshop is another level in our activities aimed mainly at

developing the capacity of Liberia through the activities of the Liberia

National Coordinating Committee on trade (LNCCT)," remarked Mr. Gibson Obasi,

Administration and Finance Officer of the ECOWAS Trade Negotiation Capacity

Building Project (ECOWAS TNCB PROJECT).



He said ECOWAS-TNCB is in the second phase of its program activities, which is

mainly capacity building for member states for effective and efficient trade

policy decision making.



In the first phase 2003-2007, the project dwelt mainly on human capacity

building. During that period, Mr. Obasi disclosed, more than 430 officials from

the government, private sector and civil society organizations were trained on

multilateral trade and negotiation skills in the member states of ECOWAS

community.



In the current phase (phase 2), 2008-2010, the focus of the project is to build

on the achievement of the first phase by concentrating on institutional capacity

building, he said.



Objectives of phase 2 of the project include assisting member states that do not

have institutional and organization mechanism for trade policy decision making

to put them in place for efficient and effective policy decision making for

development and poverty reduction; strengthening and supporting member states

that already have inter-institutional committees; and assisting the trade and

customs department of ECO WAS to better play its role in the integration

process.



It is expected that at the end of the workshop, participants will be better

informed on topical trade issues which will be presented and discussed during

the week long workshop. Useful lessons learnt will be documented for future

references and a compilation of all presentations will be distributed to

participants.



Mr. Obasi said ECOWAS-TNCB project, funded by both the Swedish International

Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) and ECOWAS, was happy to be associated

with the Liberia National Coordinating Committee on Trade (LNCCT). Meanwhile the

event taking place at the Krustal Ocean View Hotel is expected to close on

Friday, December 11, 2009. D.K. Sengbeh writes.



Copyright © 2009 The Informer



+++



12)See also: http://liberianature.blogspot.com/



###



Complete archives at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Nature_Liberia/

1) Vice President Impressed With Robertsport Trade Fair, 2) Authorities Hunt

93-carat Diamond, 3) More Peace Ambassadors Trained in Rural Areas, 4) Logging

Companies Set to Provide 7,000 Jobs, 5) Beijing's Bankroll for Bong's Ore, 6)

Forests of Hopenhagen, 7) Cummins Engines Appoints Liberia's Authorized Dealer,

8) Timber Thieves? Millions - LBDI Accounts, Several Former Officials Listed as

Legal Battle Begins In France, 9) The Africa Apple at “Made in Liberia”,

10)See also: http://liberianature.blogspot.com/



1) Vice President Impressed With Robertsport Trade Fair

The Analyst (Monrovia)



18 December 2009



Liberia's Vice President Joseph N. Boakai says the 3rd Annual Trade Fair held in

the resort city of Robertsport in western Liberia over the weekend bore all the

hallmarks of a nation truly on the trajectory of sustained progress.



He said this Third Made-in-Liberia Annual Trade Fair "represents truly the

Liberian spirit working in tandem for the good of the country", adding,

"progress demonstrated by the Trade fair which was propelled by Liberians, is

the strongest indication yet that Liberian businesses and businessmen and women

are prepared to be more competitive and to assume primary responsibility for the

private sector".



Vice President Boakai made the observation last Saturday, December 12, when he

delivered the keynote address at the closing program of the 3rd Annual Trade

Fair held in Robertsport, Grand Cape Mount County.



The fair which displayed made- in- Liberia art, agricultural produce as well as

auto mechanical, blacksmith, carpentry, manufacturing and other products from

the country's 15 political sub-divisions, was organized by the U.S agency,

Liberia Community Infrastructure Program (LCIP).



He applauded the Liberian business community for providing training

opportunities and assuming their natural role as job creators.



Vice President Boakai stressed the need for ensuring food security, noting that

as a post-conflict nation confronted with huge challenges, particularly

resuscitating the economy, ensuring food security and protecting the homeland,

agriculture holds the key to unshackling the nation from the yoke of poverty.



"That is why this government has never hesitated when it came to establishing

partnerships with our citizens and partners alike, who have developed keen

interest in promoting our agricultural sector, and even traveling long distances

to demonstrate such commitment," he observed.



He challenged Liberians to take ownership of their economy as an essential

ingredient to spur economic growth and create national stability, adding, "In

order to ensure long-term economic stability and forestall the volatility of

economic shocks, as being currently experienced globally, we need home-grown

solutions to our economic problems, and this is attained when Liberian

entrepreneurs step forward and establish viable industries and companies that

retain capital, which circulates in the local economy".



"To have your economy propelled and driven by foreigners or foreign investors

creates the suspicion that they can leave at any time and also repatriate their

profits, " he added noting, "This could be different for Liberian businesses

because they would have long term stake in the economic viability of the

nation".



Vice President Boakai said the Unity party-led government has taken keen

interest in the development of the private sector which, he noted, is the "main

engine of economic growth", adding, "This is why frantic efforts are being

exerted to engender private investments so that more jobs are created and

livable wages earned for our people".



Agriculture, the Vice President further noted, has the potential to end poverty,

and the government's role is to create a conducive environment where businesses

can compete fairly by enforcing regulations and establishing new policies as

well as creating preferential terms for Liberian businesses.



He said due to the brain drain occasioned by the civil war, there was need to

provide capacity for Liberian businesses both in terms of capital and trained

entrepreneurship, if they are to remain competitive and play a leading role in

the economic development of the country.



Training, he noted, provides businesses the opportunity to improve skills,

strategies and ethics to expand and be successful, and expressed deep

appreciation to USAID, through LCIP for meaningfully contributing to the

post-war nation's reconstruction efforts through the training of an estimated

2,640 young men and women from various counties in apprenticeship and other

employable skills.



"We need to ensure that businesses are trained so that they become viable and

competitive to create the kind of employment opportunities that assist

Government to reduce poverty," he



emphasized, adding, "For our private sector to be successful, Liberian

businesses must have training at the core, and I applaud the Liberian Business

Association, LCIP and Odafara for conducting training and prioritizing it as

well".



He then applauded the United States Government for consistently demonstrating

their commitment to help ensure the success of Liberia through US Government

assistance and support, since the



birth of the nation. In remarks, United States Ambassador Linda Thomas

Greenfield said there was an improvement in self-sufficiency in food in Liberia.



She observed that a year ago, every foodstuff she bought on the Liberian market

came from another country, saying, "Now everything in my house comes from

Liberia". This she noted is progress, saying, "Any nation that cannot feed

itself cannot boast of being truly independent".



Also in remarks, the Superintendent of Grand Cape Mount County, Madam Karsue

said the trade fair in Robertsport has thrown a challenge to Grand cape

Mountainians to move forward and repeat



what they saw at the fair.



Copyright © 2009 The Analyst. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica

Global Media (allAfrica.com).



+++



2) Authorities Hunt 93-carat Diamond

By dkolleh

Created Dec 17 2009 - 3:45am



Securities have begun a vigorous hunt for a diamond estimated to weigh over 93

carats.

By:

David B. Kolleh



MONROVIA – Officials of the National Security Agency (NSA), the Ministry of

Lands, Mines & Energy (LME) and key stakeholders have begun a vigorous hunt for

a 93-carat diamond that went missing a day after the discovery of the precious

stone valued at more than US$2 million.



The diamond, according to reports, was recently discovered at a mining site in

Weasua, Gbarpolu County.



The whereabouts of the diamond are a mystery. An official at the LME told the

Daily Observer last Tuesday that the ministry had neither seen nor taken

possession of the costly stone.



Assistant Lands, Mines & Energy Minister, Walter McCarthy, told the Daily

Observer in an interview that his ministry had only received a formal complaint,

filed by an indivudual identified as Musa Kamara, aka “Musa BBC,” believed

to be the owner of the mining site where the diamond was reportedly found.



McCarthy said Kamara identified himself to the ministry as the miner at the site

and cited another individual named Rufus Korvili as his sponsor.



Kamara told the ministry that his sponsor, Korvili, was in possession of the

93-carat diamond, McCarthy said; and on account of that complaint, as well as

the fact that a ban on Liberian diamonds had just been lifted, the LME launched

an investigation into the allegations.



McCarthy told the Daily Observer that a team from the ministry had immediately

been sent to Weasua with a mandate to investigate all parties in connection with

the disputed diamond.



The LME official stated that upon the return of his ministry’s investigation

team from Weasua, he was informed that “there was news in the area about the

discovery of such diamond,” but the team had not seen the diamond.



McCarthy further said that his men, who had gone to Weasua to verify the news

about the diamond, indicated to him that no one seemed to have clear knowledge

about the status of the reported 93-carat stone.



He added that following the investigation at Weasua by the ministry, his office

cited all parties involved, including Kamara, Korvili and other workers from the

mining site.



McCarthy intimated that at a meeting held at the Ministry of Lands, Mines and

Energy, there was no understanding as to who was actually in possession of the

gem and whether it was actually discovered at the mining site.



“So we told them to go back, put themselves together and come the following

day and tell us who actually had the diamond,” he said.



“Since we could not get anything tangible from them upon their return to the

ministry, we have turned them over to National Security Agency (NSA) and the

National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) for further investigation,” McCarthy

disclosed.



When contacted by the Daily Observer, Kamara reiterated that the diamond was in

the possession of Korvili, the sponsor of the site.



“Mr. Korvili has taken the diamond for himself against the interest of others,

including the Government,” Kamara insisted.



“The government has three percent of the value of every diamond that is

discovered here in Liberia,” Kamara explained.



“And if Rufus, who told everyone that he had the diamond, can now say he did

not say so, then I want the government to intervene on my behalf,” he told the

Daily Observer.



Kamara alleged that Korvili had informed most of the major stakeholders in the

Liberian diamond sector – the president of the Diamond Brokers and Dealers

Association (DBDA), Mustapha



Tonkara; a Lebanese diamond dealer known as Ates, whose offices are located on

Carey Street near the Civil Service Agency; and one Varfeley Mohammed Sheriff

– that he was in possession of the diamond.



When contacted by the Daily Observer regarding Kamara’s claims, Korvili said

Kamara was in possession of the diamond.



Korvili told the Daily Observer that his accusers had ganged up against him

because he was new to the business and also because he was the only true

Liberian in the diamond business.



He alleged that when he got the news about the diamond, Kamara, whom he was

sponsoring, had already gone ahead and collected the diamond.



Korvili further alleged that Kamara had gone to a sorcerer for help in closing

the case. He said he did not tell anyone that he had the diamond in question, as

Kamara had alleged. He said he had instead been informed by another party that a

diamond had been discovered at his diamond mining site in Weasua. Korvili added

that he never saw the gem as was being alleged.



The Daily Observer then contacted Tonkara, the president of the DBDA, who

confirmed that Korvili had told him in the presence of some of the other

aforementioned diamond dealers that he had the diamond.



Sheriff, who is also a Liberian diamond broker, confirmed that Korvili had told

them that he (Korvili) had the diamond.



Ates, another party Korvili allegedly told about the diamond, told the Daily

Observer that when the news surrounding the diamond surfaced, Korvili visited

his office.



He said Korvili told him that his boys had discovered a 93.41 carat diamond at

his field where mining was taking place in Weasua, Gparpolu County.



“I was happy,” Ates said of his reaction upon hearing the news of the

discovery of the diamond.



“So I asked him, ‘Are you sure the diamond is with you?’ He said

‘yes’. ‘Have you seen it?’ Again he said ‘yes,’” Ates told the

Daily Observer.



“I then asked him what I could do for him. He told me to give him US$500

because he said the boys who discovered the stone at his site were in Bomi Hills

and needed to be transported to Monrovia.



“I gave him the money, and he said he was going to bring the boys to

Monrovia,”Ates explaiined.



He added that several days went by with no sign of Korvili, although he had

tried contacting him via mobile phone.



The Lebanese diamond dealer said Korvili later resurfaced at his office and

asked for an additional US$7,000 so that he could give the money to the

‘boys’ as a bonus for having discovered such a big diamond.



“All I told him was ‘no problem, if only you can assure me that the diamond

is actually in existence and promise me that you will sell it to me after it has

gone through the legal processing, I will give you any amount you want, but

first bring it for me to see.’”



Ates explained that he was again assured by Korvili that the diamond was

actually in existence.



“Since that day up to now, Rufus has not returned to my office, neither has he

answered my phone calls,” Ates concluded.



Although the Ministry of Lands, Mines and Energy said it had turned the matter

over to the NSA and the NBI, the NSA has yet to comment about the state of the

investigation.



0Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.





Copyright 2009 | Liberian Observer Online | www.LiberianObserver.com



+++



3) More Peace Ambassadors Trained in Rural Areas

The Informer (Monrovia)



Jefferson Massah



17 December 2009



Gbarnga — As part of its peace consolidation initiative, the Liberia Peace

Building Office has ended its second led regional capacity building training

workshop for peace committee members drawn from Bong, Nimba and Margibi

counties.



Speaking to the Informer at the close of the three-day intensive exercise, the

program assistant at the Liberia Peace Building Office Matthew Kollie said the

training was aimed at the enhancing the peace building, negotiation and

mediation skills of the peace committee members from these counties.



The training enables participants to properly manage and resolve conflict issues

in their communities in peaceful manners, without degenerating into full scale

crisis that will undermine the country's fragile peace and stability.



Mr. Kollie said Liberia's post war recovery process can not be achieved in the

absence of peaceful and stable environments. As such, more efforts should by

exerted in uniting the various groups of the country that went apart as result

of the 14 years civil strive that uprooted every fabric of the Liberian society.



He further mentioned that the crisis left a huge challenge of reuniting people

that went against one another for various reasons, and this can only be realized

when every Liberian offer to put behind their bitter past and forge ahead with

the healing process for the attainment genuine peace and stability.



Mr. Kollie said the peace building office would fully engage the various peace

building committees to ensure their work impact communities they represent,

which he believes a recipe for sustainable peace.



Speaking further, Mr. Kollie mentioned, "In order to create the enabling

environment for the peace committee members to effectively carry out the task

they've been trained to under take, the peace building office has already

commenced the construction of peace centers across the country, where the peace

committee members would normally assemble to develop strategies to enhance

peacefully co-existence activities in their communities."



Mr. Kollie said the peace building office, as part of its mandate, is making

sure the peace and security pillar of the country's Poverty Reduction Strategy

realizes measurable impact.



The organization, he stated, provides strategic advice to government, based on

analysis from potential conflict spots of the country in order to swiftly

contain them before escalating into full scale crisis.



He said the Peace Committees were initially established through the support of

the United Nations Mission in Liberia Civil Affairs Unit and the Peace Building

Office was only strengthening the capacities of theses Committees in order to

realize the true essence for which they were created across the country.



The 45 Participants who came from Bong, Nimba and Margibi counties lauded the

Liberia Peace Building Office for organizing the training program that helped

sharpen their understanding on the issues of conflict analysis, mediation and

negotiation, and conflict resolution, amongst others.



They vowed to extensively engage their various communities to ensure a

peacefully and cohesive environment where people will mutually interact for

their common good, realizing that no amount of division and hate for one another

can actually accelerate country's post war reconciliatory and development

process. Contact: +2316828622/ jefferson.massah@...



Copyright © 2009 The Informer.



+++



4) Logging Companies Set to Provide 7,000 Jobs

The Informer (Monrovia)



Jerome Toe



16 December 2009



Authorities at the Forestry Development Authority (FDA) have disclosed that

approved logging companies are expected to provide over seven thousands Jobs for

Jobless Liberians and foreign nationals.



Addressing a news conference recently at the headquarters of the FDA, the

Managing Director, Johnny Woods said some logging companies that were awarded a

total of seven forest management contracts ratified by the National Legislature

and subsequently printed into hand bills by the Ministry of Foreign affairs

would provide several jobs for Liberians.



He named Alpha Logging and Wood Processing Company as one of the logging

companies that met the requirement and was awarded a four timber sales contracts

of the seven forest management



contracts and paid US$1.4 million as land rental, bid premium and administrative

fees.



He said the payment confirmed the financial capacity of the company and

therefore was awarded the contract to operate contrary to claims of FDA's

critics.



He also spoke of the E. J. and J. Logging Company, Tarpeh Timber Company and

Bargo and Bargo Logging Company that have also made partial payments of taxes

and other fees.



He said the payment of fees by the companies have a potential to create about

seven thousands jobs, if they would establish industries such as sawmills.



Pursuant to its goal of job creation , the FDA has embarked upon the recruitment

of large number of forestry graduates from the College of Agriculture and

Forestry at the University of Liberia and other recognized Universities.

weahtoe@...



Copyright © 2009 The Informer.



+++



5) Beijing's Bankroll for Bong's Ore

Africa-Asia Confidential (London)



16 December 2009



The US$2.68 billion China Union plan to revitalise Liberia's Bong Mines has not

taken off, almost a year after it was first signed. Initial concerns about the

little-known Chinese mining company's ability to raise such sums now seem well

founded (AAC Vol 2 No 4).



Seeing no progress on the ground, Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf was

one of a handful of African presidents to attend the ministerial Forum on

China-Africa Cooperation in November. She talked with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao

and got him to promise that the China Development Bank would bankroll China

Union.



China Union's Liberia Project Manager Liu Chun told Africa-Asia Confidential, 'I

won't say we have signed an agreement, but it's very clear that they are going

to back the deal.'



Analysts in Monrovia are left asking what sort of bid documents the Chinese

company could have shown if it still does not have the financial means to begin

the project or make the small signature bonus payments that it had promised.



Communication between the Chinese company and the Liberian authorities appears

to be a problem. In many cases, China Union says one thing while the Liberians

say another. A China Union spokesperson says that the signature bonus was 'not

fully paid' due to 'reasons from both sides.' A Liberian Mines Ministry

representative said that nothing had been paid by mid-December.



Monrovia says that there is no need to revise the terms of the contract, but

China Union's Liu said in early December that 'I won't say that there are no

problems, there might be some technical things we have to look into. There are

some items of the agreement that we are now discussing with the Liberian

government. Some of them need further confirmation, some may need further

revision.'



Liberian Mines Minister Eugene Shannon told AAC that both sides expect the CDB

financing to come through as early as January, saying that 'the Chinese

government is to have 85% share



ownership, although the deal is still to be under the control of China Union.'

China Union, a group of companies that is powerful within Henan Province -

comprised of the Henan Jianghai



Group (conglomerate), Henan Jinda Industry (mining), Tianjin the Leader Group

(logistics) and Gingko (Hong Kong) Investment Company (oil and gas) - has no

other experience of international investments.



Signatures, but no bonuses



China Union has been slowed by a lack of experience in raising finance and

organising logistics in Liberia and China. In the evaluation of the Bong Mines

bidding round in December 2008,



ministers gave the company the highest score in terms of industry knowledge,

commercial viability and social conscience. The government then conducted due

diligence, but somehow overlooked the fact that China Union did not have the

funding necessary to develop the mine, build a power plant on the St. Paul

River, improve the rail link between the mines and Monrovia and rehabilitate the

Kakata-Heindi highway, as promised.



Elsewhere in Africa, iron ore projects have faltered as ore prices fell to about

$80 per tonne this year. ArcelorMittal abandoned its project at Falémé,

Senegal, at the middle of this year and the Liberian government has been kind to

the same company, allowing it to delay the beginning of production, which had

been expected in 2010. In Gabon, the China National Machinery and Equipment

Import and Export Corporation is having similar difficulties in moving

development of the Bélinga mine ahead.



From the signing of the Mineral Development Agreement on 19 January, China Union

had 90 days to make a signature bonus payment of about $45 million. The contract

was signed with representatives of the China-Africa Development Fund and the CDB

in attendance, but financing has still not been forthcoming. The China Union has

been keen to suggest in public that the project's delays have not been caused by

the financial crisis or the company's inability to raise finance, denouncing

such claims as 'rumours'. Meanwhile, Liberia's Mines Minister Shannon says that

the reason for the delay was that China Union could not afford the $2.68 bn.

price tag. While China Union officials play down the talk of financial problems,

Chinese Ambassador Zhou Yuxiao confirmed that the company's operations had

slowed down because of the global economic downturn. China Union also mentioned

the possibility of allowing access to smaller investors, which suggests that

even with the

  support of the CDB, China Union might have a shortfall to make up.



Officials at China Union said that they have not even been able to pay half of

the required amount by early December. With the deal signed in January, fiscal

planners had counted on the whole sum being made available this year so as to

enable the country to expedite its post-conflict recovery. In May, Finance

Minister Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan reported that there was a $11 mn. budget

deficit, due in part to delays in receipt of revenues from mining and other

sectors. Despite the 'transparency' that Richard Tolbert, Chairman of the

National Investment Commission, praised China Union for when they won the

contract earlier this year, details of sources and timings of financing for the

deal remain opaque.



Having about a year to reflect on the terms of the deal, Finance Minister

Ngafuan said in August that the Monrovia government has been too quick to try to

attract international investors during the downturn. The result has been that

the government has made concessions and then the investors have been waiting for

the financial climate to improve, having negotiated several concessions that are

not in the government's long-term interests. Ngafuan said that the Finance

Ministry 'wants to ensure that we don't short-change the country because of the

short-term goal that we see.' As an example, he pointed to the 3.5% mineral

royalty guaranteed to China Union, while ArcelorMittal agreed to pay 4.5% in

2007.



These difficulties have meant that the progress on work at the mines has been

negligible up to this point and is currently far behind expected schedule. In

January, Liberian officials said that a pellet factory would be up and running

by the middle of 2010; expectations have now been pushed back to mid-2011 and

even this date is dependent on the successful implementation of



more negotiations in January 2010, which are still in very early stages. The

Liberian government hopes that work could begin in earnest in January, and China

Union have said that preparations for infrastructure have already begun,

including on-site inspections and the arrangement of contractors and feasibility

studies. The Liberian government says that absolutely



no progress has been made on the ground and that China Union cannot hire

contractors and begin work until the signature bonus has been paid and a Class A

mining licence is approved.



The size of the project means that China Union needs to get approval from

several government agencies, including the National Development and Reform

Commission, the Ministry of Commerce and the State Administration for Foreign

Exchange. While they hope that all of this will be completed by the end of

December, allowing work to go ahead in the new year, this is very much dependent

on the expediency of a number of departments and the speed of dozens of rounds

of discussions. The deal cannot go any further until China Union can demonstrate

that it has the technical capability and financial support to develop the

project.



Copyright © 2009 Africa-Asia Confidential.



+++



6) Forests of Hopenhagen



17-12-2009



Tropical deforestation accounts for 15-20% of all human-induced carbon emissions

each year. BirdLife International wants to see this reduced to zero by 2020,

along with the acknowledgement of the vital importance of safeguarding

biodiversity, ecosystems and the essential services that tropical forests

provide in climate change mitigation.



In response to this global crisis, BirdLife International has created the

Forests of Hope programme to bring together and build on its successful forest

conservation and management



programmes throughout the tropics. BirdLife is working in tropical countries

around the world, to identify and pilot innovative management, financing and

governance systems for forest and biodiversity conservation and restoration,

generating local and national economic benefits for sustainable development, and

combating climate change.



The aim of the programme is the prevention of deforestation and the restoration

of natural forest at up to 20 sites covering at least five million hectares of

tropical forest by 2015. The programme will also promote replication of the

conservation, governance and financing models being developed, so that forest

can be conserved and restored over very much larger areas.



The Forests of Hope programme links forest conservation on the ground to its

policy and advocacy work at national and international levels, making impacts in

three crucial areas.



     * Conserving biodiversity

     * Combating climate change

     * Maintaining ecosystem services and sustainable livelihoods for local

people



"Tropical forests are the most ecologically rich of all forest types. They are

home to 70% of the world’s plants and animals — more than 13 million

species—and contain 70% of the world's



vascular plants, 30% of all bird species, and 90% of invertebrates", said Dr

Roger Safford, BirdLife International's Senior Programme Manager. "Forests of

Hope is helping to develop and implement forest governance and management

systems that will conserve this biodiversity in perpetuity."



Conservation of natural forest is an essential means to reduce greenhouse gas

emissions. Restoration of natural forest can assist in helping restore stocks

with the highest carbon content.



Forest conservation and restoration plans developed by Forests of Hope, and the

threatened nature of the forests selected, ensure the prevention of emissions of

large volumes of greenhouse gases.



"Forests of Hope is helping to develop and implement forest governance and

management systems that will conserve this biodiversity in perpetuity" —Dr

Roger Safford, BirdLife



"Forests of Hope contributes to the development of effective mechanisms under

discussion to maintain and restore these carbon stocks", said Melanie Heath,

BirdLife's Senior Adviser on Climate Change. These include REDD—Reducing

Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation—where forested developing

countries would undertake to reduce their emissions from deforestation below a

historic reference level, and would be financially compensated for doing so.



Deforestation is a disaster for the millions of people who live in and around

tropical forests and whose livelihoods depend on the forests. For example, about

4.6 billion people depend for all or some of their water on supplies from forest

systems; a large proportion of these live in the tropics. Forests of Hope is

helping to safeguard livelihoods and ecosystem services, while respecting,

supporting and promoting the rights of local and indigenous peoples, under the

principles of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, the Universal

Declaration on Human Rights and other applicable instruments. In particular, it

promotes the improvement of forest governance systems that can secure the rights

of local people, as they relate to conservation and the ecologically sustainable

use of natural resources.



For example, the establishment of a new Trans-boundary Peace Park, to protect

one of the largest remaining blocks of intact forest in the Upper Guinea Forest

of West Africa – the Gola Complex – has involved several conservation

organisations in the BirdLife International Partnership: the two national

BirdLife Partners where the forest is found (Conservation Society of Sierra

Leone and Society for the Conservation of Nature in Liberia), the RSPB (BirdLife

in the UK) and Vogelbescherming (BirdLife in The Netherlands), working together

with the Forest Development Authority of Liberia, and the Forestry Division in

Sierra Leone. The Peace Park unites the Gola Forest Reserve in Sierra Leone

(75,000 ha) and the Lofa and Foya Forest Reserves in Liberia (80,000 ha and

100,000 ha respectively), creating a safe-haven for more than 25

restricted-range or threatened birds and over 50 species of mammal.



"The BirdLife Partnership has been working in tropical forest conservation for

decades, and in over 50 countries. The grass roots, bottom-up nature of BirdLife

positions us well to deliver results on the ground, ensure benefit sharing from

tropical forest conservation, and feed lessons upwards into national and global

policy", concluded Dr Safford.



For more information visit www.birdlife.org/forests



© 2009 BirdLife International. Working together for birds and people.



+++



7) Cummins Engines Appoints Liberia's Authorized Dealer

The Inquirer

Dec 16, 2009



An agreement has been signed between Continental Machinery & Support Services of

Liberia, and Cummins Ghana Limited (Regional Dealer Principal for Cummins

International Worldwide with headquarters in Accra, Ghana.   The signing of this

agreement on December 6, 2009 authorizes    Continental Machinery & Support

Services to not only serve as sole dealers of Cummins



Filtration Brand (Fleetguard Filters) in Liberia, but to sell and support

engines, generator sets, etc. as well. Continental Machinery is required to

market Cummins Brand engines and generator sets, promote and maintain product

support facilities, and recruit and train personnel skilled in the promotion and

marketing of its products.



The agreement establishes the dealer as principal participant in the promotion

and marketing of products, and sets out the scope of duties, obligation and

responsibilities which exist between Cummins Ghana and Continental Machinery of

Liberia. Signing for Cummins Ghana Limited was Mr. David Leach, while the

President and CEO, Sando T. Johnson, signed on behalf of Continental Machinery

Liberia/U.S.A.The intent is to market and promote Cummins products, and to

develop and maintain the highest quality of worldwide distribution. According to

the Chief



Executive Officer and President of Continental Machinery & Support Services

(Liberia) Inc. Mr. Sando T. Johnson, the dealer customer service role and

product support services are of vital



importance in the distribution of these products. This challenging venture

benefits product users in Liberia and the county's emerging private sector

development as well.



©2005 - 2009 The Inquirer Online



+++



8) Timber Thieves? Millions - LBDI Accounts, Several Former Officials Listed as

Legal Battle Begins In FranceThe Africa Apple at “Made in Liberia”

New Democrat (Monrovia)



Joe K. Roberts



15 December 2009



New documents reveal how the country's lucrative timber business was run after

the war from 1997, with former President Charles Taylor, his son Chuckie Taylor

now jailed for 97 years, his brother Bob Taylor, and several government

officials along with Lebanese forming a syndicate through which millions of

dollars from depleting forests went into their personal accounts.



Several accounts at the Liberia Bank for Development & Investment (LBDI)

amounting to millions of dollars have been uncovered, prompting a legal battle

in a French court over the alleged squandering of Liberia's forest products

during the Presidency of former President Charles Taylor.



A French Public Prosecutor is now studying account statements from LBDI, payment

order from the Finance Ministry then and a personal checking account

(#00-201-32451-01) in the name of former President Taylor. One bank statement

shows a US$2m credit and a Debit slip showing £2M payment to Charles Taylor. A

Ministry of Finance document instructs Oriental Timber Company (OTC) to pay

US$2m in taxes to Taylor.



Key actors, according to legal briefings now before the French court, are:

Charles Taylor, President of Liberia 1997-2003; Gus Kouwenhoven and the Oriental

Timber Corporation (OTC);



Mohammed Salame and Mohammed Group of Companies (MGC); Abbas Fawaz and Maryland

Wood Processing Industries (MWPI); Oscar Cooper and Inland Logging Company

(ILC); Demetrius B. Taylor commonly known as Bob Taylor, Managing Director

Forestry Development Authority, brother of Charles Taylor and Charles "Chuckie"

Taylor, Jr., Managing Director of one of the Fawaz logging companies.



International advocacy groups have taken on the challenge of retrieving the

millions.



Armed with the contracts, concessionaire, financial documents and including the

LBDI bank statements, Global Witness and Sherpa, along with Green-peace France,

Amis de la Terre, have lodged a complaint before the Public Prosecutor at the

Court of Nantes against Dalhoff, Larsen and Horneman (DLH).



According to the claimants, by importing timber from forest concessions operated

by unscrupulous and corrupt Liberian companies, the French arm of DLH is guilty

of 'recel' - the handling of and profiting from goods obtained illegally,

punishable under French criminal law.



It is claimed that DLH purchased timber acquired through corrupt means, from

logging concessions operating illegally and in an environmentally destructive

manner.



"DLH's suppliers operated throughout the civil war in Liberia with impunity,

stripping the country of its natural resource wealth. DLH knew where the timber

was coming from, and who was benefiting from the sales, and yet it carried on

regardless," said Patrick Alley, Director of Global Witness. "In recent years

DLH has portrayed itself as a responsible corporate citizen, but it has never

made any efforts to repatriate the profits it made from illegal timber supplies

from Liberia, one of the world's poorest countries, or even apologized for its

actions there."



The complaint alleges that DLH France traded in wood originating from Liberian

timber companies that failed to comply with Liberian law and/or did not have a

legal right to operate.



The complaint will rely on strong evidence of its suppliers' involvement in

corruption, tax evasion, environmental degradation, UN arms sanctions violations

and gross human rights abuses.



Revenue from forestry was a major source of funding for President Charles

Taylor's illicit off-budget activities during the conflict. Timber sales enabled

Taylor to procure arms in breach of UN sanctions, to wage a campaign of

violence, which saw over 250,000 people killed and almost 1 million displaced.

The warring parties committed atrocious abuses and the conflict caused serious

economic and environmental damage. Today, Liberia remains one of the world's

poorest countries; the economy was left in ruins and the security situation

still volatile. Taylor is now standing trial for war crimes at the Special Court

for Sierra Leone.



Campaigners warned DLH of the links between its business and funding for the

conflict as early as 2001. However, instead of ceasing its trade, the company

accepted timber from Liberian vendors on which identifying mark were absent.

This was contrary to standard industry practice, concealed the origin of the

timber and prevented any public scrutiny of its Liberian purchasing and

importation practices. It was not until the United Nations Security Council

timber embargo came into force in July 2003 that DLH ceased its Liberian

imports. A timber embargo was first recommended by the UN Panel of Experts in

2001.



"Despite repeated warnings from campaign groups, DLH failed to halt its bloody

trade, only acting when UN timber sanctions forced its hand. Considering the

vast amount of evidence showing the link between logging and the conflict,

French authorities should launch an investigation into the activities of DLH in

Liberia," said William Bourdon of Sherpa.



Gregoire Lejonc, of Green-peace added "the illegal wood trade contributes to the

plunder and destruction of the world's remaining natural forests. The EU is

still importing large quantities of illegal wood with complete impunity. It is

high time the judiciary took this into consideration and European states need to

implement legislation in order to stop this scandal



DLH France and DLH-Nordisk make up the hardwood division of DLH A/S

(collectively referred to as DLH). DLH is a Danish group active in the timber

market since 1908. DLH consists of a number of associated companies organized

into three producing divisions: Hardwood, Timber & Board, and Building

Materials. The Hardwood Division, which is the focus of the Complaint, is

operated by DLH Nordisk A/S and has a number of offices worldwide including in

France. Until early 2007, and for the period relevant for the Complaint, DLH

Nordisk A/S operated in France through two companies: Indubois and Nordisk Bois.



Copyright © 2009 New Democrat.

+++



9) The Africa Apple at “Made in Liberia”

Liberian Daily Observer - Dec 15, 2009?

By: C.Y. Kwanue Guest Contributor



The true meaning of the aphorism by the Chinese, “teach a man to fish rather

than giving a fish for a day”, was highly evident Thursday, December 10, 2009,

at the third “Made in Liberia”



trade fair. The ceremony, which coincided with the dedication of

Robertsport-Medina Road, which was funded by the American government through the

United States Agency for international Development (USAID), was held in

Robertsport, Grand Cape Mount County, with many people including international

guests in attendance. The fair aims to build the capacity of small Liberian

farmers and entrepreneurs to compete, grow, and possibly even export, as well as

build public awareness about the array of products and services that are and can

be “Made in Liberia.” One aspect of the activities that caught my attention

was the exhibition of the newly discovered “African Apple,” put up by

Sanniquellie-based Agriculture Relief Services (ARS). The “African Apple”

grows faster here in Liberia than anywhere else in Africa. I was fascinated when

I saw ARS Executive Director put on display nurseries of the ‘African

Apple.’ I wasted no time in zooming in to

  capture him and the nurseries on Candid Camera.



Full text available to subscribers only.



+++



10)See also: http://liberianature.blogspot.com/



###



Complete archives at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Nature_Liberia/

1)  Nigerian Battalion 23 Embarks On Agriculture Activity - Launches Pineapple

Cultivation Farm In Montserrado County, 2) ArcelorMittal May Buy Mines in 2010

to Boost Iron Ore Supplies,

3) Scrap Dealers To Hold Awareness Campaign, 4) Group Takes Over Sinoe

Plantation, 5) Felda eyes Liberia for oil palm, after Brazil pullout, 6) Major

Corporations Accepting Social Responsibilities - a Welcoming Sign for Strong

Partnership, 7) At Epicenter of Globalized World, Africa Struggles to Find

Place, 8) Man smuggling 4-kg gold from Liberia held, 9) Rural women complain

about bad seeds…blame agriculture ministry, 10) NIBATT-23 launches pineapple

farming in Montserrado, 11) MOF, Partners Graduate 31 in Concession Management,

12) Boakai Heads Govt's Delegation to Climate Change Conference, 13)See also:

http://liberianature.blogspot.com/







1)  Nigerian Battalion 23 Embarks On Agriculture Activity - Launches Pineapple

Cultivation Farm In Montserrado County

The Analyst

22 December 2009



As part of its contribution towards developing the human resources in Liberia,

Nigerian Battalion 23 (NIBATT 23) has flagged off the first phase of its

agricultural project in furtherance of its efforts towards capacity building of

its host community.



Speaking at the launching Ceremony at Bentol City, Bensoville in Montserrado

county, the Superintendent of Montserrado County, Mrs Nyeneton B Snoh Barcon

thanked the Battalion for its support and promised to ensure that the community

emulate UNMIL personnel example by encouraging the youths to engage themselves

in pineapple farming. She urged the youths to use the opportunity given to them

through the agricultural project to empower themselves.



In his remark at the occasion, the Commanding Officer, NIBATT 23, Lt Col JC

Ogbonna said the need to contribute positively towards the capacity building of

the citizens of Montserrado County has become imperative to the Nigerian

Battalion, noting that within the short period, the battalion has made

tremendous efforts in humanitarian assistance to its host communities and

promised to continue helping the communities in all activities geared towards

confidence and capacity building.



The Commander Sector Alfa UNMIL, Brigadier General Ebiobowei Awala represented

by the Deputy Commander Sector Alfa, Colonel CO Ude commended the initiative of

the Nigerian Battalion towards empowering the youths and the local farmers in

Montserrado County.



"This agricultural project is part of economic revitalization project under the

Civil Military Coordination Programme of UNMIL. With proper coordination and

motivation, the local population can stand on their feet economically and the

project will go a long way in helping the people of the community to understand

the opportunity available around them" he said.



He therefore urged the Superintendent and Local Council Officials to assist in

coordinating the various projects under the UNMIL and other agencies to help

formulate a local integrated economic policy which would grow from the grass

root.



Similarly, the Head of field Offices, Mr Patrick Cooker lauded the effort of the

Nigerian Battalion for touching the lives of Montserrado Citizens through their

project and urged the community to protect the seedling in order to encourage

the facilitators to do more.



It should be recalled that officers and soldiers of Nigerian Battalion 23, the

Superintendent of Montserrado County, Commander Sector Alfa, Staff members under

UN, Council officials and the youth group were involved in the planting

exercise. No fewer than 1,500 beds of pineapple were planted at the occasion.



In a similar development, the medical team of Nigerian Battalion 23 of Sector A

UNMIL was in Bensoville, Montserrado county to render free medical services to

the grass root community. According to Dr Franklin Otugeme the medical team

leader, more than two hundred patients were treated of various ailments,

majority of who were women and children.



Dr. Otugeme also disclosed that about 240 patients were given free medical

treatment weekly at the battalion level one Hospital located at the Executive

Mansion. Earlier, the Commanding Officer noted, that to reach the less privilege

in the hinterland, his medical team, was slated to visit the people regularly.

The rural dwellers at Bensoville were also blessed with another medical team

which came to immunize children against polio, the same day NIBATT 23 medical

team registered their presence.



Copyright © 2009 The Analyst.



+++



2) ArcelorMittal May Buy Mines in 2010 to Boost Iron Ore Supplies

December 22, 2009, 09:24 PM EST



By Thomas Biesheuvel



Dec. 23 (Bloomberg) -- ArcelorMittal, the world’s biggest steelmaker, may buy

more mines in 2010 to increase its supply of iron ore as prices for the raw

material used to make the metal are expected to rebound.



Acquisitions “will be part of the mix next year,” Bill Scotting,

ArcelorMittal’s head of strategy, said. Expanding mines and developing

projects will also be part of its drive to be more self-sufficient, he said. The

Luxembourg-based company supplies about half its iron ore needs and plans to

raise the share to 75 percent to 85 percent by 2014, he said.



Lakshmi Mittal, ArcelorMittal’s chief executive officer and 41 percent

shareholder, has added mining assets in Brazil and Russia since Mittal Steel Co.

bought Arcelor SA in 2006 in the steel industry’s biggest takeover. His

strategy of adding raw material supplies, which helped swell ArcelorMittal’s

debt to as much as $32.5 billion in 2008, may be vindicated next year as iron

ore and coking coal prices gain.



“ArcelorMittal is really setting its self aside from the rest of the European

steel industry by focusing on vertical integration,” said Gavin Wood, an

analyst at Nomura Holdings Inc. in London who has a “buy” recommendation on

ArcelorMittal’s stock.



ArcelorMittal shares, which closed up 0.2 percent at 31.065 euros in Amsterdam

trading yesterday, advanced 83 percent this year, valuing the company at 48.5

billion euros ($69 billion).



Price Forecasts



ThyssenKrupp AG and Salzgitter AG, Germany’s two largest steelmakers, and

Sweden’s SSAB Svenskt Staal AB are among European competitors that don’t own

mines.



Annual iron ore contract prices may rise 30 percent next year after sliding 33

percent in 2009, according to Nomura.



The gains in iron are translating into higher steel prices. The price of

hot-rolled steel coil imported into Europe may climb as much as 43 percent in

2010 as producers pass on higher raw-material costs, Nomura forecast.



ArcelorMittal is also seeking to bolster its self- sufficiency in coking coal to

20 percent to 25 percent, from 15 percent, Scotting said in the Dec. 18

interview. Scotting joined Mittal Steel Co. in 2002 from management consulting

company McKinsey & Co.



Coking coal prices will advance 40 percent next year, Nomura predicted.

Macarthur Coal Ltd., the world’s biggest exporter of pulverized coal used by

steelmakers, said yesterday it bid A$656 million ($575 million) in cash for

rival Australian miner Gloucester Coal Ltd. to add two mines. ArcelorMittal had

a 16.6 percent stake in MacArthur as of Dec. 7.



Seaborne Ore



Brazil’s Vale SA, the largest iron ore producer, Australia’s BHP Billiton

Ltd. and London-based Rio Tinto Group account for 68.5 percent of iron ore

transported by sea, according to the Brussels-based World Steel Association.



BHP and Rio agreed earlier this month on details of their proposed 50-50 joint

venture to combine iron ore mines, rail, ports and workforces in Western

Australia’s Pilbara region, saving at least $10 billion a year. The plan faces

scrutiny from regulators including the European Commission and the Australian

Competition & Consumer Commission.



ArcelorMittal produced 37.1 million metric tons of iron ore in the first nine

months of 2009. It has iron ore projects in countries including Brazil, Liberia

and Senegal.



“For a large company, you don’t want to be dependent on your suppliers,”

said Tom Muller, an analyst at Theodoor Gilissen Bankiers in Amsterdam who has a

“hold” recommendation on ArcelorMittal shares. “With only three large

suppliers for iron ore worldwide you have to be a bit self-sufficient.”



ArcelorMittal’s debt rose to $32.5 billion in September 2008 after it bought

mines and steelmaking assets in Brazil and Russia. Steel prices plunged in the

fourth quarter of last year, spurring the company to reduce production by as

much as 50 percent and announce 9,000 job cuts.



The company raised $11.4 billion in the second quarter of this year to

accelerate its debt-reduction plan. In July, it renegotiated banking covenants

on about $32 billion of facilities. Net debt was $21.6 billion as of Sept. 30.





--Editors: Simon Casey, Tony Barrett



To contact the reporter on this story: Thomas Biesheuvel in London

+44-20-7073-3259 or tbiesheuvel@...



To contact the editor responsible for this story: Simon Casey at

+44-20-7673-2631 or scasey4@...



Dec/23/2009 00:00 GMT



©2009 Bloomberg L.P. All Rights Reserved.



+++



3) Scrap Dealers To Hold Awareness Campaign

The Inquirer - Dec 21, 2009



The Liberia Scrap Association has announced the holding of a big public

awareness workshop in Monrovia       The workshop which is expected to begin on 

January 9, 2010 at the Monrovia City Hall, will bring together stakeholders from

the Ministry of Lands, Mines and Energy, the Ministry of Public Workers, Scrap

dealers from the fifteen counties of Liberia and the general public.    Mr.

Edwin Urey, President of the Liberia Scrap Association(LSA) told the INQUIRER

that due to rapid waves of illegal scrap activities in the country, his

association had decided to hold the workshop which will also serve as a public

awareness exercise for those engage in the business and the  public   The LSA

President frowned on illegal scraping in the country and noted that experts from

the Ministries of Lands, Mines, and Energy as well as Public Works will serve as

facilitators.    He noted that with such a workshop, those engage in the

business or selling scrap material

  will know what a scrap is and what is not a scrap material is.



Recently the Scrap Association covered man-holes that were vandalized by illegal

scrap dealer and asked government to ensure that it can count on the association

to help apprehend such persons.  And the LSA is in the process of making some

concrete covers with steel rods for future occurrence of people trying to take

the covers of the man-holes   Mr. Urey said the LSA has also set up an escrow

fund intended to repair damaged public facilities and makeculprits involved to

be prosecuted in accordance with the Liberian Law.   “Scrap is a universal

business and any old thing that should be disposed of should be considered a

scrap. However it is not good to take something that is functional and use same

as scrap,” the Scrap Association President told the INQUIRER.



He said government must help his association in promoting the scrap business

because it's an environmental friendly business. “Equally, government can rely

on us to help them apprehend any wrong doer in the scrap industry. The Ministry

of Lands, Mines and Energy can attest to the fact that we have been cooperative

and will continue to cooperate in moving the industry forward,” Mr. Urey said.

He noted that the scrap industry benefits thousands of Liberians, saying,

“When the ban was imposed on the scrap industry, the crime rate in the country

increased. We can say by bringing old scrap materials from dump sites, those

without jobs and alleged criminals can find something for their families.” 

Mr. Urey said the scrap industry is one of the major revenue contributors to the

government of Liberia and accounts for over 50 percent of export from the

Freeport of Monrovia thus ensuring more revenues.



Home | Advertise

©2005 - 2009 The Inquirer Online



+++



4) Group Takes Over Sinoe Plantation

The Inquirer - Dec 21, 2009



Minister Chenoweth



  An agreement has been signed between the Government of Liberia (GOL) and the

Lee Group of Enterprises for an interim management of the Sinoe Rubber

Corporation.   According to the Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Florence Chenoweth,

the Lee Group of Enterprises duly incorporated and registered under the laws of

Liberia with its registered office in Monrovia is expected to manage the Sinoe

Rubber Corporation under the custodianship of the GOL.  Minister Chenoweth told

a Sunday Morning Press Conference that after the interim management period, the

GOL plans to turn over the management of the plantation to a concession company

on a permanent basis after the conclusion of an international bidding process. 

Minister Chenoweth said in accordance with the agreement, government will

immediately deliver the 600,000 acres of the Sinoe Rubber Plantation to the Lee

Group to manage, operate and render accounts on terms and conditions contained

in the Interim Management

  Agreement.



The agreement was signed by the Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Florence Chenoweth,

Finance Minister Augustine Ngafuan and the Lee Group of Enterprises Managing

Director, Terry Tam.



Home | Advertise

©2005 - 2009 The Inquirer Online



+++



5) Felda eyes Liberia for oil palm, after Brazil pullout

The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 21



Malaysia’s state plantation agency will focus on growing oil palms in West

Africa after scrapping plans to develop estates in Brazil last month, the

Business Times reported today.



The Federal Land Development Authority (Felda), which owns 800,000 hectares of

plantation land in Malaysia, will expand mostly in Cameroon and Liberia, its

chairman Mohamad Yusof Noor was quoted as saying by the business daily.



“We might start planing an initial 100,000 hectares and if there is no

trouble, we can increase the hectareage,” Mohamad Yusof said. “But it’s

all under feasibility study right now.”



Felda follows in the footsteps of top listed plantation company Sime Darby,

which in May struck a deal with the Liberian government to develop oil palm and

rubber estates in the West African nation.



Malaysian planters are looking overseas to expand as land runs out at home and

global demand grows for palm oil, used in products such as detergents, biofuels

and chocolates.



Countries like neighbouring Indonesia are seen as an immediate choice although

West African countries are a greater draw due to lucrative development

concessions and proximity to the US and European markets.



Oil palm grows naturally in Africa and was imported during British rule to

Malaysia, now the world’s second largest producer after neighbouring

Indonesia.



Brazil was also seen as a natural pick for expansion but pressure from green

groups who say that planting oil palms would speed up deforestation in the

Amazon and fuel climate change prompted Felda to scrap plans to develop the

region.



“The payback period is too long and we received protests, which are unhealthy

to the company, accusing us of polluting the air when in reality somebody else

wanted the land to grow soyabean,” Mohamed Yusof said. — Reuters





+++



6) Major Corporations Accepting Social Responsibilities - a Welcoming Sign for

Strong Partnership

Liberia Government (Monrovia)



20 December 2009



Monrovia — From the onset of her presidency, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf

has been pushing for corporations to give back to communities where they work

and invest. Over the years, local communities have reaped few benefits from

these investments. However, a wind of change is now blowing across the land.



Private business entities are increasingly responding positively to the

President's insistence, requiring them to fulfill their social obligations to

the communities in furtherance of the Government's development agenda.



It started with Firestone, when the President, unsatisfied with the living

conditions of workers at the plantation, insisted that the world's rubber

processing giant had an obligation to the people of Liberia, particularly those

who labor to produce its raw material. She insisted that Firestone put in place

mechanisms to improve their living standards, particularly in the areas of

housing, education, and health.



Inpatient and anxious to settle for immediate cash benefits, workers of

Firestone resisted the President's approach which took into consideration the

long-term benefits for workers rather than a one-shot deal, which would have

left unresolved the fundamental problems Firestone workers have confronted over

the years: low wages, the lack of modern adequate housing, poor educational

facilities and inaccessibility to health care.



The company, acknowledging its shortcomings in these areas, has responded, and

today the living conditions of workers at Firestone are much better than a few

years ago. Just recently, the company turned over to Government a renovated

structure which houses a Science Complex at the University of Liberia's main

campus. The building, coincidentally, is named in honor of the company's

founder, Harvey S. Firestone.



Other private corporations and individuals have also responded to the

President's call for commitment to communities: the MacBain Foundation, Gorge

Soros's Open Society Initiative, the Liberia Education Trust, the Sirleaf Market

Women Fund, Ambassador David Straz, and the Foundation for Women, to name just a

few, are all supporting Liberia and buttressing the Government's development

programs.



"If there is any group we can say are Liberians, it is this group," President

Sirleaf said of the Lebanese Community, when she dedicated a project on

Saturday, December 19th, in Mango Town, Lower Virginia, Montserrado County. The

World Lebanese Cultural Union spearheaded the renovation of a school for deaf

and mute students in the area, with a promise to renovate an annex and install a

water tank, according to the union's president, Mr. Tony Hage. Another of its

projects was the newly renovated and equipped technical and vocational center of

the William V.S. Tubman High School in Monrovia.



The previous week, the President dedicated another home for the deaf and mute,

in Bardnersville. That project, funded by LISCRC, is part of the entity's

commitment to Lift Liberia. "We will demonstrate more commitment to social

responsibility as a responsible corporate partner," its Vice President, Joseph

Kelleh, assured the Liberian leader who expressed her satisfaction about

corporations responding to her call.



"This is exactly what we want to see, especially when it is being done this

Christmas season," the President noted. Further driving home the principle of

giving, the President appealed to the consciences of those who can to extend a

helping hand to the unfortunate ones. "Just think about it; if every bottle of

whisky you buy is spent on a bag of rice, you could feed about 100 children this

Christmas."



The spirit of giving was undoubtedly paramount on the President's plate when she

visited her ancestral towns of Korma and Julejuah, in Bomi County, sitting and

chatting with family members and other community dwellers and sharing gifts

among residents, including mothers and children.



The President takes Christmas on the road again this year, by spending the day

in Belle Yellah, a town notorious for the political prison where past

governments locked up dissidents. For the first time in the history of the

nation, that town is being linked to the rest of the country by road. More than

a Christmas gift, the opening of a motor road to Belle Yellah is a clear sign of

changes that are reaching every corner of the Liberian nation under President

Sirleaf's leadership.



Copyright © 2009 Liberia Government.



+++



7) At Epicenter of Globalized World, Africa Struggles to Find Place

By gkennedy

Created Dec 19 2009 - 10:04am



Miatta Beysolow.jpg

Commerce Minister Miata Beysolow

As West Africa Rejects Complex Taxation, Pushes for Common Tarriff

By:

George D. Kennedy



Globalization has taken over the world; and Africa, once considered the “dark

continent” by colonial slave masters in the 1600s to 1700s, has emerged as a

major hub for this integrated economic world.



The continent stands aat the epicenter of trade and investment for rich and

powerful nations, and their multi-billion-dollar companies that are investing in

Africa during the prevailing global financial and economic crisis.



Africa’s unique financial and trade systems separate it from the global powers

that some hail for sparing the continent from collapse.



However, the continent’s exports as well as remittances are affected by the

crisis due to decreased demands for its raw materials especially iron ore,

timber, goal, diamond, rubber and other products.



The drop in the demand for demands is translated into reduction in national

budgets portfolios and individual per capita incomes for Africans.



Amidst these global economic and financial shocks, however, there are still

areas in which Africa can do better.



Some experts say that the continent’s challenge is corruption, while others

blame it on poor governance.



They are all correct, but the lack of regional and sub-regional unity to tackle

and remove regional trade barriers is one critical problem the continent needs

to work on if it is to do better.



How governments and the sub-regional organizations on the continent can

harmonize their trade regimes to facilitate the movement of goods and services

is the big question.



For instance, complex tax regimes by governments in West Africa have prompted

the regional body, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), to

begin taking steps to encourage member countries to adopt harmonized customs and

other trade regimes to encourage trade.



ECOWAS is gradually achieving its goals by conducting workshops and seminars on

trade policy harmonization in member countries.



One such workshop – a weeklong collaborative capacity building seminar on

trade with the Liberia National Coordinating Committee on Trade (LCCT) – was

held last week in Monrovia.



About 50 Liberians attended the workshop which was sponsored and facilitated by

ECOWAS.



“We discussed common external tariff (CET) for ECOWAS and other key issues. We

have cases of complex taxation system that is creating bottlenecks to trade in

the region,” said Gibson Obasi, Administration and Finance Officer of the

Trade Negotiation Capacity Building Project (TNCB) of ECOWAS.



The ECOWAS-TNCB is a project to assist the LCCT to beef up its activities in

trade negotiation.



Obasi spoke in Monrovia last week at the close of the workshop. He said the

common external tariff (CET) will bring about simplified or uniformed tax system

in the region.



Obasi pointed out that participants wanted Liberia to be given some preference

relative to the prices of imported goods at the border.



“They want ECOWAS to give Liberia preferential treatment, especially support

for industry development in the country,” he said of the participants.



Commerce and Industry Minister, Miata Beysolow, who attended the closing

ceremony of the seminar, said she was excited that a cross-section of Liberians,

including stakeholders and civil society groups, participated.



The removal of trade barriers and other bottlenecks associated with cross-border

trade, Beysolow said, was critical to the economic success of the ECOWAS region.



She stressed the need for Liberia to adopt a sound regional trade policy in

order to play its proper role in global trade.



Improvement in trade within the ECOWAS region would add some impetus to the

import-dependent Liberian economy.



Liberia is suffering from huge trade deficits with its imports far surpassing

its exports, according to Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MCI) data released

earlier this year.



In the import sector, Liberia recorded a total value of US$200,199,828.05, with

China emerging as the country’s highest importer in the first quarter of 2009.



The data tracks several commodities imported, including food and live animals,

beverages and tobacco, crude materials, mineral, fuel, and lubricant including

fuel, animals and vegetable oil, machinery and transport equipment, amongst

others.



In the export sector however, the data shows, rubber dramatically declined in

the first quarter of 2009 from a total 20,808.347 metric tons (US$42,213,156.69

revenue recorded) in the 1st quarter of 2008, to 14,925.280 metric tons

(US$22,426,882 revenue recorded) in 1st quarter of 2009.



Overall, export value in the 1st quarter of 2009 is US$25,088,585.40 compared to

US$58,517,659.69 in the 1st quarter of 2008. The data did not track minerals

such as gold, diamonds and iron ore, which are exclusively controlled by the

Ministry of Lands, Mines and Energy (LME) and its international partners.



Amidst the trade deficit, however, Beysolow said the country is making frantic

efforts to accede to the protocols of the World Trade Organization (WTO). “It

is a long process,” she said, “as Liberia is in the process of writing its

memorandum to the WTO.”



Beysolow pointed out that the ECOWAS-facilitated workshop was one of the forums

Liberia uses to maximize its capacity to prepare for both regional and global

trade.



She acknowledged the fact that trade frameworks and the lack of harmonization

within ECOWAS region are posing serious challenges to movement of goods,

establishment of regional trade centers to buttress peace and security, amongst

others.



The Commerce Minister called for the participation of all line ministries and

agencies of government in trade negotiation in order to prepare the country to

adopt a genuine trade policy.



“We have a lot of goodwill out there to help us start with our trade policy.

This is the reason why I’m glad to see everyone on board,” she added.



Liberia hopes to complete the adoption of its trade policy in the first quarter

of 2010.



Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.



Copyright 2009 | Liberian Observer Online | www.LiberianObserver.com

Source URL (retrieved on Dec 19 2009 - 10:54pm):

http://www.liberianobserver.com/node/3463



+++



8) Man smuggling 4-kg gold from Liberia held

Daily Times Pakistan

Saturday, December 19, 2009



KARACHI: The Pakistan Customs staff posted at the international arrival lounge

of the Jinnah terminal has arrested a Pakistani smuggler and recovered 4-kg gold

of Liberian origin from his possession. Customs chief media officer Qamar Thalho

said the person Syed Anwar, a resident of Karachi, arrived from Liberia, West

Africa via Dubai by PIA flight PK-288 on Friday morning. The staff found the

gold, estimated to be worth Rs12.5 million concealed in an electric iron and

body spray. A case has been registered and further investigation is in progress,

he added.

staff report



Daily Times - All Rights Reserved



+++



9) Rural women complain about bad seeds…blame agriculture ministry

Written by Robert J. Clarke, Jr.

Saturday, 19 December 2009

STAR radio



The President of the National Rural Women has expressed disappointment over

seeds provided them by the Agriculture Ministry.



Madam Kebbeh Monger said seeds provided by the Agriculture Ministry are not good

for planting.



Madam Monger said if they are to be empowered the proper materials must be given

them.



She spoke at the opening of the 2nd National Rural Women’s Conference and the

launch of the National Gender Policy.



The National Rural Women’s President called for the establishment of adult

literacy schools across the country as a form of women empowerment.



Meanwhile the United States Agency for International Development has announced

the construction of six regional maternal clinics across the country.



USAID Director Pamela White said the clinics when constructed would help reduce

maternal mortality in Liberia.



Madam White however did not say when exactly the clinics will be constructed and

where.





+++



10) NIBATT-23 launches pineapple farming in Montserrado

Written by Hilary Vasco Wiagbe

Saturday, 19 December 2009

STAR radio



The Nigerian Battalion-23 has commenced the first phase of its civil-military

coordination pineapple farming campaign in Montserrado County.



The campaign commenced Thursday with the planting of over one thousand pineapple

beds by top military brass of NIBATT and authorities of Montserrado County in

Bentol City.



The Commanding Officer of NIBATT-23 said the project is geared towards building

the capacity of citizens of Montserrado County.



LT. Colonel O.J. Ogbonna, NIBATT-23 is committed to contributing meaningfully to

projects geared towards confidence and capacity-building in Montserrado.



The NIBATT-23 Commanding Officer said authorities of Montserrado County provided

two acres of land for the implementation of the project.



Also speaking, Montserrado County Superintendent Nyenekon  Barcon expressed

optimism that the gesture of  NIBATT-23 would yield results.



Superintendent Barcon called in youths involved in other aspects of farming to

consider venturing in pineapple farming.



She assured her administration and community residents would properly manage the

farm.



+++



11) MOF, Partners Graduate 31 in Concession Management

The Informer (Monrovia)



18 December 2009



The deficit human resource capacity of the Liberian Government received an added

boost yesterday-a day after the University of Liberia had graduated 1,513

people-when 31 persons were graduated in Concession Management.



The graduates from 7 line ministries and four other agencies of government were

trained for 17 months by the Cuttington University, under the auspices of the

Ministry of Finance, through a UNDP-World Bank-sponsored program.



The graduates will serve as government's concession advisors, managers and/or

experts, especially during concession negotiations, at their various ministries

and agencies.



Several of them were drawn from the Ministries of Finance, Agriculture, Lands,

Mines & Energy, the Forestry Development Authority, Environmental Protection

Agency, the National Investment Commission, among pothers.



Receiving their certificates yesterday at a well attended program at the

Monrovia City Hall, the proud graduates jubilated, and promised to utilize the

knowledge acquired to benefit the Liberian people and state.



Keynote speaker Dominic Sam, UNDP Country Representative to Liberia, stressed

the importance of capacity building, which he said has both short- and long-term

benefits.



He said the UNDP will continue said will continue to support worthwhile capacity

building programs in the country.



He said the UNDP was pleased to be part of the program aimed at bolstering the

country's human resource capacity to properly managing the country's natural

resources to benefit the people and enhance socio-economic development.



Mr. Sam said UNDP understands the constraints the government is facing to

implement its own poverty reduction strategy program.



Indequate human and financial resource capacities, he indicated, were some of

the problems.



Stressing the need for capacity building to have a national ownership, the UNDP

Chief challenged the graduates to go all out and apply what knowledge they have

acquired over the last one-and-a-half year.



Finance Minister Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan described the graduation of the 31

Liberians as a boost to government's human resource capacity building

initiative.



He said the program was part of efforts by the government and partners to create

a resourceful human capacity to effectively manage the state's recourses.



He said the current Liberian government in 2006 met a serious human resource

capacity deficit, and decided to get human resource from abroad to set things

into motion.



Minister Ngafuan said the Senior Executive Service-recruitment and training of

Liberians home and abroad for strategic positions in government-was introduced

to narrow the huge human resource gap.



Yesterday's graduation-this time focusing mainly on building the human resource

capacity in the concession management area-is a further manifestation that the

government is committed to narrowing the deficit in the country's human resource

capacity to manage its resources well.



Minister Ngafuan asserted that capacity building in the concession areas was

even demanding, especially those who negotiate long-term agreements (up to 25

years).



"If the right decisions are not made, the country and people suffer the

consequences," the Minister noted and welcomed an earlier recommendation that

the training be transformed into a graduate program.



The graduates, through their class president, the only female among them, Massa

Fofana Johnson, had recommended that the Concession Management Training be

upgraded to graduate program and that those interested be granted scholarship

and provide services after graduation.



"It is a good recommendation, and I am going to work with the relevant

stakeholders including the World Bank to do that," Ngafuan noted.



He told the graduates that Liberia needs their integrity, and not the degrees,

meaning that they should be trustworthy and honest people while negotiating

agreements.



"You will be dealing with [and discussing] millions and billions. Liberia needs

your advice; it is your advice that will liberate Liberia," the Minister warned.



Lands, Mines and Energy Minister Dr. Eugene Shannoh and Minister of State for

Legal and Economic Affairs, Morris Saytumah, in separate remarks also advised

the graduates to be people of integrity.



Citing some intricacies involved in the process of negotiating concessions, Dr.

Shannon admonished the graduates to take into consideration the Economic gains

for the country, the environment and the social indicators.



The President of Cuttington University, Dr. Henrique Tokpa, who had earlier

certificated the graduates, said he was pleased that his institution was part of

the human resource development of the country.



He lauded UNDP for taking the program the CU and challenged the graduates to

show themselves approved.



Dr. Ricardo Acosta, UNDP/World Bank Concession Advisor said the main aim of the

program is to build the capacity of Liberians to manage and negotiate concession

agreements.



He said these people will be the ones, at the places of work, to negotiate

agreements with the private sector, and they were now ready to do so after 17

months of training. D K Sengbeh writes



Copyright © 2009 The Informer



+++



12) Boakai Heads Govt's Delegation to Climate Change Conference

The Informer (Monrovia)



18 December 2009



Vice President Joseph N. Boakai, Sr., at the head of an eight-member delegation,

left the country Wednesday night for Copenhagen, Denmark to represent the

Liberian Government at the Climate Change conference.



On Friday, (today) he will attend the Climate Change Conference for heads of

state and government, and later in the day attend the plenary session of the COP

to adopt the outcome of the Copenhagen Conference in the presence of Heads of

State and Government.



The Vice President Boakai will later attend a high level informal event followed

by a luncheon to be hosted by the Prime Minister of Denmark.



On the morning of Saturday, December 19, the Liberian Vice President will attend

a Commercial Aggregate meeting and later the same day commission Mr. Carl

Ostergaard as Liberia's Honorary Consul to Denmark.



On the same day, the Vice President and party will visit the Niras Port Consult,

Konskilde Industries Limited and Africa Automotive Limited, during which he will

be presented a ten minute slideshow PowerPoint of each company.



Vice President Boakai is also expected to attend a private lunch meeting with

Mr. Hans Bogelund in Malmo, Sweden, before returning to Liberia on Monday,

December 21.



Members of the Vice President's delegation include Hon.E kema Witherspoon and

Hon. Elias Shoniyin from President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf's office as well as Mr.

Samuel Stevquoah, Chief of Staff in the office of the Vice President.



Copyright © 2009 The Informer.



+++



13)See also: http://liberianature.blogspot.com/



###



Complete archives at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Nature_Liberia/

1) Liberia set to restart iron ore production in 2011, 2) Ellen to Unveil New

LBDI Sinkor Branch HQ Today, 3) Cape Mount Citizens Applaud Min. Shannon for

Giving Back-Initiates Several Development Projects, 4) One Blood International

launches swamp rice projects, 5) ARS, USAID/LCIP Complete Cash Food Crops

Project in Nimba, 6) Reinventing Liberia Agricultural Sector, 7) Sinoe Rubber

Plantation declared liberated zone, 8) Cocopa Honors Employees, 9) Ivory Coast

diamond mining flouts UN ban, 10) Sugar Cane Cultivation Creates Jobs, 11)

Nywieh Town Appeals To LISGIS For Inclusion, 12)See also:

http://liberianature.blogspot.com/









1) Liberia set to restart iron ore production in 2011

Published: 30 Dec 2009 18:24:15 PST



SteelOrbis



Liberia is set to restart its ore mines in 2011 after the easing of political

instability in the country, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said in a

report on Liberia.



According to the report, growth is to be boosted through positive spillover

effects on other sectors as iron ore production restarts in the country.

Meanwhile, tax revenues from the two largest iron ore projects that are

projected to start in 2011-12 are expected to reach about $260 million by 2014,

accounting for 17 percent of the country's GDP.



The country is expected to grow 7.5 percent in 2010 and in two-digit numbers

from 2011 until 2013. Although the medium-term prospects for Liberia remain

favorable, the economy is heavily dependent on the restart of iron ore

production in 2011 and on continued political stability. Accordingly, delays in

iron ore investments are seen as constituting a financial risk for Liberia, the

report concludes.



Source: SteelOrbis



+++



2) Ellen to Unveil New LBDI Sinkor Branch HQ Today

By gkennedy

Created Dec 30 2009 - 3:52pm



Published on Liberian Observer (http://www.liberianobserver.com)



[photo: New LBDI Hq.jpg]



LBDI Board Chair: Project Ignites Investors' Confidence



MONROVIA – President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is expected to cut the ribbon this

afternoon to unveil an historic Sinkor Branch for the Liberian Bank for

Development and Investment (LBDI).



The program takes place at 4 p.m. in Sinkor where LBDI Management under the

presidency of Francis A. Dennis, Jr. has invested over US$2 million to erect a

structure that observers are calling the ‘best bank building ever in

Liberia.’



Insiders at the LBDI confided in our business correspondent that the gigantic

Sinkor Branch awaits board approval to become Corporate Headquarters of the

bank. The building was 100 percent constructed by local Liberian contractors.



The gleams of the new LBDI soon to be corporate headquarters building permeate

9th Street, Sinkor where passersby and onlookers see it as a sign of new hope

for the banking sector.



Analysts described the project as “Historic Milestone” for Liberia’s

economic recovery program.



President Sirleaf, a former president of LBDI (1980), is expected to further

encourage the LBDI management to continue to expand financial access to more

Liberians across the country.



In an exclusive interview with the Daily Observer at the Foreign Ministry

yesterday, Sirleaf applauded LBDI for what she called a “great” project.



She observed that LBDI had withstood the test of time amidst the competition and

the enormous challenges facing the banking sector.



The Liberian leader expressed the hope that LBDI will fulfill its funding

objectives as a development oriented bank and invest more in Liberians.



“This is the objective for which the bank was founded,” the President added.



Today, the President is also expected to challenge borrowers to change their

credit culture by repaying loans they took from the bank.



LBDI board chairman, Dr. Richard V. Tolbert, in pre-opening comments, described

the project as a breathtaking new addition to Liberia’s new infrastructure

skyline. He said the building ignites investors’ confidence in the country’s

economy.



The LBDI was created by an Act of the National Legislature in 1961 under the

joint initiative of the Liberian government and major international financial

institutions that purchased equity in the Bank.



They are: International Finance Corporation (IFC), Commonwealth Development

Corporation (CDC) Capital Partners, European Investment Bank (EIB), Groupe

Agence Franiçais de Development (GAFD), and Deutsche Investitions-und

Entwicklungesllchaft (DEG).



More than 150 private Liberians and other international and local institutions

own shares in the bank. Foreign shareholding to date stands at 44.47 percent,

while local shareholding stands at 55.53 percent.



LBDI is a predominantly privately owned institution under private management and

a Board of Directors elected annually by its shareholders.



The Bank commenced operations in 1965 as Liberian Bank for Industrial

Development and Investment.



Under an amendment in 1974, the name was changed to the Liberian Bank for

Development & Investment (LBDI).



A further amendment in 1988 allowed the Bank to engage in commercial banking

activities in order to compliment its development objectives. The bank had a

mission to provide increased goods and services for the rapidly growing

consumption requirements of the economy; make more profitable use of the

bountiful natural and human resources of the country; provide opportunities for

the productive utilization of the savings of the people; and to facilitate

creation and expansion of small and medium scale in the economy.



But this record of history would be incomplete if the roles played by some of

the past presidents of this 100 percent Liberian-run financial institution are

not mentioned. Though our reporter did not come across comprehensive

documentation on the roles played by each of the presidents during their

tenures, it is noted that the challenges each of them faced varied from time to

time.



Paul McCan (1965-67) was the first president of LBDI. He was an American and the

only Caucasian ever to serve as LBDI president. He is on recorded for laying the

foundation of LBDI.



P. Clarence Parker (1967-1973) replaced McCan as president of LBDI. It was not

an easy task for Parker especially during the time he took over from his

predecessor.



Elie E. Saleeby (1973-1980) cemented the foundation laid by the founding

president. It is recorded that during his presidency, Saleeby, a former Finance

Minister and former Governor of the Central Bank of Liberia (CBL), adopted a

policy of recruiting and training young Liberian cadets to become professionals

and to take over the mantle of leadership at the bank.



A senior LBDI executive anonymously told the Daily Obsever that Saleeby provided

education for the majority of the current management team that has brought the

LBDI thus far.



Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (1980) replaced Saleeby and kept the vision on course.



David K. Vinton (1981-1986) also maintained the vision of the past presidents

and kept the bank on course.



Philip Bowen (1986-1990) spearheaded the amendment in 1988 to allow the bank to

engage in commercial banking activities in order to compliment its development

objectives.



James Cooper (1992-1995) secured the Central Monrovia Branch for LBDI.



Thomas D. Voer Hanson (1995-1997) introduced the Western Union service to LBDI

and to Liberia as a whole. Since its introduction, the Western Union service has

contributed highly to the growth trajectory of LBDI to date.



Francis A. Dennis, Jr., current president and chief executive officer (CEO) of

LBDI, is yet the star among all of the presidents that have served LBDI in all

of its 44 years. Since his appointment by the board of directors in 1997, Dennis

has prioritized cross-country bank expansion, increasing the bank’s assets and

placing it in a stronger position to compete with wealthy foreign commercial

banks that have established their tentacles in the country. More than 12 LBDI

branches have been established in six of the 15 counties in the country.



Dennis’ administration, in consultation with the board, has secured and

introduced the Flexcube 10.2 software by Oracle, a universal, multi-currency

banking system – the first in Africa. The cost of the software is estimated at

nearly US$2 million, is now in the second phase of testing and will replace the

old Band Master system.





Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.

Source URL (retrieved on Dec 31 2009 - 7:55am):

http://www.liberianobserver.com/node/3716



+++



3) Cape Mount Citizens Applaud Min. Shannon for Giving Back-Initiates Several

Development Projects

The Informer (Monrovia)

D K Sengbeh



30 December 2009



Citizens of Torso Town in Grand Cape Mount County have lauded one of the

Government's cabinet ministers for giving back to his home and people.



The citizens said Lands, Mines and Energy Minister Dr. Eugene Shannoh is a true

citizen of the county who has his people at heart, working to redeem them from

the shackles poverty.



The Town Chief of Torso, Mr. Boima Senwah, told The Informer in Cape Mount

Monday that Dr. Shannoh has made them self-sufficient in food production and has

initiated several development programs for their benefit.



He said the Minister has empowered them to cultivate and harvest a rice farm of

at least 70 acres and provided vegetable seeds for planting on the same land.



"We don't eat butter rice hare again. We eat pour own country rice, we have

enough to feed all of us..." said Senwah.



"We want to be very grateful to Dr. Shannon, a true son of this soil, who has

helped us a lot," the young Town Chief said in interview at President Ellen

Johnson Sirleaf's resort in Torso.



Torso-meaning "ears up or listen" in the Vai language-the native home of

Minister Shannon is situated adjacent Lake Piso, the largest lake in , and is

just few kilometers away from the county's capital, Robertsports.



The town got its name during World War II, when American and British military

planes flew over it to land at their air base, Tallah, across Lake Piso, from

where they launched in Europe.



As the planes flew over the area, the native spoke their language to one another

"Ah-Torso-way" urging them to listen (have their ears up) and keep silent for

fear of being heard by those in the war planes.



Torso, with inhabitants of over 500, is in Senwah Clan of the Commonwealth

District of the county-one of the oldest counties in the country's history.



Besides empowering them to cultivate the 70 acres of farm land, Town Chief Boima

Senwah said Dr. Shannon has "blessed" the town with solar panels that provide

electricity for them, and contributed to building a women empowerment center,

near completion.



Chief Senwah said they were frustrated with the lawmakers' refusal to identify

with them. "We elected them, but they can't come to us or help us," he lamented.



The Town Chief claimed that their lawmakers only know them during political

campaign seasons. "They can't even come to sit down with us to know our

problems; when we write them they can't reply; sometimes we go to Monrovia to

the Capital Building, but we can't even meet them," the Chief claimed.



He lamented that Dr. Shannoh alone can not do all, he need to be assisted. The

Town Chief lauded Assistant Finance Minister Edward Dagoseh, a son of the area,

for providing three hand pumps for them. "With this, we have safe drinking water

here," he noted



However, the Representative of the area, Rep. Mohammed Ware, has dismissed the

Chief's allegation as "unfortunate".



"It is quite unfortunate that people in Cape Mount will say we don't visit them.

I visit the county all the time. In fact, I was in Robertsports over the

weekend...," Rep Ware said in a telephone interview last evening.



He nevertheless admitted that he has "never given any direct assistance to Torso

Town," unlike several other towns.



He said he learnt about the women empowerment center the citizens were

constructing. "We provided some food assistance when the people were working

there-Hon Darblo and myself identified with them."



The town's major needs now, Chief Senwah said, are the completion of the Adult

Literacy School (also called the women resource center), and to construct an

elementary school and to build a clinic in the area.



Speaking to this paper yesterday, Dr. Shannoh said he was proud to go back home

to give to his people, because he has been blessed by God.



He said after beginning his education in the area, he left to acquire higher

education in the and had worked in several parts of the world before coming back

to to serve as Minister.



"I came back...I'm blessed, and as a minister, I need to go back and empower my

people and I thought what to do," Dr. Shannoh said.



He said to stop the "umm koh" (which means 'give me' or 'begging') syndrome

among his people, he thought of agriculture as a means of sustainable

development, since there are no diamonds or gold in the area.



He said he bought a farm land from them and empowered them to develop it for

themselves, and the funds realized would go into a bank account in the town's

name.



He said he provided the money to procure rice seed for the 70 acres of land and

the people cultivated and have harvested the rice. He provided Zinc and other

materials to build rice houses, and 400 tins of rice are available for the next

planting season.



"In the interim," the Minister explained, "I have given them all of the cash

crops to plant vegetables... so that by the time they get ready to harvest the

rice, we will harvest the cash crops and sell it at the supermarket. I have

already talked with the supermarket and they are willing to buy the vegetables."



Dr. Shannoh disclosed that he opened a bank account with the LBDI branch in

Robertsports for the town, saying there is enough money there now to do many

things."



The people of Torso have initiated the construction of two schools, elementary

and adult Literacy, he stated. "I have provided funds for the adult literacy and

I am asking friends and other relatives to help with the Elementary school so

that the kinds can go to school and learn.



The Town Chief said only the grown ups go to school in Robertsports, but they

kind have never enter classrooms, because of the distance. Most of them are

growing up to be illiterate citizens, and their right to free and compulsory

education is violated.



There is no hospital or clinic to cater for the 542 inhabitants Chief Senwah

told the Informer. He however noted that Dr. Shannoh established drug store in

the town where people get prescribed drugs and pay small money.



Dr. Shannoh said the drug store belongs to the people.



"I gave them money to buy drugs, so that those who go there will pay small

amount of money, and funds generated will go into their account to enable them

buy more drugs. I don't want a cent from them; it is theirs, for their own

wellbeing."



The Minister noted that Torso Town is very old and plans have been concluded to

build a modern Torso.



Dr. Shannoh: "We have demarcated a land to build a new modern Torso with houses

that will be painted white with zinc roofs. The old one will be a cultural

village. I have given them the block machines and already they are building the

blocks. It will be a modern town, really arranged so that people can move freely

and admire it..."



God has blessed me. I grew up in the same environment, going to Robertsports to

school with out shoes. I know from where I come. I am a Vai man, not a Congo

man...so I went back to my people...there where I came from... so I have to go

back to give."



Copyright © 2009 The Informer.



+++



4) One Blood International launches swamp rice projects

Written by Matthias Daffah

Wednesday, 30 December 2009

STAR Radio



One Blood International in collaboration with Bong County Senator Jewel Howard

Taylor has cultivated over eighty swamp rice production sites in Bong County.



One Blood International is an ECOWAS Food Security Project.



Bong County Senator Jewel Howard Taylor said the project will run for nine years

using its first year for seed multiplication.



Senator Taylor disclosed   the organization intends to cultivate about three

million acres of swamp land nation wide.



According to Senator Taylor the organization has already planted a variety of

rice on sixty thousand acres of swamp land in various parts of the county.



She named some of the variety of rice planed as the New Rice for Africa or

NERICA, WARSAW from Sierra Leone and One Blood among others.



Madam Taylor said the despite being a private endeavor the project covers three

major aspects of government’s Poverty Reduction Strategy.



The Bong County lawmaker believes food security remains a major aspect of the

PRS and was confident the project will reduce poverty in the county.



+++



5) ARS, USAID/LCIP Complete Cash Food Crops Project in Nimba

Publication Date: December 29, 2009 - 11:22am

Updated: December 29, 2009 - 4:19pm



[photo: ARS Exc. Dir. Lah (right) inspects a large mixed pepper and plantain

farm near Glor Dialah Town; Plantain and mixed vegetables farm at Jeremiah Farm

near ARS demonstration site]



By: C.Y. Kwanue



NIMBA – The Sanniquellie-based Agriculture Relief Service (ARS) with funding

from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), through the

Liberia Community Infrastructures Program (LCIP), has completed the “Cash Food

and Tree Crops Production” project in Nimba County.



According to ARS Executive Director, Luogon P. Lah, the project had two

components, one of which was based in Tappita District, Lower Nimba County. At

that location, the organization worked along with more than 300 farmers, after

giving them preliminary production inputs and technical pieces of advice. The

farmers took advantage of the process by producing food crops in large

quantities.



The main objective of the Tappita project, Lah said, was to plant plantains. He

added that the project achieved its objective and went beyond as farmers began

intercropping the plantain with bitter balls, soya beans, eddoes, yams, cabbage

and other crops.



The second component of the program, he explained, focused on some parts of

Margibi County, where the ARS worked with more than 40 farmers by providing them

their basic needs in the rehabilitation of their rubber farms. This effort led

to an increase in the production of latex, which the farmers subsequently sold,

generating income.



The final aim of the projects, he said, was to build the economic baseline for

the beneficiaries because after the crisis, the farmers were finding it “very

difficult” to revamp their farms and get along with their lives.



In a recent interview with the Daily Observer, Lah explained among other things

that as a result of the 14-year conflict in the country, most farmers were left

very poor, lacking basic farming equipment as well as financial assistance to

enable them to get restarted after the war.



According to the executive director, the ARS is trying to build farmers’

capacity and to further create youth employment opportunities.



Through the projects, ARS was able to provide basic agriculture needs of the

farmers, including extension services, technical knowhow and new production

techniques.



The organization has also created an atmosphere of peace and development, he

said, which have eventually helped the communities to feel at ease and move

forward with their lives.



Near the “Plantain Village” midway on the Tappita/Zwedru highway, most

farmers including Mary Tokpah and Chris K. Tomah have revamped their various

farms by planting eddoes, pepper, plantain, yams, cabbage, tomatoes and

groundnuts.



ARS is a local NGO established on April 15, 1995. It serves as a catalyst in

providing rural development packages for rural communities in the country. Its

main focus is agriculture, infrastructure, water and sanitation, peace-building

and micro credit.



Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.



Copyright 2009 | Liberian Observer Online | www.LiberianObserver.com



+++



6) Reinventing Liberia Agricultural Sector

Publication Date: December 29, 2009 - 3:34pm

Updated: December 29, 2009 - 3:37pm





[photo: Momolu in conversation with Turkish farmer Ali Bayar]



By: F. Momolu Dorley from Eregli, Turkey



There have been several failed attempts to make farming a major aspect of

Liberian way of life. In the late 1970s, the Government of Liberia under the

leadership of President William R. Tolbert increased the price of rice,

Liberia’s staple, in order to motivate farmers in the country to produce more

yields at the same time attract many to invest in the agricultural sector.



The calculation of President Tolbert was to make Liberia efficient and self

sustainable, but the “Progressives,” led by some of the widely respected

figures in the country at the time, seized on the President’s plan and ran

riot, which changed the hopeful face of the ‘Land of Liberty.’



In 1980, after a bloody coup the “Progressives” with their slogan: “In the

cause of the people the struggle continues” had come to the fore of Liberian

politics amid populous support from the Liberian people; with the hope that the

policies that the progressives have preached over the years would be translated

into actions thus raising the people’s standard of living.

President Samuel Kanyon Doe and his hosts of “progressives” ruling National

Democratic Party of Liberia (NDPL) crafted the “Green Revolution”. The Green

Revolution was a policy aimed at fulfilling Liberia’s agriculture potential,

but the country ironically survived on a United States PL-480 program of huge

quantity of US-parboiled rice being periodically dumped into the country.



The fall-outs from the Doe and his “progressives” failure to deliver led to

a decade and half civil war that wrecked all the basic fabrics of society.

However, thank to Providence the fertile land still lies there waiting to be

tilted.

In this Observer Farmer, our reporter travelled to Eregli, a Turkish town, to

see how agriculture is contributing to the rapid growth of Turkey, the world

17th biggest economy, and how these methods can be replicated in Liberia.



Eregli is a small but sprawling town where the construction sector is booming.

The boom in the construction sector has stretched the town beyond its original

border as new flats fill the skylines.



From Eregli Town to its villages transport buses are available, linking every

farm.



Forty-eight-year-old Ali Bayar, who worked for the Ministry of Education,

retired 3 years ago and escaped the buzzling of city life in Konya to find

sanctuary in Eregli, where he is attending to his 85-year-old mother along with

his wife Rabia. Their son of 24, Asim Bayar, is a candidate student of law at

Istanbul University.

Bayar disclosed to our reporter that he bought the land 30,000 Turkish Lira (US$

19,900) mainly for pleasure. There are large farms in Eregli that are being used

for scientific approach, where people are advised about animal and plant

breeding, about soil quality and mechanization.



Mr. Bayar disclosed that there are also several small farmers in Eregli

including him that farm less than one hectare. He added these small farmers

yield sufficient for the sustenance of their family and there are even surplus

to take to market.



Eregli is considered the cradle of the world white cherry. He intoned that

farmers in this part of the world produced 75 to 80 percent of the world’s

white cherry annually. Mr. Bayar said in the three years that he has been

working on the farm, he has cultivated a wide range of crops including, pepper,

apple, tomatoes, corns, eggplant (garden eggs), orange and the white cherry.



At present there is virtually no crop on the farm due to winter, but there were

few white cherry and peppers and as I conducted the interview, I quickly reached

for one of the few cherries hanging above me to fill my thirst.



Mr. Bayar disclosed that there were not direct aids from government, but noted

that electricity, roads, running water and a host of other services were factors

stimulating the agricultural productivity in Eregli.



This brings us to a point why, it is true, that government cannot solve all of

our problems. People look up to government to create the enabling environment

for success; that means making the roads accessible, providing security, light,

running waters and others.



As we embarked on the implementation of the Government of Liberia’s “Lift

Liberia,” or Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS), a poverty alleviation doctrine

aimed at reducing poverty. Government should not only focus on dishing out seed

rice to farmers, but also build their capacity, provide grants to farmers that

are monitored from time to time.

This will halt the mass exodus of people who are turning away from agriculture

to seek a new source of income and would provide food security, which is vital

for a nation coming out of a decade and a half long civil conflict.



Since the end of the civil war there have been many good-wills from the

international community to the Liberian Government. Like many national

institutions on the African continent, the Government in Liberia has shown

ineffectiveness and these funds have not trickled down to its intended target

but rather ended in the pockets of syndicates.



It’s time that the West changes their approach in order to meet the growing

aspiration of the masses in Africa. For decades the United States has sought to

lift Africa out of poverty based on the Marshall Plan, which got Europe out its

paralysis after the 2nd World War but the method has failed to garner steam

owing to weak and corrupt governments and institutions in Africa.



It is predicated upon this that the sentiments that the Chinese are a better

partners than the West are wide-spread these days in Africa.



Unless the West can stop aiding weak national institutions on the continent and

turn their attention to building the skills of locals, building the stadiums as

the Chinese are doing, providing grants and tractors to the farmers, they will

be out-muscled in the not-too-distance future by their growing rival, China.





Copyright 2009 | Liberian Observer Online | www.LiberianObserver.com



+++



7) Sinoe Rubber Plantation declared liberated zone

Written by Sayounue Bilah

Monday, 28 December 2009

STAR Radio



Authorities of Sinoe County have declared the Sinoe Rubber Plantation a

liberated territory.



Assistant Superintendent for Development McDonald Wlemus on Christmas Eve turned

over the plantation to the LEE Group of Company.



The LEE Group of Company signed a contract with government on December 18th this

year.



In his turning over remarks, Mr. Wlemus said the plantation remains a property

of the state and the people of Sinoe County.



According to him, no individual or group of people should claim the farm as it

was now a liberated zone.



Mr. Wlemus advised citizens of Sinoe County especially those in the liberated

area not to condone any act of lawlessness on the plantation.



For his part, the General Manager of the company urged the citizens of Wehjah

and Numonpo to support the company by being watchdogs of the plantation.



He also called on the citizens to be law-abiding and warned that violator would

suffer the consequences of his action.



The Sinoe Rubber Plantation was taken over early November by local police

officers backed by personnel of the   Emergency Response Unit.



+++



8) Cocopa Honors Employees

Publication Date: December 28, 2009 - 11:28am

Updated: December 28, 2009 - 10:37pm



[photo: Cocopa General Manager, Harrison S. Karnwea, Sr. (in gown) receives his

certificate of achievement from Administrative Assistant, Gboo Yeanay (right)]



By: C. Y. Kwanue



NIMBA – The management of the Liberia Company (LIBCO), operating under the

banner of Cocopa Rubber Plantation in Nimba County, has honored several of its

employees for their “dedicated and sacrificial services.”



The honoring ceremony coincided with a special year-end program hosted on

Wednesday, December 23, in honor of LIBCO General Manager, Harrison S. Karnwea,

Sr.



Karnwea is now regarded and referred to as “father to all and of the

Plantation.”



The program was held at the Cocopa Camp #1 Recreation Hall.



In addition to Karnwea, among those honored were the company’s the Production

Manager, Alphonso Dowah; Clinic Supervisor, Yepleh Miapeh; and the Warehouse

General Supervisor, Joseph Forley.



Tappers, administrative staffers, teachers, drivers and mechanics were also

commended for their services.



Some of the honorees, who were placed in categories A, B, C and D, walked away

with 18-carat gold plated wrist watches as well as world receiver radios, pieces

of cloth and envelopes that contained a small but “appreciative amounts” of

cash.



High-profile government officials who attended the brief ceremony included Nimba

County Senior Senator, Prince Y. Johnson; Nimba County Electrical Districts #4

and #5 Representatives, Jackson Fiindor and Martin Nuahn Farngalo respectively;

as well as the county’s Development Superintendent, Cooper Siaway Myker. A

cross-section of county residents was also in attendance.



In special remarks, Karnwea recounted the long period of difficulty the

plantation experienced during the 14-year crisis, during which facilities at the

Plantation were completely vandalized.



Under his administration, as General Manager, Karnwea promised that the company

will continue to maintain a well paid and balanced salary for all employees and

contractors and, at the same time, revamp the infrastructure and other

facilities of the outfit.



He then presented a check for US$2,500 to Senator Johnson for onward handover to

the county’s Legislative Caucus in the National Legislature for the

enhancement of its functions.



In earlier remarks, the company’s Administrative Assistant, Joseph S. Kiepeeh,

assured the employees and their dependants that in the coming years, the company

will strive to develop the socio-economic status of all at the plantation.



LIBCO Estates Manager, Gboo Yeanay, who presented certificates and gifts to the

General Manager, said the workers and their dependants will continue to benefit

from the company’s gesture once the management has decided to return the

company to its pre-war status.





Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.



+++



9) Ivory Coast diamond mining flouts UN ban



By Christophe Koffi (AFP) – 24 Dec 2009



BOBI, Ivory Coast — From the shade of a makeshift shed, Mohammed Conde watches

his workers turn over the red soil with shovels and pickaxes: diamond mining at

Bobi in the Ivory Coast persists despite a UN ban.



Diamond extraction is the main activity at this large village in the heart of

the wooded savannah in the country's north-west. The open-pit mine, the region's

largest, extends over a kilometre (around two-thirds of a mile).



Hundreds work here in spite of a UN embargo on Ivory Coast rough diamonds,

initiated in 2005 with the argument that the trade financed New Forces (FN)

rebels behind a failed 2002 coup against President Laurent Gbagbo.



Before the embargo "we extracted diamonds in 25 villages in Seguela district

(420 kilometres, 260 miles north-west of Abidjan) compared to only 10 today,"

said mine operator Mohammed Conde.



"Rough diamonds don't sell so well any more, the big Israeli and South African

investors have left, because of the embargo," Conde said. "Ivorian diamonds no

longer put food on the table."



Diamonds nevertheless still feed around 5,000 people -- compared to 20,000

before 2005 -- according to figures from Ivorian mining development group

Sodemi.



For diamond expert Michel Yobouet "one of the great weaknesses of the" embargo

is that "it covers exports not extraction."



Legally extracted diamonds "are still sold illegally on the international

market" accounting for around 25 million dollars (nearly 17 million euros), said

Yobouet, a member of the Kimberley Process global diamond watchdog.



Ivorian diamond production is in fact on the increase, according to the

Kimberley certification system which monitors and hopes to eliminate the trade

in so-called "blood diamonds" which have financed many African conflicts.



Placed under the authority of powerful FN commander Issiaka Ouattara, known as

Wattao, one of 10 such commanders who control the north, ex-rebels from Bobi

insist their involvement in the diamond trade is history.



Since the signing of a peace deal in 2007 "we've turned our backs on the

'diams'," as the trade is known, a local FN official told AFP on condition of

anonymity. Nevertheless, the trade continues.



Mamadou Diomande describes himself as "the boss's special envoy," in reference

to the mysterious buyer he works for.



"Before the embargo, Ivory Coast diamonds landed in Belgian diamond workshops

via Abidjan," he said. "Diamonds mined from Bobi now transit via Mali, Guinea,

Liberia or Sierra Leone, before ending up in Israel or Belgium."



A UN experts report published in October -- the last time the embargo was

renewed -- noted "the absence of effective border controls" which helps the

traffic of contraband to neighbouring countries.



The government says that the best way to end the smuggling would be to lift the

embargo.



The embargo "has penalised us greatly and no longer has any reason to exist,"

said a senior official from Sodemi, citing the end of the civil war and

repeatedly delayed elections now due to be held in February.



"A lifting of the embargo would allow for the traceability of diamonds that is

sought by the Kimberley Process," the official said, requesting anonymity.



Moreover, Ivory Coast needs to modernise its diamond industry, President Gbagbo

said recently, warning that "we're not going to content ourselves with the

small-scale exploitation of a product as important as diamonds."



Copyright © 2009 AFP.





+++



10) Sugar Cane Cultivation Creates Jobs

Liberian Observer

Created Dec 23 2009 - 7:36am





[photo: Sugar cane traders at Paynesville Red light market; BELOW: The elderly

involved in the sugar cane trade at Red light market Sugar Processing an Added

Advantage]





By: John Forkpa



The issue of job creation has become a heavy burden on the government and on

those with the potential to undertake capital investment in an economy such as

ours that is struggling to rebuild after more than a decade of civil strife.



But it must be noted that job creation is also the task of the private sector;

and its empowerment is a sine qua non for job creation.



The persistent cry for the government to put food on the tables of the people

compels us to reflect on the past, when advocates with this same view were

branded as communists who wanted to kill democracy under the guise of fighting

capitalism.



Today, the same funny song is being heard loudly across the country, even from

the lips of those who once said such demand was communist in nature, while in

the truest sense, the government’s ability to negotiate for multinational and

multimillion dollar companies to invest in the country to create jobs is

unquestionable. But the will and readiness of these companies to commence

operations to enable Liberian workers obtain employment is always illusive. One

might ask where the iron mining companies for Nimba and the Western Cluster are,

and what initiatives are coming from them for job creation. What about Putu and

Bomi Hills or the promised rubber plantations and oil palm industries?



Without a doubt, there are many Liberians with the financial resources to engage

in the kinds of enterprises that will provide jobs far above what multinational

and multimillion dollar companies can offer. This is why the Daily Observer

Labor Column is today looking at another side of the job creation coin to sound

a wakeup call to rescue the unemployed masses.





Sugar Cane



Sugar cane cultivation is common in Liberia. Small sugar cane patches can be

found in the backyards of many houses in the capital city and its environs, not

to mention the rural areas of the country.



When one visits the local markets all over the country, sugar cane is one

commodity that is available every day at the cheapest price, and its peel

litters our streets even the capital city.



Ironically, while medical practitioners continue to caution the public against

excessive consumption of alcohol, fearing that the dependence adversely affects

safety, social activities and work, cane juice produced by sugar cane farmers

seems to increase alcoholism instead of providing meaningful employment for the

potential working class of Liberia.



We do not disagree that those who market the sugar cane on the local markets and

even at street corners for consumption are self-employed, nor are we saying

those engaged in the cultivation are not gainfully employed; the consumption of

both the sugar cane and the cane juice produced from the sugar cane do yield

capital returns.



However, our concern is about a more advantageous use of the crop to encourage

greater participation in the production of the sugar cane and a refined finished

product, that is safe and beneficial for public consumption.



A foreign company once attempted to produc sugar in Liberia, but the venture was

short-lived as a result of political instability. For the brief period during

which the company was in operation, then known as the Liberia Sugar Corporation

(LIBSUCO), hundreds of workers went into sugar cane cultivation, creating jobs

through self-employment, while some Liberians were employed by the corporation

itself.



Now that the political upheaval has ceased and the climate for investment is

ripe, we think it is about time that Liberian citizens, particularly those with

the financial clout, invested in the sugar industry in order to create more

jobs.



In our last edition of the Labor Column, we spoke about the amassment of wealth

and job creation from the palm kernel trade that once flourished in the country,

where rural dwellers were self-employed and generated their own income without

relying on outside influence. They were able to build shelters with metal sheet

roofing in remote villages.



Today, all that is required to have the people return to the soil and cultivate

sugar cane plantations is the establishment of sugar processing plants in some

parts of the country. Once accessible to farmers, it will not require any level

of persuasion from politicians or opinion leaders to tell the people to return

to the soil. Planting sugar cane on a large scale with sugar mills as immediate

consumers of the raw product, we are sure, will help provide immediate

employment for hundreds if not thousands of our citizenry.



The most impressive part of this sort of venture is that the entrepreneur in the

sugar production venture will be an employer of technicians, casual or manual

workers as well as permanent employees, while at the same time serving as a

precipitator of self-employment and making others become employers in the long

run.



Based upon the success of one sugar cane farmer, thousands of workers will flood

the tropical crop field or plantation and the mills will be overwhelmed with the

produce.



In our mind, the government should now focus on the utilization of the budgeted

funds for the Liberia Employment Action Program to set up cooperatives that will

manage a sugar cane mill or processing plant, to produce raw or refined sugar

for both local consumption and export. This will help to make the sugar cane

trade a major source of employment to ease the unemployment problem and

encourage our people to return to the soil.





Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.





Source URL (retrieved on Dec 24 2009 - 6:56pm):

http://www.liberianobserver.com/node/3422



+++



11) Nywieh Town Appeals To LISGIS For Inclusion

The Inquirer - Sebo Daniels - Dec 23, 2009



The Chairman of Nywieh Town community, Sinoe County Mr. Steve Chea has launched

a passionate appeal to the government of Liberia through the Liberia Institute

of Statistics and Geo- Information Services (LISGISS) to consider the inclusion

of the town into the national censors plan.  Mr. Chea who walked into the

offices of the INQUIRTER yesterday to launch the appeal said that due to the

civil upheaval the town became deserted thereby causing residents to move into

Jacksonville and other surroundings.  Speaking further to this paper he added

that due to the prevailing situation coupled with normalcy to the town residents

of the town residing in Monrovia have agreed to return to their town in a bid to

begin the reconstruction of the area. Chea noted that the town has some

resources that if properly tapped would improve the livelihood of citizens in

that county.



He said that Nywieh Town has a huge forest reserve while fishing expedition and

hunting can also be used to boost government revenue in the future.  At the

moment he narrated that citizens of Nywieh Town residing in Monrovia are doing

all they could to gain political status recognized by national government.   He

added that there are several prominent citizens of the town that are residing in

Monrovia and other surroundings who are willing to come to the aid of the town's

residents for development purposes.   Concluding, Mr. Chea explained that at the

moment the Nywieh Town community residing in Monrovia are contemplating on

several development packages for residents of the area particularly the youths

and the old folks.   Meanwhile strange news from Nywieh Town in Sinoe County

says the town has been deserted at the moment due to the fourteen years

fratricidal civil war as resources there are yet to be captured by national

government.



©2005 - 2009 The Inquirer Online



+++



12)See also: http://liberianature.blogspot.com/



###



Complete archives at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Nature_Liberia/

1) Bong, Nimba Top Marijuana Trade...DEA's Records Reveal, 2) Firestone Liberia

- Concessionaire of the Year, 3) Aqualife - Mineral Company of the Year 2009, 4)

Sime Darby finally takes over at Guthrie, 5) The Case of Environmental

Importance: Front Page Africa Ignores EPAL Again, 6) Liberian economic growth to

accelerate on iron ore - IMF, 7) Why development eludes Africa, 8) Angola to

attend Gourmet coffee project, 9) Pleebo University Students Ask GOL To Nullify

The Reported Agreement Between GOL and Salala Rubber Investment, 10) Smallholder

Agriculture Transforms Lives of Poor, 11)See also:

http://liberianature.blogspot.com/



1) Bong, Nimba Top Marijuana Trade...DEA's Records Reveal

Patrick K. Wrokpoh

Jan 5, 2010





[PHOTO: Rep. George Mulbah]



The Drug Enforcement Agency of Liberia (DEA) says latest records in its

possession have Bong and Nimba Counties on top as two areas that are largely

trading in marijuana in the country.



The Director of the, DEA James Jaddah, who made the disclosure, said records

with the agency clearly suggest that it has made more arrests in tracking down

marijuana cases in the two counties than any other counties. Speaking to the

INQUIRER on Monday during an exclusive interview, Mr. Jaddah said according to

the records, suspected marijuana traders who have been arrested by the agency in

other counties, have normally informed the agency that they have acquired the

substances in either of the two counties.



He said the records show that in 2009, the DEA burnt about ten marijuana farms

in Nimba, while 15 others were burnt in Bong. The DEA boos said in addition to

the destruction of these farms, the DEA has also destroyed confiscated drug

substances in September and June 2009. He recorded that in June of 2009, 7,600

kilo grams of drugs and other related substances were destroyed by the DEA,

while 8,000kg were destroyed in September. Col. Jaddah added that in addition to

their findings, the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) has also

discovered large farms of marijuana in these two counties, something, which he

stressed suggest that indeed they are the major producers and traders in the

country.



Commenting on setting in place the appropriate legislation to deal with the

issue, Col Jaddah said what the agency has done was to visit other countries in

the sub-region such as Nigeria,



Ghana among others, and get a copy of their anti trafficking laws to see how it

can fit in the Liberian situation. He said after they have carefully studied

these laws, they drafted a legislation to fit the country's situation, which was

embraced and passed by the House of Representative. He said the legislation was

led by Bong County Representative George Mulbah, whose county ironically is

heavily involved in the production and trade of marijuana in the country.

According to him, the act would now go to the senate after its recess to concur

with the House of Representative.Col. Jaddah expressed confident that the Senate

will see wisdom to pass the act into law, stressing that should this happen,

anyone trading, distributing and producing drugs and held liable or convicted in

court, will have to face sentence for not more than 25 years and not less than

15 years.



©2005 - 2010 The Inquirer Online



+++



2) Firestone Liberia - Concessionaire of the Year

The Informer (Monrovia)

4 January 2010



column





Despite the daunting challenges of the global financial crisis, down to the

constant wave of attacks by illicit tapers and rubber theft, Firestone Liberia

retained an unimpeachable record during 2009.



The company expanded health and educational facilities in its concession area

and provided free medication and transportation for workers and school children.

For the first time in the company's decades of operations in the country, it

held its first senior high school graduation in 2009, graduation more than 120

students. The company has built a modern market ground for thousands of marketer

the trade in the area for survival and continues the construction of modern

housing units for its workers. All these are programs that have impacted lives

at the concession.



But, beyond that, the company has stretched its humanitarian tentacles to the

larger Liberian society. The company during the year provided scholarships to

more than 100 Liberian students at various universities, colleges and high

schools in the country, in the face of harsh economic realities, to continue

their education. Most remarkably, Firestone Liberia moved in to help the

state-run University of the Liberia by reconstructing one of its important

buildings-the Firestone Quadrangle Science Building. The reconstruction of the

structure has helped to solve some serious office and seating capacity problems

at the over populated University. Definitely, no other concessionaire has

provided such quality services to the Liberian people than Firestone Liberia,

that's why it is our Concessionaire Of The Year 2009.



Copyright © 2010 The Informer.



+++



3) Aqualife - Mineral Company of the Year 2009

The Informer (Monrovia)

4 January 2010

column



Acqua, a French word which means water, also means life. This is why the name,

Acqualife has become a household word in Liberia. Water is life, but Acqualife

is more to life than ordinary water.



The issue of safe drinking water in Liberia has been a paramount issue in the

post war development of the country.



Based on this need, a Liberian owned water purification entity, Liberty

Investment, Producer of Aqualife was established in the country following the

end of the civil crisis serve the citizens with safe drinking water



Pure and safe drinking water system run by the Liberia Water and Sewer

Corporation (LWSC) was damaged during the war period. As a result, the entire

water system was cut off leaving many to drink from hand pumps, dug outs,

streams and rivers. The situation is still worse in the rural areas



To help Liberians out of this quagmire, some farsighted Liberian saw the need to

establish a water purification and treatment plant to produce safe drinking

water under very high hygienic concentration.



The Public Health Section of the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare has

issued a certified correct certificate to the company, making it a legitimate

company to produce water in Liberia



Acqualife's modern water purification plant is located in Virginia, outside

Monrovia. The plant provides job opportunities for several Liberians and in so

doing has contributed immensely to the government's Poverty Reduction Strategy

(PRS).



During a guided tour of the company's facilities last year by the Agriculture

Department of the University of Liberia, it was observed that that modern water

treatment equipment were used for the production of Acqualife water mineral

water in the country.



Because Acqualife remains a pacesetter in the water industry, the Informer

Management finds it fit to recognize the efforts it has made in covering the

whole county with pure and safe drinking water.



In view of the foregoing the management unanimously voted and selected ACQUALIFE

as MINERAL WATER COMPANY of the year 2009



Copyright © 2010 The Informer.



+++



4) Sime Darby finally takes over at Guthrie

Written by Matthias Daffah

Monday, 04 January 2010

STAR Radio



The multi-million dollar   rubber concession company Sime Darby has formally

taken over the controversial Guthrie Rubber Plantation.



Although details of the arrangements have not been officially unveiled, Sime

Darby is to invest a total of eight hundred million U.S. dollars into the

plantation.



The farm, which has been at the center of violent confrontations, is located in

Bomi and Grand Cape Mount Counties.



Government turned over the plantation at a brief ceremony Friday.



Our Correspondent says the new management held a strategic meeting Monday aimed

at reviewing the security status of the plantation.



According to our correspondent,   there was a mass turnout of workers Monday to

the meeting with the new management.



Our correspondent says the main road leading to the headquarters of the

plantation is also being rehabilitated.



+++



5) The Case of Environmental Importance: Front Page Africa Ignores EPAL Again

Sunday, January 3, 2010

Morris T. Koffa



Theliberiandialogue



Africa Environmental Watch (AEW), Inc. takes particular interest in your article

of 12/16/09 under the title “Liberian Govt. Four Years Later, Who Made the

Grade? - ’09 REPORT CARD OUT”.



Such an exercise gives the Liberian populace a sense of what was obtained within

their current government administration under the period reviewed with respect

to ministries, autonomous and non-autonomous agencies, and public corporations

performances.



The effort seemingly provides and serves as a indicator for measuring standards

and reevaluating strategic planning and implementation schemes, as future

reference to do better moving forward. On the periphery, it is a good assessment

to better monitor and ensure timely deliverables.



While AEW enjoys such an enviable exercise for which kudos must be given to you

and your able staff, it hastens to register its observation again, and quite

troubled and mystified by the glaring appearance of what is perceived as a

cherry picking approach (selective group) “report card” by FPA. Your

establishment for some odd reasons continuously excludes the Environmental



Protection Agency of Liberia (EPAL).



Liberians patiently attend to their products near tons of garbage at a Monrovia

market



As you are aware, the EPAL functions, by all social and health standards, are

intrinsically linked to environmental concerns, and indeed complement just about

all the ministries, agencies, and public corporations functionaries. In the

absence of a safe environmental condition, the relevant human resources needed

to propel everything else for economic growth is almost unattainable, much less

sustain. What’s even more appalling is that in spite of several letters

written to Front Page Africa by me, commenting each time on an annual report

card reflective of the current Liberian Government’s performance, it seems not

to have earned the credence from FPA to the critical oversight of the vital role

of EPAL in the overall rebuilding of the nation’s environmental infrastructure

and future.



Frankly, such a repeated oversight of the Environmental Protection Agency of

Liberia (EPAL, an institution charged with protecting the nation’s ecosystem

(air, water and land), so gamine to the people’s health, succinctly stands out

to be ignored, especially so, when the World just witnessed the recent Climate

Change Summit in Copenhagen, Denmark, attended by over 190 nations with world

leaders of which Liberia was represented.  This is further evidence of the

cogency of an issue that should warrant the attention of such a likeable,

respectable and reputable media institution like FPA. Contrary to this popular

belief, sends a chilly signal to your reading audience, many of whom are

environmental proponents that this may be intentional. If this is true, Africa

Environmental Watch (AEW), believes that your actions would bear the propensity

to undermine the collective efforts by many who sacrifice their lives, time, and

resources racing the storm for a

  healthy, prosperous, and sustainable environment for Liberia. It further gives

support to the current plight of environmental ruin and neglect punctuated by

environmental decadences to which the masses are being subjected. To the credit

of FPA, there were several environmental articles in recent times published

regarding grave concerns in Liberia. Why would it not equally be relevant for

FPA to extend equal participation of EPAL in this exercise, remains a surprise?



Let it be clearly noted that this is in no way to compel FPA to evaluate the

EPAL. AEW respects the legal rights of FPA as to whom it chooses to evaluate

under whatever circumstances. But it equally questions within the moral realm

why not the EPAL whose functions are of such vast environmental necessities and

international in scope continuously marginalized? What AEW sees as cherry

picking is that FPA finds solace to evaluate other institutions for which EPAL

has equal or more national and international responsibilities in status: Civil

Aviation Authority (CAA), Bureau of Immigration, The True and Reconciliation

(TRC), National Oil Corporation (NOC), Civil Service Agency (CSA), Governance

Reform Commission (GRC), Forestry Development Authority (FDA), Liberia Produce

Marketing Corporation (LPMC), and Liberia Broadcasting Corporation (LBC) just to

a few. Is the FPA taking the position to state that the environment of Liberia

is not relevant to its annual

  evaluation report?



We collectively, (AEW and FPA), owe it to the Liberian people, especially those

in the environmental community to know what the EPAL has done since its

inception.  Is the Agency measuring up to its responsibilities of protecting and

monitoring the environment as it relates to public health such as solid wastes,

poor sanitation, public defecation, raw sewage, industrial pollution, water

contamination, air pollution, deforestation, and other recent event like the

Army Worm crisis that ravaged communities in Bong and nearby communities?



During the period under review as was reported by FPA, it is fair to note that

the Firestone Natural Rubber Company was recently found guilty of  polluting the

water bodies in its area of operations by an Inter-Governmental Investigative

Commission. In the same deposition, it was also alleged that three lives were

loss, as were other birth abnormalities as a result of Firestone’s pollution.

Life expectancy in Liberia is reported to reach barely 42 years of age, and over

75% of those deaths statistics are environmentally related.



Other critical environmental issues your exercise failed to considered

evaluating are the  toxic oil spillage in the Borough of New Kru Town from the

Liberia Electricity Corporation (LEC), and the Bong Mines Bridge Community

allegedly from LPRC facilities; the presence of CEMENCO in close proximity to

densely populated residential areas as well as adjacent to the flour mill

factory within less than a block away, the Slaughter House on Gardnersville Road

near residential quarters where animals are killed and sold further buttress our

outcries of the



environmental exposure that equally threatens public health. To further

elaborate on the oil spills in the Borough of New Kru Town, the spillages have

saturated communities and have threatened human lives, marine pollution and

domestic animals. For over three years the oil spill in the Borough of New Kru

Town was brought to the attention of the EPAL and LEC and the Liberian

Government, but these unsafe health conditions have not be resolved either by

decontamination or any other means. Our children, pregnant women (our nation

builders) and our most vulnerable elderly, painfully live in these conditions

with no viable option.



  Africa Environmental Watch strongly believes that there should and must be an

answer from the EPAL, and your establishment is one that bears the power which

we feel can speak to the outcries for the people of Liberia. Similar case can be

made of many other communities in Monrovia and its environs victimized by the

unbearable filth and toxic dispersion in their communities. These residents are

voiceless and helpless and are only left to face the uncertainties of poor

environmental conditions, which as you know, are so pronounced by one’s

visible eyes.



Dumpsites in Liberia which are currently the normal ways to collect and dispose

of trash in Liberia are not the recommended environmentally engineered sanitary

landfill, and therefore have been relocated from one community to the other. 

These dumpsites presents another challenge by adding insult to injury due to

their locations which creates an outpour of infestations, and deadly diseases in

communities via vector borne and infectious diseases, and the release of

horrible gaseous odors with serious health consequences.



Of equal concerns are the concession agreements signed by the EPAL with big

companies whose activities have the potential to compromise Liberia’s

environmental integrity. If the EPAL is not vigilant and proactive enough, then

history could repeat itself as was in the past at the expense of our people and

the ecosystem. The EPAL, by virtual of the Act that created it is charged with

the responsibility to protect and manage the nation's environment, and has yet

to make public the environmental management plan (EMP) of many corporations for

public review.



Is the EPAL delivering to its full capacity or just a government NGO? There are

many concerns that linger to which the EPAL has an obligation to explain to the

Liberia people. It is equally necessary to question whether the EPAL has been

given the necessary resources needed by the Administration or foreign donors to

meet the needs and challenges for protecting and managing the environment.  It

is the concern of AEW that Liberia does not have a sanitary landfill.  The

current program lacks effective, measurable and achievable mechanism for proper

garbage collection. The effort in itself, from all indication appears

directionless, and  EPA’s role is obscured.  There are passionate and

committed hearts out there that is ready to clean up garbage, but due to the

lack of effective, sustainable and strategically guided roadmap, their efforts

appear to amount to an aimless exercise to which there are no measurable

results.



It is our firm recommendation that the EPAL connects with communities with a

robust environmental educational awareness and community empowerment plan to

tackle domestic environmental concerns.



The recent Climate Change Summit in Copenhagen, Denmark, to which Liberia was

well represented, speaks volume to the importance of the environment. According

to the EPAL, Liberia received $3 million of the $5.1 million promised through

the Global Environmental Fund (GEF), to develop programs to combat climate

variability in three counties in Liberia.  AEW believes that EPAL has an

obligation to disclose these activities including many others yet to be

disclosed. The public has the right to know what is unfolding at the EPAL.



Accountability and transparency can and should not be compromised. Front Page

Africa, your voice as a media power house can help our advocacy efforts and save

lives. Your voice certainly could not have come at a more relevant time than at

this very crucial moment. No one is immune to poor environmental conditions, not

even FPA.

Our efforts and that of many others can only succeed if institution like yours

can understand the relevance of the environment, its people, and prosperity, by

giving voice to every ounce of it. Those that are impacted are the less

fortunate ones who account for over 85 percent of the population. The EPAL

should be held by similar public standards and be accountable for these

environmental paralyses under its legal jurisdiction?



If we collectively failed to bring the issues to the full, we would have equally

be considered culprits to the soaring neglect and suffering of our people from

an environmental standpoint.



Africa Environmental Watch (AEW) recognizes your invaluable services in

providing useful information for public consumption - please do justice to the

environment as well.





Morris T. Koffa, is Executive Director, African Environmental Watch (AEW). He

lives in Bowie, Maryland.  He can be reached at:

Africa Environmental Watch

4207 Plummers Promise Drive, Suite 100

Bowie, MD 20720

Phone: 240-417-2545

http://africaenvironmentalwatch.org.



© 2002 Sungbeh Communications. All Rights Reserved



+++



6) Liberian economic growth to accelerate on iron ore - IMF

Saturday, 02 Jan 2010



Bloomberg quoted the International Monetary Fund as saying that Liberia’s

economy will expand 7.5% by 2010 and economic growth may rise to double digits

from 2011 to 2013 as the country restarts iron ore mines.



IMF said that tax revenue from the iron ore mines is expected to rise to USD 260

million by 2014, equivalent to 17% of gross domestic product.



(Sourced from Bloomberg)



+++



7) Why development eludes Africa

Friday, January 01, 2010



By Femi Akinwumi



MOST countries in Sub-Saharan Africa are underdeveloped and a handful others

remained in the developing category for several decades with no substantial

growth to allow them join the elite group of developed nations of the world.

Various socio-economic indicators for growth and development such as Gross

Domestic Product (GDP), life expectancy at birth, infant and maternal mortality

rates, literacy rate, percentage of population living below poverty line etc,

are abysmal and discouraging compared to other emerging economies in Asia and

South America . How many countries from Africa constitute the new G20 Nations

mandated to chart a new course for revamping world economy out of recession?



Development in African countries is a far cry from the abundant human and

natural resources the continent is endowed with. Africa is blessed with high

yielding minerals in the international market -Oil, gold, Diamond, Copper, Iron

Ore; good and favourable environmental conditions; fertile, arable soil; many

rivers suitable for agricultural and transport



purposes; and bounded by a couple of oceans. We have failed to put all these

God-given endowments into good use and uplift the living standards of hundreds

of millions of our people. Our children and mothers still die unnecessarily of

hunger and of preventable and curable diseases.



To a very large extent, bad leadership in government and other public

institutions is responsible for these woes and sheer lack of growth in many

African economies. Damaging impact of several years of military dictatorship is

yet to wane in Uganda , Somalia , Liberia , Sudan , Serria-Leone , Rwanda and

Nigeria . The sit-tight syndrome of many African leaders in power has denied

injection of fresh and novel ideas, and new direction into governance in many

countries.



Robert Mogabe, an octogenarian, has refused to relinquish power having been the

President of Zimbabwe for nearly one-third of a century. His countrymen now face

extreme galloping inflation rate, near total collapse of public institutions and

facilities and worsening socio-economic situations. The Nigerian former civilian

Head of State, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo spent the better part of his first term

in office globe-trotting and the second term settling scores with his Vice, only

to embark on the ill-fated third term agenda after he realised he had wasted his

constitutional eight years in office.



Now, President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua critical health condition has in the last

five weeks, put the running of state's affairs on hold leaving many urgent

national assignments unattended to, and many sensitive issues unresolved. Why

can't the Vice-President act effectively in his boss's capacity when Mr.

President is indisposed? Why is it difficult for an African leader to relinquish

the position of authority when it is crystal clear his time is long overdue or

he is incapacitated? Should these leaders wait till they are booted out of

office, or when an eventuality happens?



Act of governance must be viewed as a serious task that has time frame, and

requires great energy, physical and mental strength to address various problems

bedeviling these nations head-on



from inception to the last day in office. There is no time to lose and everyday

counts. Any leader who is patriotic and placed national interest above personal

ambition would not hesitate to toll the line of honour by tendering his

resignation letter whenever his action or inaction threatens the integrity of

office he occupies or becomes a cogwheel on the path of national



glory and development. This is what honourable, good leaders do in developed and

decent climes. Corruption of our moral values and looting of public treasury are

other factors that have perpetuated Sub-Saharan Africa in the pangs of under

development. It's become fashionable in Africa for politicians to use public

offices as avenue to siphon and divert funds meant for public good into their

own accounts and starch them in foreign banks. Only in Africa and a few other

low economies in South America and South East Asia do people get paid for

contracts not executed or shoddily done without questioning. In my view, it's

criminal and suicidal for any leader to embezzle funds dedicated for projects

that would improve lives of many of their nationals, and such individual should

face the full wrath of the law.



Integrity, hard work and brotherhood which hitherto have been the hallmark o f

many cultures and tribes in Africa, are fast giving way to an alien culture of

greediness, "get-rich-quickly"



mentality, and self-aggrandisement at the expense of the larger society. Africa

's move towards sustainable development is seriously threatened by the double

jeopardy of mediocrity and indiscipline. These societal misdemeanors have

plagued every facet of our national and private lives. Pursuit of excellence by

leaders and citizens alike has been relegated to the background. Mediocrity

breeds half-baked professionals who are deficient in policy formulation and

implementation, with consequent little or no positive impact on national

development.



In Nigeria, the failure of our banks; misdiagnosis and poor health care

delivery; incidence of collapsed buildings and non-durable road networks;

inconsistence in judicial pronouncements from our court rooms; poor performance

of federal and states' permanent secretaries in recent promotion assessment;

examination malpractices in primary and post-primary education, and the dismal

performance of our sport men and women in the last Beijing Olympics and absence

of Nigerians among world top rated footballers are pointers to an unacceptable

level which the twin



of mediocrity and indiscipline has eroded our national pride and diminute our

sectoral growth. For real growth and sustainable development to come to Africa ,

we must take our destiny into our hands and look inwards for home-grown solution

to our problems. Overdependence on foreign aids and ideals will not help as

much.



True Democracy must be entrenched in all African countries. The process of

selecting our leaders must be transparent, and should lie solely in the people.

Election rigging, imposition of candidates and "civilian dictatorship" need to

be done away forthwith. Those who rule over affairs of men must rule justly. The

anti-corruption agencies set up in many African countries should fight the

menace of corruption with renew zeal and vigour. We must show moral rectitude

even in the face of daunting challenges of poverty, hunger and other

socio-economic woes.



Finally, governments in Africa need to create enabling environment that will

promote culture of excellence among its citizen, young and old. Merits must be

accorded priority and placed above "name droppings", favouritism and nepotism in

job opportunities, school admissions and awards of contracts.



* Dr. Akinwumi is of the University College Hospital, Ibadan , Oyo State.

© 2003 - 2009 @ Guardian Newspapers Limited (All Rights Reserved).



+++



8) Angola to attend Gourmet coffee project

Jornal de Angola

12/31/09 6:10 PM



Luanda



Luanda – The secretary of the Inter-African Coffee Organisation (IACO),

Josefa Correia Sacko, announced this Thursday here that Angola will in 2010 take

part in the project on coffee production “Gourmet” (special coffee)

alongside countries such as Tanzania and Uganda.



"The idea of producing this type of coffee came from Tanzania and was approved

by the Council of the International Coffee Organisation, last September, which

aims at producing a special coffee", Josefa Sacko told ANGOP whilst balancing

the activity of the organisation that chairs.



According to the source, Angola will also host a symposium, in 2010, on the

Angolan coffee farming, which will include a review of the African coffee and

its prospects.



Concerning the IACO, the Angolan diplomat said that one of the priorities shall

be reviving the African coffee farming, starting with negotiating the funding

with the African Development Ban, the World Bank and the European Union.



She also said that the Economic Community of Western African States (ECOWAS)

financed approximately USD 72,000 for the rehabilitation of coffee plantations

in Liberia and Sierra Leone.



TPA - Televisão Pública de Angola

RNA - Rádio Nacional de Angola

Jornal de Angola

© 1997 - 2008 Angop. All rights reserved.



+++



9) Pleebo University Students Ask GOL To Nullify The Reported Agreement Between

GOL and Salala Rubber Investment



The Perspective

Atlanta, Georgia

December 31, 2009





We, the University Students of Pleebo Sodoken District, have observed with

outmost disappointment the unfavorable State of Affairs at the Cavalla Rubber

Plantation in Pleebo Sodoken District, Maryland County where the company is

taking gross disadvantage of our people.



Enroute to Cavalla Plantation to Meet With SRI Leaders, President Sirleaf Meets

Elders and Chiefs at the Harper Airport

We are particularly troubled by the allegations of bribery that some members of

the Maryland Legislative Caucus received US$50,000.00 each from the Salala

Rubber Investment (SRI) Company to influence their decision to grant the company

the contract to operate the Cavalla Rubber Plantation in the Pleebo/Sodoken

District as was reported in the New Broom News Paper published on Monday,

September 14, 2009.



We have followed with keen interest the Law suit filed by the President against

the New Broom News Paper. It will be prejudicial on our part to give any opinion

now in this regard. We will therefore allow the legal process to be carried out

to its logical conclusion.



Our paramount concern in the awarding of the contract to the SRI is justice for

the people that we want. We want our people to be given fair treatment when it

comes to making decision on their behalf.



Reflecting upon the contract agreement reportedly signed between the Government

of Liberia (GOL) and the Salala Rubber Investment (SRI/CRC), we were surprised

to hear that the contract was signed in favor of the lower bidder, the SRI,

instead of the higher bidder, the BSP, that offered more benefits to the

Government, the people of Maryland County and Pleebo/Sodoken District in

particular.



We reviewed the packages presented in the expression of interest (EOI) to

Government by the two main competing parties (Bakrie Sumatra Plantation, BSP and

SRI). We were convinced that the proposal presented by BSP would have attracted

much interest from the Government initiators whereby BSP could have been

declared the winner of the bid. To the contrary, our Government chose the SRI.

According to the documents we reviewed, SRI offered to pay to the Government US

$2.3m for the 50% share of the Government while BSP offered US $ 6.3m for the

same equity.



Besides, we read with deep interest the action plan of the BSP which contains

more development initiatives than any other we have read so far. It thus beats

our imagination that Government could leave 6.3Million dollars option from BSP

and opt to offer the contract to SRI which offered 2.3m for the same 50% share

of the Government.



Therefore, we are here to call upon our Government that for the desire for

justice, the same approach used in the cases of Firestone, Metal Steel and

Western Cluster companies be used in bringing peace, justice and harmony to the

people of Maryland County and the Pleebo/Sodoken District in particular. We hail

the uncompromising stance of the Government on those issues that brought

justice, Peace and harmony among the citizens of the counties involved. In

short, we are appealing to the Government to nullify the agreement awarding the

50% of Government’s share of the CRC to the SRI and start the bidding process

afresh.



We believe that with Government’s emphases on Poverty Reduction, Free Primary

Education, Primary Health Care Delivery System, Road Construction, and so forth,

our people in the district



and the entire county, deserve the best for them from the Government.

Government’s prudential handling of this situation is necessary to ensure that

the benefits intended for our people in terms of employment, infrastructural

development and the provision of basic social services can clearly be spelt out

in Black and White as it was done in the case of Metal Steel in Nimba,



Bong and Grand Bassa Counties, and should not be left out to the discretion of

the concessionaire. It will also ensure that such benefits will be free of undue

interference and political



manipulation from any power that be.



It is our hope and trust that our concerns expressed in here will be given

timely consideration by the Government for the good of the Liberian citizens

living in the Southeast of the



country.





Signed _________________



Ezekiel H. S. Nubo

General Secretary, PSUSU

231-6-536-294





Approved: ___________________

Mr. Peter Klar

President, PSUSU



Witnesses: (See attached list of witnesses)

© 2009 by The Perspective

E-mail: editor@...



+++



10) Smallholder Agriculture Transforms Lives of Poor

Manyewu Mutamba and Leslie Nyagah

23 December 2009



guest column



Africa's failure to transform its agriculture sector as rapidly as the rest of

the developing world has left an abiding legacy of poverty and hunger. A huge

increase in the number of people living in absolute poverty underscores the need

for urgent attention to measures that could promote agricultural growth in

Sub-Saharan Africa.



Smallholders and pastoralists practicing traditional agriculture comprise 80

percent of all farm holdings in Sub-Saharan Africa. Although its contribution to

gross domestic product (GDP)



is declining, agriculture remains an important economic sector in Africa,

contributing around 25 per cent of GDP, compared with the world average of less

than seven per cent.



The sector provides jobs for 70 percent of the labour force as well as a

livelihood for more than 65 per cent of the population. Apart from which, it is

a major source of raw materials as well as a market for finished products.



The population of the sub-Saharan Africa region is projected to grow from some

770 million in 2005 to about two billion in 2050. Despite urban migration, the

absolute number of rural dwellers will continue to grow.



Producing more food for a growing population while at the same time combating

poverty and hunger are the main challenges facing African agriculture in the

coming decades. The risks that come with climate change make this task even more

daunting.



The dominance of smallholder agriculture on the continent means that short- and

medium-term agricultural growth and poverty reduction prospects will be closely

linked with successful transformation of this sector.



Given the urgent need to transform African agriculture, the sluggish performance

of the sector over the past few decades is disconcerting.



Growth rates in the sector across sub-Saharan Africa have been a modest 3.3

percent a year since 2000. Only a handful of countries   Ethiopia, Mali,

Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal and The Gambia   have surpassed the Comprehensive

Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) threshold of 6 percent

agricultural growth in recent years.



Crop output has been increasing, but this is largely driven by the expansion of

cultivated land rather than productivity gains. For instance, between 1990 and

2006 the area under



cultivation increased by more than 10 percent annually while cereal yields over

the same period were largely stagnant, averaging around 1.2 tonnes per hectare

in the region, compared to 3 tonnes per hectare in the developing world as a

whole.



Foremost amongst the factors that undermine smallholder agriculture is the gross

undercapitalization of the sector. Investment in key areas such as research,

infrastructure development, mechanization, irrigation, value chain development

and human capital development lags behind that in other developing regions and

has actually declined over the past decade.



For instance public spending on agricultural research and development in the

region between 1981 and 2000 grew at only 0.6 percent a year on average, and

actually fell during the 1990s. At the same time, donor support for agricultural

research declined from U.S. $6 billion in 1980 to $3 billion in 2006 and World

Bank lending to agriculture in general decreased from $8 billion in 1980 to $2

billion in 2004.



Governments have had to rely more on domestic sources – Botswana, Burundi,

Ethiopia, Gabon, Malawi and the Sudan already fund more than 60 per cent of

agricultural research from domestic



sources. But the private sector contributes only two per cent of total

agricultural research funding in Africa, ranging from 1.6 per cent in East

Africa to about 4.3 per cent in South Africa.



We urgently need to see an increase in government spending to promote

agricultural growth and poverty reduction. Expenditure on agricultural research

as a percentage of agricultural GDP worldwide is more than 2.5 per cent in

developed countries but only 0.6 per cent in developing countries and 0.7 per

cent in Africa.



The lack of adequate investment in agriculture has persisted despite numerous

continent-wide and regional protocols by African governments and their

development partners.



For instance, at the Maputo Summit, African leaders agreed to devote at least 10

per cent of their public expenditure to agriculture, with the aim of attaining

agricultural growth rates of about six percent annually. But according to NEPAD,

only 19 per cent of African countries have reached the target.



While Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Malawi, and Mali have surpassed the 10 percent

threshold of budgetary spending on agriculture in recent years, nearly of

African countries reduced their spending on the sector. As a percentage of

agricultural gross domestic product, African agricultural spending was only half

that of Asia in 2005.



The benefits of agricultural investments have been well documented. They can

have significant positive effects on growth and poverty reduction, given the

sector's strong linkages with other sectors.



In many cases government agricultural spending has contributed substantially to

agricultural productivity and rural household income, household consumption and

poverty reduction. For instance, for each unit of local currency spent on the

agricultural sector, on average 10 local currency units are earned by increased

agricultural productivity or income, according to studies conducted in several

African countries.



In countries such as India and Thailand, public investments in agriculture have

substantially reduced rural poverty by stimulating agricultural growth and

reducing food prices. Investments in other key facets of the rural economy such

as road infrastructure and education have also been shown to have large positive

outcomes. These findings suggest that the "how" of agricultural spending can be

as important as the "how much".



Changing the face of African agriculture will require a change in mindset, not

only on the part of political leadership but also among farmers and civil

society in general.





Faatimah Hendricks/AllAfrica

Most African governments have clearly not prioritised agricultural

transformation and continue to treat smallholder agriculture as just a way of

life for a peasant population, with little to contribute towards economic growth

and poverty alleviation. The farmers have also remained poorly organised, and

fail to lobby for an adequate share of public resources.



Purposeful and sustained engagement of these stakeholders is required to unlock

the potential of smallholder agriculture as the best option for transforming the

lives of large numbers of poor households in rural communities across Africa.



Manyewu Mutamba and Leslie Nyagah work with the Economic Governance Programme of

the Institute for Democracy in Africa, based in South Africa.



Copyright © 2009 allAfrica.com. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica

Global Media (allAfrica.com).



+++



11)See also: http://liberianature.blogspot.com/



###



Complete archives at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Nature_Liberia/

1) Sierra Leone: Ban on lucrative logging industry, 2) Liberia faces choice

between deforestation and REDD, 3) Africom - Latest U.S. Bid to Recolonise the

Continent, 4) HNYSDK proved a big iron ore mine oversea, expects to 4bln tons,

5) U.S.$ 1.6 Billion Oil Palm Investment for Country As Boakai Lauds Indonesian

Company, 6) Biting the Hand that Feeds, 7) Fire Engulfs Cassava Research Project

at CARI, 8) DIAMONDS IN THE MORGUE, 9) Demonstration in Nimba: Citizens Feel

Marginalized, 10) Liberia debates logging its tropical timber, 11) Fire engulfs

CARI - cassava uniform yield trails destroyed, 12)See also:

http://liberianature.blogspot.com/







1) Sierra Leone: Ban on lucrative logging industry

govt. seeks to protect environment

© afrik.com

Monday 11 January 2010 / by Konye Obaji Ori





The Sierra Leone forestry guard has warned of impending environmental hazards

following the indiscriminate deforestation practices in the country. This

warning has forced the government to place a ban on all wood felling and export.



The Sierra Leone forestry guard has warned of impending environmental hazards

following the indiscriminate deforestation practices in the country. This

warning has forced the government to place a ban on all wood felling and export.



"Illegal logging is having adverse effect on the country’s environment and

depleting the ozone layer and must be stopped with immediate effect. Any

violations of the logging export ban could result in court fines and

confiscation of property," a statement from the presidency read.



According to reports, the ban has not only come as a result of environmental

fears, but also as a need to check the largely unmonitored industry.

       

Trade and customs officials say logs of wood worth tens of millions of dollars

were smuggled out of the country to the Middle East and Southeast Asia.



The ban according to some officials would have some effect on the economy, given

the logging industry is a multimillion dollar industry.



Executive director of the Sierra Leone environmental group, Emmanuel Touray,

said there are only 10 registered logging companies in the country, and the

majority of the logging companies operate illegally. Nonetheless, previous

actions taken against illegal loggers has, according to forestry officials,

ended in meager fines, usually less than 500 dollars, after a protracted court

case.



But the latest government initiative [the ban] is said to be the most effective

punishment thus far. Conversely, most forest guard officials expect the

government to draft new legislation to protect Sierra Leone’s forest and

environment.



According to environmental studies, deforestation presents multiple societal and

environmental problems. Some of these consequences include: loss of

biodiversity; the destruction of forest-based-societies; and climatic

disruption. Deforestation is causing a loss of biological diversity on an

unprecedented scale.



Across Africa, environmental researchers have discovered that the removal of

trees without sufficient reforestation has resulted in damage to habitat,

biodiversity loss and aridity. The practice has had adverse impacts on the

capture and storage of the atmospheric carbon dioxide. According to the experts,

deforested regions typically incur significant adverse soil erosion and

frequently degrade into wasteland.



© afrik.com



+++



2) Liberia faces choice between deforestation and REDD

Atlantic Rising (blog) (opinion)

Tim Bromfield

11th January, 2010



If alternatives to deforestation like REDD do not arrive soon Liberia's

remaining rainforest cover is likely to go the same way as its neighbours in

Cote d'Ivoire



Liberia is in a quandary over its forests: should it pursue a low carbon economy

or develop commercial forestry?



With deforestation contributing about 18 per cent to global greenhouse gas

emissions and the global community committed to cutting deforestation by half by

2020, this is a dilemma of more than local concern.



Historically, there has been a low deforestation rate in Liberia and today 40

per cent of the country is covered by rainforest. This marks it out from its

neighbours: Sierra Leone, where only 5 per cent of the original forest remains,

and Cote d’Ivoire, which exported hardwoods on a level with Brazil in 2002.



Blood timber



Part of the reason for the low deforestation rate is because the UN placed

timber sanctions on Liberia in 2003.



This occurred in reaction to the Charles Taylor regime which used exports of

blood timber (as well as diamonds) to fuel arms trafficking and sponsor the

Revolutionary United Front, notorious for its campaign of rape and amputation,

in its struggle in Sierra Leone.



With a return to relative stability UN sanctions were lifted in 2006 and all

timber contracts were declared null and void.



Today government policy suggests Liberia is moving towards high levels of timber

extraction. Their Poverty Reduction Strategy forecasts forestry revenues to grow

from US $500,000 in 2008 to US $24million in 2010.



REDD



Despite this, Liberia has entered the REDD scheme – Reducing Emissions from

Deforestation and Degradation – which uses financial incentives to reduce

greenhouse gas emissions. But it is a long and complicated process.



Although Liberia has completed the first step drawing a US $200,000 grant, there

are concerns that it lacks the capability to handle complex carbon accounting

and the institutions to manage the financial flows.



So it is possible that Liberia will not be deemed ready and REDD investments

diverted to better functioning, but less needy, economies.



This may all be academic. REDD remains incomplete in the aftermath of

Copenhagen, and a deal on hold until the UNFCCC meets in Mexico in December

2010.



Prince's Rainforest Project



In its absence other processes  to protect the world’s tropical rainforests

are underway. A source of salvation may be the Prince’s Rainforests Project,

which has developed a proposal for emergency financing for tropical forests, and

could provide interim funding while the creases in REDD are ironed out.



One thing is clear, if developed countries do not act to support and reward

countries like Liberia for protecting their carbon stocks, there will be no

quandary. Developing countries with high forest cover will continue to chop down

their trees to fuel development.





Atlantic Rising (blog) (opinion)



+++



3) Africom - Latest U.S. Bid to Recolonise the Continent

January 12, 2010

"The Real Terrorism is This Occupation"        

by Tichaona Nhamoyebonde



   

Global Research, January 9, 2010

The Herald (Zimbabwe) - 2010-01-07

     



African revolutionaries now have to sleep with one eye open because the United

States of America is not stopping at anything in its bid to establish Africom, a

highly-equipped US army that will be permanently resident in Africa to oversee

the country's imperialist interests.



Towards the end of last year, the US government intensified its efforts to bring

a permanent army to settle in Africa, dubbed the African Command (Africom) as a

latest tool for the subtle recolonisation of Africa.



Just before end of last year, General William E. Garret, Commander US Army for

Africa, met with defence attaches from all African embassies in Washington to

lure them into selling the idea of an American army based in Africa to their

governments. Latest reports from the White House this January indicate that 75

percent of the army's establishment work has been done through a military unit

based in Stuttgart, Germany, and that what is left is to get an African country

to host the army and get things moving.



Liberia and Morocco have offered to host Africom while the Southern African

Development Community (SADC)  has closed out any possibility of any of its

member states hosting the US army.



Other individual countries have remained quiet.



Liberia has longstanding ties with the US due to its slave history while errant

Morocco, which is not a member of the African Union and does not hold elections,

might want the US army to assist it to suppress any future democratic uprising.



SADC's refusal is a small victory for the people of Africa in their struggle for

total independence but the rest of the regional blocs in Africa are yet to come

up with a common position. This is worrying.



The US itself wanted a more strategic country than Morocco and Liberia since the

army will be the epicentre of influencing, articulating and safeguarding US

foreign and economic policies. The other danger is that Africom will open up

Africa as a battleground between America and anti-US terrorist groups.



Africom is a smokescreen behind which America wants to hide its means to secure

Africa's oil and other natural resources, nothing more.



African leaders must not forget that military might has been used by America and

Europe again and again as the only effective way of accomplishing their agenda

in ensuring that governments in each country are run by people who toe their

line.



By virtue of its being resident in Africa, Africom will ensure that America has

its tentacles easily reaching every African country and influencing every event

to the American advantage.



By hosting the army, Africa will have sub-contracted its military independence

to America and will have accepted the process that starts its recolonisation

through an army that can subdue any attempts by Africa to show its own military

prowess.



The major question is: Who will remove Africom once it is established? By what

means?



By its origin Africom will be technically and financially superior to any

African country's army and will dictate the pace for regime change in any

country at will and also give depth, direction and impetus to the US natural

resource exploitation scheme.



There is no doubt that as soon as the army gets operational in Africa, all the

gains of independence will be reversed.



If the current leadership in Africa succumbs to the whims of the US and accept

the operation of this army in Africa, they will go down in the annals of history

as that generation of politicians who accepted the evil to prevail.



Even William Shakespeare would turn and twist in his grave and say: "I told you

guys that it takes good men to do nothing for evil to prevail."



We must not forget that Africans, who are still smarting from

colonialism-induced humiliation, subjugation, brutality and inferiority complex,

do not need to be taken back to another form of colonialism, albeit subtle.



Africom has been controversial on the continent ever since former US president

George W. Bush first announced it in February 2007.



African leaders must not forget that under the Barack Obama administration, US

policy towards Africa and the rest of the developing world has not changed an

inch. It remains militaristic and materialistic.



Officials in both the Bush and Obama administrations argue that the major

objective of Africom is to professionalise security forces in key countries

across Africa.



However, both administrations do not attempt to address the impact of the

setting up of Africom on minority parties, governments and strong leaders

considered errant or whether the US will not use Africom to promote friendly

dictators.



Training and weapons programmes and arms transfers from Ukraine to Equatorial

Guinea, Chad, Ethiopia and the transitional government in Somalia, clearly

indicate the use of military might to maintain influence in governments in

Africa, remains a priority of US foreign policy.



Ukraine's current leadership was put into power by the US under the Orange

Revolution and is being given a free role to supply weaponry in African

conflicts.



African leaders must show solidarity and block every move by America to set up

its bases in the motherland unless they want to see a new round of colonisation.



Kwame Nkrumah, Robert Mugabe, Sam Nujoma, Nelson Mandela, Julius Nyerere,

Hastings Kamuzu Banda, Kenneth Kaunda, Augustino Neto and Samora Machel, among

others, will have fought liberation wars for nothing, if Africom is allowed a

base in Africa.



Thousands of Africans who died in colonial prisons and in war fronts during the

liberation struggles, will have shed their blood for nothing if Africa is

recolonised.



Why should the current crop of African leaders accept systematic recolonisation

when they have learnt a lot from colonialism, apartheid and racism? Why should

the current crop of African leaders fail to stand measure for measure against

the US administration and tell it straight in the face that Africa does not need

a foreign army since the AU is working out its own army.



African leaders do not need prophets from Mars to know that US's fascination

with oil, the war on terrorism and the military will now be centred on Africa,

after that escapade in Iraq.



Tichaona Nhamoyebonde is a political scientist based in Cape Town, South Africa.





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+++



4) HNYSDK proved a big iron ore mine oversea, expects to 4bln tons

Published: 08 Jan 2010 01:04:20 PST



January 8 MetalBiz--Reporters learnt from Henan Provincial Non-ferrous Metals

Geological and Mineral Resources Bureau on January 7 that the second geological

unit found a large iron ore mine in Middle Eastern of Liberia, the total

resource is estimated to be up to 4bln tons, thereinto, the proved iron ore

resource was 1.3bln tons.



It is introduced that the project is cooperated by second unit of Provincial

Non-ferrous Metals Geological and Mineral Resources Bureau and China Union

Investment, which is China's first mine with 100% of stake overseas. The mine

has a total area of 352 square kilometers and 35 kilometers of length. The

quality of geological environment and the exploiting technology of ore deposit

are in good condition.



Experts said that presently China's iron ore fines is very short, the discovery

of the mine played a significant role in alleviating the situation of tense

supply.



According to the principal from Non-ferrous Metals Geological and Mineral

Resources Bureau, until now, the Bureau has gotten the exploring right of 38

mines with an areas of 37.26 square kilometers totally.



Source: MetalBiz



+++



5) U.S.$ 1.6 Billion Oil Palm Investment for Country As Boakai Lauds Indonesian

Company

The Informer (Monrovia)





8 January 2010



Liberia's Vice President Joseph N. Boakai says the US$1.6 billion investment by

GoldenVeroleum, a member of the Singapore listed Golden Agri Resources Company,

will help the Unity party-led government provide the needed employment

opportunities in southeastern Liberia.



Golden Agri Resources is the largest palm oil operator in Indonesia and second

largest in the world with operations in China. It belongs to the Sinar Mas, one

of the leading business groups in Indonesia, with major assets in pulp and

paper, palm oil, property and telecoms.



Vice President Boakai observed that the southeast has attractive investment

opportunities and prospects and that the Veroleum investment is going to be very

positive for Liberia.



Vice President Boakai made the observation on Tuesday, January 5, when a

delegation from GoldenVeroleum called on him at his Capitol Building office to

brief him about their plan to invest US$1.6 billion in Liberia's oil palm

industry.



"Employment and job creation have been difficult in the southeast; so we are

very keen on this investment. You have our full support," Vice President Boakai

assured the Veroleum officials. "Despite all problems we are confronted with, we

are definitely committed to addressing the critical challenges in the South

East," he added.



Briefing Vice President Boakai earlier, the head of the delegation, Mr. Matt

Karinen, said his company's vision in Liberia is to cultivate over 240,000

hectares of oil palm in Grand Kru, Sinoe and Maryland Counties, (including

40,000 hectares via out growers) hoping to produce more than one million tons of

palm oil per annum.



He said the company will provide direct employment for an estimated 40,000

persons, as well as develop infrastructure, train out growers and provide them

low cost seedlings for cultivation and producing the final brand of consumer

products for local consumption and export to ECOWAS countries.



"The investment will also fully follow the Government's environmental master

plan and standards," Mr. Karinen assured Vice President Boakai.



He disclosed that Veroleum will wish to work through rehabilitated ports of

Greenville and Harper for export of oil palm products and import needed

materials.



Mr. Karinen expressed optimism that Veroleum and other palm oil producing

companies like Equatorial Palm Oil and Sime Darby can transform Liberia into one

of the major producers of palm oil in the world, meeting domestic needs and for

export.



Mr. Karinen and his colleague, Mr. David Rothschild, who are currently holding

discussions with officials of the Ministry of Agriculture, Environmental

Protection Agency, National Investment Commission and other relevant agencies,

expressed optimism that the company would begin operations in six months, and

hoped the legislature would speed up ratification of the concession agreement.



The Veroleum official disclosed that his company would forge a symbiotic

relationship with small farmers otherwise known as out growers, training them,

supplying them low cost seeds and other materials and integrating them in farm

cooperatives and providing them loans.



Mr. Karinen challenged the Liberian government to take advantage of the

country's rich soil and ideal climate to transform the lives of its citizens as

has been the case in Indonesia and Malaysia.



In remarks during the meeting, Mr. Rothschild said he was impressed with the

transformation taking place in post-war Liberia, noting that he has seen

considerable increase in building and in commercial ventures in the capital

since he started coming to the country about fifteen months ago.



Copyright © 2010 The Informer. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica

Global Media (allAfrica.com).

AllAfrica - All the Time



+++



6) Biting the Hand that Feeds

Liberian Observer

Updated: January 8, 2010 - 3:26pm



Editorial





One of the important pillars upon which this government is constructing its

Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS) is by increasing production in the supply of

homegrown crops heavily relied upon for daily consumption and subsistence in

Liberia.



This policy is designed to increase production in the agricultural sector. Where

successful, increased production will be followed by the building of adequate

storage facilities, a marketing strategy and improved road conditions to

facilitate rapid farm-to-market activities.



At the end of last year, the President was asked about accomplishments made in

her government by her various ministries that had directly improved the lives of

the people.



The President readily referred to the strides made in the agricultural sector.

There were bumper crops of rice, cassava and of other food groups on which the

population depends largely for consumption and for revenue generation.



It goes without saying that apart from rice, the population largely relies upon

cassava. In its versatility, it can be boiled and eaten with a variety of

sauces, or pounded to make fufu and dumboy. Because of our dependence on cassava

as one of the staple foods of the nation, a project designed to promote the

cassava industry is being carried out at the Central Agricultural Research

Institute (CARI) in Suakoko, Bong County.



Several varieties of high yielding cassava in an area spanning 16 acres had been

planted. The plan was to distribute the sticks to farmers for planting.



Mysteriously, or shall we say, mischievously, elements in Gbarnga torched the

area and destroyed the nursery. Fingers are pointing to subsistence farmers, who

use the slash-and-burn method to clear their farmlands.



Authorities at CARI and in Gbarnga need to establish a no-go area where

squatters cannot enter; those caught within the no-go area should be held for

criminal trespass.



The farmers and community dwellers in those areas bordering CARI should be made

mindful that the activities of CARI are intended to improve farmers’

agriculture pursuits, and that therefore, they should be cooperating with the

effort – not destroying it. Perhaps it has now become imperative for local

governments to monitor and or control slash-and-burn operations.



Community dwellers must be conscious that they too have a responsibility to

embrace government efforts and promote programs that are intended to make them

stand on their own feet.



Any action that is counter-productive to government’s development efforts and

programs is akin to biting the hand that feeds you. A continuation is

interpreted as sabotage.

In carrying out its programs, government seeks community and individual

cooperation in order to meet the common goal of improving life and raising

standard which is the expectation of all Liberians.

Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.



Copyright 2009 | Liberian Observer Online | www.LiberianObserver.com



+++



7) Fire Engulfs Cassava Research Project at CARI

Liberian Observer

Updated: January 7, 2010 - 9:07pm



[photo: fire destroys cassava field.jpg The burnt-out cassava farm at CARI]



BONG – A project designed to promote the cassava industry at the Central

Agricultural Research Institute (CARI) Compound in Suakoko, Bong County, has

been destroyed by fire.



The cassava Uniform Yield Trial (UYT), located in the main crop research and

production site on the west wing of the compound was set ablaze by unknown

persons last Saturday during the evening hours, according to a report.



The UYT, a continental trial being coordinated by the International Institute

for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) involving 22 national programs, commenced early

2007 during the tenure of former Agriculture Minister, Dr. Chris Toe.



The cassava research project would have distributed about seven varieties of the

15 cassava genotypes as well as industrial and food quality materials to

farmers.



The IITA provides a yearly grant of US$20,000 to CARI for the trial. The

Government of Liberia, through its regular budget, contributes to land

preparation, agro-chemicals and labor in the amount of about US$150,000.



According to a Ministry of Agriculture situation report on the setback at the

CARI, a total of 6.47 hectares (or 16 acres) of cassava in the UYT and the

seeding nurseries, which were intended to lay a foundation for future cassava

farm work at CARI, were destroyed by the fire.



It can be recalled that a similar fire incident occurred on the east side of

CARI at the beginning of 2009 destroying about four hectares of cassava and 44

solo papaya (Paw-Paw) plants that were adjacent the cassava trials.



In December of 2009, about 1.5 acres of yam from the Yam Seed Multiplication

Site were stolen (harvested) from CARI.



Reports have it that there are many squatters in and around the CARI vicinity.

The squatters are involved in the cultivation of sugar cane and other cash

crops. These local farmers, like any other subsistence farmer, use the

slash-and-burn method in clearing their farmlands.



The presence of these squatters in CARI, while an important research such as the

UYT was ongoing, remains unclear. Efforts made by this reporter to contact the

former Agriculture Minister, Toe, did not materialize up to press time.



The current Minister of Agriculture, Madam Florence A. Chenoweth, could also not

be reached for her position on the situation at CARI and what can be done to

avoid a recurrence of arson at the research center.

0Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.



Copyright 2009 | Liberian Observer Online | www.LiberianObserver.com



+++



8) DIAMONDS IN THE MORGUE



07 January 2010



CHAIM EVEN-ZOHAR



Forget about the NGOs. Forget about the World Diamond Council. Forget about the

Kimberley Process people. Forget about all those organizations that are warning

consumers against buying conflict diamonds. They can all move out of the way.

The African diamond-producing countries have now independently launched their

own TV/internet consumer campaign against conflict diamonds.



The first one-minute video clip is destined to shock you - or make you sick.

Prepared by the Cape Town office of the international Young & Rubicam

advertising agency, the short video, prepared on behalf of the African Diamond

Council (ADC), takes us inside a mortuary. The opening shot shows a dead body of

a young boy perforated with bullet holes.  A pathologist is seen cleaning up

the corpse and removing bullets, one after another, which he demonstratively

drops onto some kind of metal plate. Ping, Ping, we hear the bullets drop. At

some point, the camera zooms in on those bullets, and lo and behold, we see that

they are actually beautifully polished diamonds. Yes, a pathologist extracting

diamonds from a dead body, brought you by the diamond producers of Africa.



The clip then ends by separately displaying three different lines: "Every

Diamond has a History,"  "Insist on Certification," and "Insist on the

Truth."  Some may argue that this clip is shockingly effective or disgustingly

distasteful. Others may argue that it is both.



But the message of the video clip is almost beside the point. Rather, we should

ask what is the good of having yet another organization bringing the conflict

diamond message to the public, without guidance for the retailers as to what

truth and what certification they should be giving. There is one more line on

the clip: a reference to the ADC website. There, the truth can be found.



Blaming the Foreigners



What are the producers saying?  It is explained that the ADC is one of the

instruments of the larger African Diamond Producers Association (ADPA), which in

turn is made up of a Council of Mining Ministers. ADPA's stated mission is to

support, defend and oversee transactions of each diamond-producing country

within Africa. (Freely translated: they all will, for example, oversee what is

happening in Zimbabwe.) In addition, ADPA institutes effective strategies and

policies aimed at devolving sovereignty and recovering loss revenue for each of

its member states.



The full members of this association are Angola, South Africa, Botswana, Ghana,

Guinea-Conakry, Namibia, Central African Republic, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Togo

and Zimbabwe. Algeria, Congo Brazzaville, Côte D`Ivoire, Gabon, Liberia, Mali

and Mauritania are observers of the ADPA, whose head quarter is in Angola.



"Devolving sovereignty" and "recovery loss revenue" are code words for domestic

beneficiation and for assuming full self-determination on the disposal of their

own diamond resources. There is nothing wrong with these aspirations and, as I

have said earlier, in a way, it is "payback time."



The intentions for the diamond-producing countries to take the initiative to

convince consumers not to buy conflict diamonds are also laudatory, however it

seems quite hollow when they do so little themselves to bring law and order to

their own countries.



If this would not have been such a serious matter of deep concern to all of us,

I would have added 20 seconds to the video clip and would have zoomed in on the

"bullets" to verify whether they came from the machine guns of the Zimbabwe

military or from another government-supported militia. Of course, that would not

have been appropriate considering Zimbabwe is a founding member of the ADPA. No

diamond-producing country's military shoots at diggers - and if they do, this is

supposedly their good right as it doesn't impact the issuance of Kimberley

certificates. We could also add more question marks to the video clip, though

this would not be constructive, nor would it be a good way to start the New

Year.



It is convenient for this organization to blame overseas parties for Africa's

diamond trouble. The ADC's website gives a simple explanation for all the

continent's diamond trouble: "Greed, on the part of foreign governments and

private companies involved in the diamond trade, has caused a significant

portion of the political turmoil experienced in many of the African

diamond-producing countries and has led to the highly variable production of

diamonds and severe degradation of the environment from uncontrolled mining. In

light of this, the mission of the ADC is to remove the negative stigma

associated with diamond production in Africa and return credibility to the

African diamond trade by addressing issues of corruption and infiltration."



Accusing De Beers by Implication



In a subtle way, the African diamond producers shift the misery in some (or

actually very few) of the diamond fields to the manufacturers and distributors

of diamonds, far away from the miners.



Says the ADPA: "The world diamond industry breeds a network of secrecy and

sophisticated levels of corruption. This has created an environment in which a

significant proportion of African diamonds are allowed to circulate in ways that

make it difficult, if not impossible, to determine where they originate. As a

result, African diamonds act as a form of currency used to back international

loans, pay debts, pay bribes, and buy arms."



I don't know what "sophisticated corruption" is - but what I do know is that it

invariably takes a payer and a recipient. Generally, people pay bribes in

response to requests - there are two sides to any crime of corruption - and the

sovereign governments have plenty of tools to police their sides, if there is

the political will to do so. 



Says the ADPA further: "This [bribery and arms dealing] phenomenon often leads

to the unfair mislabeling of African diamonds by the world's most established

diamond organizations and cartels. These problems are compounded by the fact

that bloody wars are being fueled throughout Africa by many non-African

countries with the intent of distracting African countries, while their valuable

natural resources are quietly being extracted to build wealth in more developed

nations outside of Africa."



Let's call a spade a spade: the website accuses De Beers and others of

"mislabeling their African diamonds." Apparently, the mining companies' lawyers

are still on vacation.



A Need for Unity



A few years ago in London, I was privileged to see a video presentation on the

ADPA's establishment by a senior Endiama official. According to the website, the

ADPA has been an initiative "exclusively conceptualized by Congo-based

diamantaire, Dr. André A. Jackson and spearheaded by Angolan head of State,

José Eduardo dos Santos."  I was impressed and supportive. I understood at the

time that the organization meant to establish a platform for permanent

cooperation among the African diamond-producing countries.



That could also mean price coordination or collusion, something we wouldn't

encourage. But these nations have the right to do what they feel is best.



Discussions about the formation of the ADC began as early as 2000. It's only

now, about a decade later, that we see some tangible outcome of all of these

efforts in the form of a video clip aimed at consumers. Perhaps the ADC held

more activities during its first decade of existence, but I must admit that if

there were, they have not been on my radar screen.



The ADC currently counts some 22 members or observers. It's a most powerful and

impressive body.  But its message needs to be fine-tuned.



Get House in Order First



If, after seeing this video clip (see link below), a consumer would ask a

retailer whether the bullets in the body of the young fellow in the morgue may

have come from the Zimbabwe military or government militia, what should be the

answer of the retailer? Should he simply say "No, it is definitely not from

Zimbabwe because Zimbabwe is a member of the Kimberley Process that is issuing

the certificates that the commercial says you should ask for!"



The ADC claims it is also working to promote cooperation between the diamond

industry and African diamond-producing countries and their respective

governments to ensure that diamonds are sold in the legitimate diamond trade by

implementing an efficient and workable system of African diamond controls.



This is great. And necessary. But it is not consistent with the simultaneous

blaming and implicating of cutters and traders, with attributing all the trouble

to the greed of the foreigners, and with hiding the source of the bullets in

their commercial. It seems that the ADC is definitely starting out on the wrong

path.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2usaS1IP5k



Tacy - Chaim Even-Zohar

Diamond Intelligence Briefs



+++



9) Demonstration in Nimba: Citizens Feel Marginalized

By ckwanue

Created Jan 6 2010 - 1:01am



Zoe Geh Citizens demonstrate against 'marginalization’

As Development Work Comes to a Halt

By: C.Y. Kwanue

NIMBA - With less than two years to general elections in Liberia, tension is

said to be building up in some quarters of Nimba County over marginalization.



On Sunday January 3, 2010, citizens of Zoe Geh District under the banner,

Citizens Movement for Development and Advocacy (CMDA), based in Bahn City, Nimba

County, went on a peaceful demonstration against the halting of road

rehabilitation works under the Arcelor Mittal Social Development Funds Project

Management in Nimba.



The citizens said, in their position statement, that if the Liberian President

had any problem with the management team of the project, the road construction

should be allowed to proceed while investigation and inquiry are undertaken.



"The halting of the road project this time is not helpful, and it means that we

have been marginalized and prevented from benefiting from development projects,"

the statement added in part.



They citizens said they were therefore disassociating themselves from the

President’s decision to put a halt to the project and called on her to allow

the road work to go on since, they said, "this is the only time to rehabilitate

road."



The youth also complained that since the end of the civil war, the district had

been neglected. "The present road leading to the district headquarters of Buutuo

has become so bad and the authorities have failed to rehabilitate the road let

alone work on government facilities in Buutuo," they pointed out.



The demonstrators carried placards while shouting: "We want development, good

health care and better education."



Some of the placards read: "Madam Sirleaf, three out of six districts in Nimba

cannot make a full county; the concern of Nimba is not only Mittal Steel’s

Social Development Fund."



The citizens said that out of six districts in Nimba three are completely cut

off and need urgent road network. They named the three districts as Zoe Geh,

Gbehlay Geh and Yarwin Messonon.



The citizens’ action came on the heels of a Radio Nimba announcement on

Friday, January 1, 2010 that the present road rehabilitation works under the

project management team, headed by Michael Wiles, had been halted by the

President and that all officials of the team had been called to Monrovia for

auditing.



It can be recalled that after some confusion over the ArcelorMittal Social

Development Funds to Nimba late last year, the project management team started

development projects in Nimba, prioritizing its road network. Zoe Geh and Yarwin

Mensonnoh were considered the most deprived in terms of road construction.



When contacted, the chairman of the Concerned Nimba Citizens, George S. S. Wuo,

confirmed the dismissal of the project management team and explained that the

dismissal was based on a resolution they presented to the President when she was

in Nimba for the County Meet kickoff in December of last year.



Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.



Copyright 2009 | Liberian Observer Online | www.LiberianObserver.com



+++



10) Liberia debates logging its tropical timber



"Blood timber" used to fund violent rebels but new government hopes to launch

responsible logging.

By Myles Estey - Special to GlobalPost

Published: January 6, 2010 06:35 ET

MONROVIA, Liberia - Liberia is about to restart logging of its valuable tropical

hardwood timber, but environmental activists warn that even with strict

regulations the new commercial activity may cause terrible ecological damage.



The United Nations placed an embargo on timber from Liberia in 2003 to stop

former president Charles Taylor’s use of illegally logged "blood timber" to

fund his violent rule. The international sanctions effectively prohibited the

commercial logging or exporting of any timber products.



Previously the export of hardwoods was estimated to make up 60 percent of

Liberia's GDP.



The U.N. ban has now been lifted and new, innovative regulations for domestic

forestry have been implemented. Seven companies are in the final stages of

getting permission to start cutting down one of West Africa’s most valuable

natural resources: untouched rainforest.



This does not come without controversy.



Proponents argue that logging will produce as many as 40,000 much needed jobs

and jump-start a multi-million dollar industry in Liberia’s fledgling economy.

Critics question how accurate the projected employment statistics are, how the

new regulations will be enforced and if the financial benefits will balance

against the loss of pristine forests, an increasingly rare commodity in Africa.



"This is not an easy balance to strike, given the urgent need to create jobs and

generate revenues," said Patrick Alley, director of the U.K.-based environmental

watchdog Global Witness. Global Witness has been a vocal opponent of the current

move to re-open Liberia’s forestry industry. The group has raised concerns

about the long-term ecological health of the country, the integrity of companies

proposing to do the logging, the legitimacy of their contracts, and how accurate

the revenue predictions are.



"Industrial logging in the tropics rarely, if ever, delivers the promised

outcomes in terms of employment and development, nor the steady stream of income

to central government which is its main economic justification," explained

Alley. He points to examples in other developing and post-conflict nations such

as Cambodia and the Democratic Republic of Congo where short-term benefits from

forestry became dwarfed by long-term environmental damage.



Global Witness has uncovered that at least two of the logging companies are tied

to a Malaysian company, Samling, notorious for a record of human rights and

environmental violations in the developing world.



"All the ingredients appear to be in place for this [type of] scenario to play

out now in Liberia," he added.



John T. Woods, Managing Director of the country’s Forest Development Authority

(FDA), sees the logging industry’s future much more optimistically.



"The forestry sector was reformed to ensure the ‘business as usual’

practices no longer continued," said Woods, referring to four years of work put

into drafting the current regulations to avoid repeating the logging

industry’s ills of the past.



Woods agrees that the ecological health of the country’s forests is of

paramount concern. However, he is also keenly aware of the country’s need to

boost its revenue streams, infrastructure and employment: The U.N.'s 2008 Human

Development Index revealed Liberia’s GDP to be $300 per capita, with more than

60 percent of the population living on a dollar a day or less. Responsibly

managing and utilizing the forest will bring economic development, said Woods.



Woods points to 3.7 million acres of protected forest, tight regulations on

forestry company contracts, low annual levels of logging, and the requirement

that companies invest in local infrastructure as strong arguments that Liberia

will have the most highly controlled forestry regulations in Africa.



"We have efficient mechanisms for control and regulation of the commercial

forestry sector," said Woods. "We are very sure that it will work, especially

its cornerstone, the chain-of-custody system."



The system he refers to is designed to monitor logged trees ‘from stump to

port,’ meaning that every exported log can be legally verified as coming

through the legitimate processes in Liberia’s regulations.



"The chain of custody contract will be effective," said Thomas Pichet, project

manager for Liberfor, the company contracted to manage this system. "That’s

where the focus is at the moment. Ensuring that operations are within the rule

of law and in line with the regulations."



These regulations, Pichet emphasizes, came through high levels of communication

with not only government and foreign stakeholders, but also non-governmental

organizations and civil society. He views Liberia’s regulatory mechanisms as a

major step forward for African forestry.



"It is he most advanced legal framework in the forest sector in Africa, period.

It goes far beyond what has been drafted in Ghana or Congo or Cameroon," said

Pichet.



Logging advocates have faith that these regulations can fend off the endemic

corruption and mismanagement that continues to haunt Liberia at all levels of

government, business and aid work.



Those less confident urge an alternative suggested by a European consortium and

endorsed by Global Witness which offers to pay Liberia to not log. Through the

REDD program - an often criticized system that creates carbon credits to be sold

on the European markets by protecting areas meant to be logged - preliminary

talks offered millions of dollars to ensure tracts of land remain unforested.



Woods and those in the forestry sector are taking the offer seriously but they

remain skeptical of the real benefits of this relatively new process.



"We are very uncertain what the country can gain from REDD," Woods stated,

urging those involved to convert the "theory" of carbon sequestration into

monetary value for Liberia.



For now, Woods sees the maximal gain in following the stringent guidelines set

out, and showing that environmentally responsible and economically beneficial

forestry can be accomplished in Africa.



Copyright 2009 GlobalPost - International News



+++



11) Fire engulfs CARI - cassava uniform yield trails destroyed     

Written by Clarence Jackson & Matthias Daffah     

Wednesday, 06 January 2010 

STAR Radio



Report from Suakoko, Bong County says a raging fire has destroyed the Cassava

uniform yield trails at the Central Agriculture Research Institute.



The Cassava uniform yield trails are located at the main research and production

site of the institute.



Our Correspondent quoting official sources says a total of 6.47 hectares of

cassava nursery and seedlings were destroyed by the fire.



Although our correspondent said the actual cause of the fire has not been

established, it is being reported that unknown persons allegedly set at blaze

the cassava uniform yield trails at CARI.



The incident which happened on January 2 completely destroyed the facility as

the field spread across the field.



Meanwhile, the Liberia National Police which launched an investigation into the

incident says it has arrested one person in connection with the fire incident at

CARI in Suacoco.



A release from the Police said the suspect is undergoing preliminary

investigation in Bong County.



The Police said it was in pursuit of other suspects believed to be linked to the

fire incident.



The police statement called on all those believed to be linked to the crime to

turn themselves in for   questioning.



The Police assured it would do everything in its power to ensure that   the

culprits are arrested and brought to justice.



The Liberia National Police has meanwhile warned the public against acts of

lawlessness in the country.



+++



12)See also: http://liberianature.blogspot.com/



###



Complete archives at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Nature_Liberia/

1) Small Farmers in the Carbon Market (Mali), 2) Continent's Food Woes Blamed on

Europe's Hypocrisy (Africa), 3) Illegal pit-sawyers fined 50-thousand US dollars

in Sinoe, 4) Reclaiming rice from rats and rot, 5) Air Pollution: A Problem To

Tackle, 6) China tightening may prompt mining re-rating, 7)75-kilometer road

linking Maryland and Grand Kru to be rehabilitated, 8) GOL, Golden Veroleum in

US$1.6bn Negotiation, 9) African Aura Mining Inc - Grant of Stock Options, 10)

China-Union starts work on Liberian iron ore project, 11)See also:

http://liberianature.blogspot.com/



1) Small Farmers in the Carbon Market (Mali)

Inter Press Service

Soumaïla T. Diarra

16 January 2010



Bamako — Mohamed Abd Khibé is a caretaker at the acacia nursery in Dialoubé

village, part of a project to sequester carbon in trees while simultaneously

improving farmers' livelihoods.



"This nursery is a source of pride for me, because it allows me to feed my

family," says Khibé.



Dialoubé is in a region of sparse savannah in north-western Mali, near the

Mauritania border. A cold, dry harmattan wind whistles through the fence

surrounding the nursery full of young Acacia senegalensis seedlings, about 100

metres away from the villagers' mud houses.



Further out lies a 50-hectare plantation established in 2007: part of Mali's

Acacia Senegal Plantation Project which aims to plant 6,000 hectares of acacias

in four villages in the area.



The project is a partnership between local communities, the World Bank and

Déguessi Vert, a Malian agro-industrial concern.



In the first phase, each village planted 50 hectares. These plantations are

intended to eventually fall under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), which

awards credits to projects in



developing countries that reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. These "carbon

credits" can then be purchased by polluters in developed countries in order to

meet their commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions under the Kyoto

Protocol.



The Mali project aims to plant 10,000 hectares of acacia across the country.

These trees will positively impact the climate by sequestering 100,000 tonnes of

carbon dioxide by 2012 and over 500,000 tonnes by 2017 (the price per tonne of

carbon varies between $3 and $10).



The project is progressing, but slowly. Although the acacia tree is very

resistant to harsh conditions, the saplings are not growing very well in this

arid part of Mali, according to Moussa Touré, technical manager of the

plantation at Tendjé village, 20 kilometres from Dialoubé.



"The water from shallow and salty traditional wells is unsuitable for

agriculture and household consumption. And modern drilling is insufficient to

supply the population and water the seedlings," says Touré.



To the lack of water, one must add the issue of stray animals. Each year

millions of small ruminants make the seasonal trek from southern Mauritania to

north-western Mali, destroying many young plants in their path.



In Dialoubé, the surviving saplings have not yet reached the required size to

be eligible for carbon credits; two years after they were planted, they are

still short of the 1.3 metre height and 2.5 cm diameter requirement.



Another problem is a lack of finances. In 2009, only 600 hectares were prepared

in the four villages in this area due to a lack of resources - well short of the

planned 1,000 hectares intended to be planted each year.



But the plantation has already begun generating income for local farmers.



Some of the villagers have permanent employment on the plantation, earning just

under $50 a month. During a brief period of heightened activity each year, every

able-bodied person in the area finds work on the project.



"I earn at least 5,000 CFA francs (over $10) per day filling the pots," says the

caretaker at the Dialoubé plantation.



Locals use this money to buy additional food, as their harvests are often poor

due to lack of rain. Cheick Billal Khibé, the former mayor of Dialoubé, says,

"Each year 33 families would temporarily move to Mauritania and Côte d'Ivoire

in search of money. Now, only about three families do so."



More time is needed before the anticipated revenue from the plantations is

sufficient to contribute to building schools and health centres in villages.



Apart from the money earned by villagers, the plantations have other immediate

benefits, especially from an agricultural perspective. The soil in the area is

poor, but Acacia senegalensis enriches its nitrogen content, supporting

intercropping of the trees with other crops during the short rainy season from

July to September.



The Malian government is requesting the extension of deadlines for the

implementation of this and other projects in line with the Clean Development

Mechanism.



"About thirty project ideas have been submitted to us. The problem is that the

initiators of these projects take time to bring them to fruition," says

Dembelé.



The initiators of the projects are local communities, NGOs and entrepreneurs who

collaborate with the World Bank, the largest buyer of carbon credits. Mali is

requesting an extension because the initiators sometimes encounter difficulties

completing projects in the given timeframe.



Copyright © 2010 Inter Press Service. All rights reserved. Distributed by

AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com).



+++



2) Continent's Food Woes Blamed on Europe's Hypocrisy (Africa)

Business Daily (Nairobi)



Paul Juma

14 January 2010





Europe's resistance to genetically modified crop production in Africa is a major

challenge to tackling Africa's food insecurity, according to experts.



Dr Sylvester Oikeh, manager of a drought-tolerant maize project for Africa, told

a recent science workshop that EU countries opposed use of gene transfer

technology to improve food production in Africa because Europe had enough food.



He accused European countries of hypocrisy saying they promote GM medicines

while opposing the same technology in agriculture.



"They produce enough food for themselves, and their need is to live longer. So,

while they discourage use of gene technology to produce food in Africa, they use

the same to produce drugs and vaccines," he told science journalists and

researchers.



He added that there were also some "political issues" informing Europe's stand

on GM foods, saying that African countries that export cotton were being held

hostage as a result.



"They (EU) tell African countries that export cotton to them that 'if you grow

genetically enhanced cotton, we will not buy'."



Following devastating droughts that have affected various regions of sub-Sahara

Africa, proponents of GM foods have argued that improving the tolerance of crops

to pests and drought through the GM technology hold the key to combating the

effects of drought on the continent's food security.



However, promoters of organic farming have warned of possible health and

environmental risks should countries adopt the GM technology without adequate

research.



And that brought about the issue of regulating use of biotechnology. While GM

foods are slowly finding acceptance among African countries, few have enacted

policies and national regulatory laws to ensure the safety of both plants and

animals.



"There have been anxieties and fears concerning the safety of genetically

enhanced materials, hence gene technology, like other technologies, need to be

regulated," Dr Francis Nyang'ayo, regulation manager at African Agricultural

Technology Foundation, said.



Amid a heated-debate and caution by some non-governmental organisations, Kenya

enacted a Biosafety Act in 2009, effectively putting in place a statutory tool

to regulate the use and safety of gene technologies in the country.



Other countries which have laws for GMOs regulations include South Africa, Sudan

and Zimbabwe.



Among the concerns of anti-GM proponents is that no adequate research has been

done to ascertain the human and environmental effects of GM.



They also argue that genetically altered crops could introduce foreign genes to

conventionally grown crops through cross-pollination, hence "contaminate" them.



In addition, they cite the risk of emergence of organisms with enhanced

resistance to anti-biotics, and the likelihood of toxic materials getting into

the environment.But GM supporters say research done so far has not indicated

negative effects of GM food on people and animals. GM technology involves

changing the genetics of crops, by adding genetic materials from other plants

with the desired property, to make the resulting variety more pest-resistant,

drought-tolerant, have faster growth and produce more yield.The global debate

about GMs remains fierce, with a number of European countries on the resisting

side. French President Nicolas Sarkozy in 2007 banned the cultivation of GM

crops.In South Africa, various court battles related to



access to information about GM crops have been instituted since 2002.



Copyright © 2010 Business Daily. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica

Global Media (allAfrica.com).



+++



3) Illegal pit-sawyers fined 50-thousand US dollars in Sinoe

Written by Sayounue Bilah

Thursday, 14 January 2010

STAR Radio



Sinoe county authorities have fined a group of pit sawyers fifty thousand US

dollars for illegally sawing in the county.



Sinoe Development Superintendent McDonald Wlemus said the decision was reached

during a meeting between the local authorities and pit sawyers.



The pit sawyers include all those operating along the Nyenfueh town- ITI

highway.



The pit sawyers however appealed to government to pay half of the money in

installments.



They agreed to pay an initial ten thousand US dollars and pay the balance after

selling their lumbers.



But the county authorities refused the plea and threatened to confiscate the

lumbers if the fifty thousand US dollars is not paid.



+++



4) Reclaiming rice from rats and rot

IRIN

Thursday 14 January 2010



[Photo: Wikimedia Commons]



Vermin, birds and bad storage facilities destroy 60 percent of Liberia's crops

each year





GBARNGA, 14 January 2010 (IRIN) - Every year Liberian farmers lose 60 percent of

their harvest to birds and vermin or poor storage conditions, contributing to

country-wide food insecurity,



say UN officials, who are calling on donors to put more funding into pest

management and storage.



The Ministry of Agriculture estimates 52,000 tons of rice out of 144,000

produced in 2007 was lost, while 44,027 tons of a 155,293 ton harvest was lost

in 2008.



"Our interaction with farmers has shown they lack very basic knowledge of pest

control," said Augustus Flomo, a consultant with local NGO Agency for Economic

Development and Empowerment (AEDE), which partners with the Food and Agriculture

Organization (FAO) in Liberia.



Eight out of 10 rural Liberians are moderately or highly vulnerable to food

insecurity, according to the latest government food security survey.



During the country’s 14 years of conflict, which ended in 2003, production

plummeted, and Liberians went from importing 30 percent to 60 percent of their

rice needs, said Ahmed Ag Aboubacrine, emergency FAO adviser.



Production has not recovered since, leading the Agriculture Ministry to try to

reverse the trend by encouraging Liberians to return to their farms. But seeing

over half of a harvest lost puts farmers off, said Daniel Lorbah, a farmer in

Margbi County, 40km north of Monrovia.



Flash strips, rat traps



FAO is training farmers how to ward off rats and birds in field schools it has

set up with AEDE and the Agriculture Ministry in all of Liberia’s 15 counties.



Lorbah returned to farming in 2005 when the conflict had ended but found most

years he lost three-quarters of the rice he produced. He underwent training in

2008, learning how to attach flash tapes (metallic strips that reflect sunlight)

to his crops to scare off birds, and how to make and set up vermin traps.



[Photo: Anna Jefferys/IRIN, Rice fields in Bong County]



"After going through how to deal with rats and birds, I am no longer facing

problems of pests eating up my rice." Buoyed by the gains, he told IRIN he hopes

soon to expand his 2.4 hectare farm to four hectares.



Farmers who have undergone training are gaining confidence, Joshua Juah, head of

a farmers’ cooperative in Kokoya District, Bong County, central Liberia, told

IRIN - and are gradually increasing their plots. The cooperative’s

core-harvest cassava losses have dropped from 50 percent to about 10 percent in

the year since introducing pest control techniques.



Next steps



Now that pest management is improving, donors need to turn to post-harvest

losses by increasing funding for crop storage and preservation facilities, said

AEDE technician Joseph Kpagbala.



"We cry day-by- day, because we do not have places to keep our rice, cassava,

eddoes [a local tuber] and yams after harvesting them," Martin Togba, leader of

Bong Country’s Kpatakpai Farmers’ Cooperative, 135km north of Monrovia, told

IRIN.



"We keep them in places where they get spoiled after several weeks," he said.



Most farmers store their crops in makeshift bamboo huts roofed with thatch but

without protection from the damp, according to AEDE.



James Korkollie, a member of the cooperative, told IRIN half of his 2009

plantain harvest rotted in storage just two weeks after harvesting, due to damp

conditions.



"The roads are bad; no one wants to venture into this deep forest [to buy], and

I am worried if this situation continues I will lose all of my crops by the end

of January," Korkollie told



IRIN.



A 2009 Ministry of Agriculture study on harvest losses recommended the

government boost loan schemes to farmers’ collectives so they can improve

their storage facilities.



If they do not, government efforts to improve food security "will fail", John

Jukon, director of Liberia-based cooperative Farmers Against Hunger, told IRIN.



ak/aj/cb



Theme(s): (IRIN) Environment, (IRIN) Food Security, (IRIN) Natural Disasters



[ENDS]





Copyright © IRIN 2010. All rights reserved.



+++



5) Air Pollution: A Problem To Tackle

The Inquirer

Jan 14, 2010



Rose M. Saulwas



Research done by this paper has shown that air pollution is becoming a serious

environmental problem that the government and its people must tackle to ensure

that its populace won't be adversely affected.   It is such that the sources of

air pollution refer to various locations, activities or factors which are

responsible for the releasing of pollutants in the atmosphere present in the

environment.  And these locations are found in and out of the capital city of

the country as it stands; these sources are divided into two classes

(Anthropogenic and Natural sources).  According to the investigation the

Anthropogenic can come from human activity mostly related to burning different

kinds of fuel, like;"Stationary Sources" which include smoke stacks of power

plants, manufacturing facilities (factories) and waste incinerators, as well as

furnaces and other types of fuel-burning heating devices.



Mobile sources include motor vehicles, marine vessels, aircraft and the effect

of sound etc. Chemicals, dust and controlled burn practices in agriculture and

forestry management.   Fumes from paint, hair spray, varnish, aerosol sprays and

other solvents such as waste deposition in landfills, which generate methane,

which is not toxic; however, it is highly flammable and



may form explosive mixtures with air. Methane is also an asphyxiant and may

displace oxygen in an enclosed space. Asphyxia or suffocation may result if the

oxygen concentration is reduced to below 19.5% by displacement.



While the natural sources include dust from natural sources, usually large areas

of land with little or no vegetation, methane, emitted by the digestion of food

by animals, for example cattle and smoke and carbon monoxide from wildfires.

These situations can be found in Liberia especially the smoke, motor vehicles,

fumes from paint, hair spray, vanish and other sources.



When you look around the streets of the town you find vehicles plying the

streets with road safety stickers but you find smoke emitted from these vehicles

polluting the air and no one to talk about it.  It is also becoming a problem

with beauty parlors where hair sprays are been used with no safety regulations

with the same applying to varnish.  The Congo Town Electricity Plant of the

Liberia Electricity Corporation (LEC) is a present day reality of air pollution

as it relates to lots of the sources mentioned and is going to bring about

health hazard if



this precarious situation is not tackled with immediacy. Because according to

the World Health Organization (WHO) 2.4 million people die each year from causes

directly attributable to air pollution, with 1.5 million of these deaths

attributable to indoor air pollution; with a study by the University of

Birmingham showing strong correlation between pneumonia related deaths and air

pollution from motor vehicles, while Worldwide more deaths per year are linked

to air pollution than to automobile accidents.



Diesel exhaust (DE) is also a major contributor to combustion derived

particulate matter air pollution. In several human experimental studies, using a

well validated exposure chamber setup, and it has been linked to acute vascular

dysfunction and increased thrombus formation. Cities around the world with high

exposure to air pollutants have the possibility of children living within them

to develop asthma, pneumonia and other lower respiratory infections as well as a

low initial birth rate.  World Health Organization shows that there is greatest

concentration of particulate matter particles in countries with low economic

world power and high poverty and population rates.



©2005 - 2010 The Inquirer Online



+++



6) China tightening may prompt mining re-rating

The Financial Times

13 January 2010

Written by: Martin Li



Mining equities were among the strongest performers of 2009 but with an economic

recovery now arguably priced in among the mega-miners, and this week's news of

monetary tightening in China prompting fears of a slowdown in demand from the

world's major resources buyer, commentators are suggesting trading down to

considerably less expensive medium-sized companies.



Advertising



This week China told its banking system to raise its reserves, a move

interpreted as the first steps of monetary tightening aimed at preventing any

potential asset bubbles after a huge surge in lending in 2008 helped stabilise

its economy. This raised concerns that the country's demand for resources, which

has arguably driven much of the mining sector's outperformance in the past nine

months, could be tempered and could leave mining majors looking overvalued.



Charles Kernot, director of metals and mining at Evolution Securities, said:

"Base metals markets are looking overbought and prices could weaken in response

to increasing inventories and rising interest rates. The majors don't appear to

be discounting these risks, so we think the mid and small-cap arena is the right

place to focus."



Evolution's research highlights that the mining sector now has the highest PE

ratio rating of all sectors and is trading at historic highs. But, at the same

time, Chinese restocking appears largely complete, which threatens potential

price corrections for many commodities, which would bring down equities with

them.



The Evolution analysts expect iron ore and coal to be the best-performing

commodities this year, with copper set to lag. A weak dollar and global fear

will also support the gold price.



These are views shared by Myles Campion, fund manager at natural

resources-focused Oceanic Asset Management, who believes coal and iron ore will

have a strong 2010. Mr Campion also adds that platinum should see a recovery

this year.



Evolution's top mining picks for 2010 are: African Aura Mining (formerly Mano

River Resources), which has accelerated iron ore and gold projects in Liberia

since receiving Russian



investment; Central Rand Gold , which has a huge gold resource but needs to

prove its innovative mining method; Gem Diamonds , which offers low-risk

exposure to the diamond sector; low-



cost platinum recoverer Sylvania Resources , and UK Coal , which should benefit

from new mining seams and significantly higher contract prices.



© The Financial Times Limited 2009. All rights reserved. "Investors Chronicle",

"FT" and "Financial Times" are trademarks of The Financial Times Limited



+++



7)75-kilometer road linking Maryland and Grand Kru to be rehabilitated

Written by Onesimus Leigh

Wednesday, 13 January 2010

STAR Radio



Public Works Ministry has signed a contract with a Liberian company to

rehabilitate a seventy-five kilometer road in the southeast.



The road runs from Pleebo in Maryland County to Barclayville in Grand Kru.



The nearly three million US dollar, World Bank sponsored contract, was signed

with SSF Enterprise Incorporated.



World Bank Country Manager Dr. Ohene Nyanin described the project as a major

change that will improve the lives of people in the Southeast.



For his part, Public Works Minister Samuel Kofi Woods said the signing ceremony

is a signal that the poverty reduction strategy is on course.



Minister Woods said the ministry is speeding up the implementation of

commitments to connect all major cities.



Maryland County Representative Dr. Bhofal Chambers who witnessed the signing

ceremony praised government for the positive transformation.



+++



8) GOL, Golden Veroleum in US$1.6bn Negotiation

Liberian Observer



GOL, Golden Veroleum in US$1.6bn Negotiation

By gkennedy

Created Jan 12 2010 - 4:04am



[photo:L-r Mr. Boakai in handshake with Mr. Matt Karinen of Golden Veroleum

Resources As Global Palm Oil Giant Prepares to Invest in Three Counties]



By: George D. Kennedy, Business Correspondent

MONROVIA – Indonesian global palm oil giant, Golden Agri-Veroleum, and the

Inter-ministerial Concession Committee (IMCC) of the Government of Liberia (GOL)

have began negotiating what could be the biggest investment in Liberia’s

agriculture industry.



Veroleum has applied to invest more than US$1.6 billion dollars on more than

240,000 hectares of oil palm to boost the country’s oil palm sector.



If approved, the investment will take place in southeastern Liberia,

specifically in Sinoe, Grand Kru and Maryland counties.



Golden Agri Resources is the largest palm oil operator in Indonesia and the

second largest in the world, with operations in China.



The company belongs to the Sinar Mas Group, one of the leading business groups

in Indonesia, with major assets in pulp and paper, palm oil, property and

telecom. GoldenVeroleum is also a member of the Singapore listed Golden

Agri-Resources Company in Asia.



Last week, the company sent a high-powered delegation to Liberia to follow up on

last year’s discussion with a Liberian IMCC delegation that visited Indonesia.



Upon arrival into the country, the Indonesian investors met with Liberia’s

Vice President, Joseph N. Boakai, at his Capitol Hill offices in Monrovia.



The Vice President said the proposed investment would provide the needed

employment opportunities in southeastern Liberia.



A statement issued by Boakai's office on January 5, 2010, noted his observation

that the southeast has attractive investment opportunities and prospects, and

that the Golden Veroleum investment will be a very positive one for Liberia.



“Employment and job creation have been difficult in the southeast; so we are

very keen on this investment. You have our full support,” Boakai assured the

Golden Veroleum officials.



“Despite all problems we are confronted with, we are definitely committed to

addressing the critical challenges in the southeast,” he added.



Briefing the Liberian Vice President, the head of the delegation, Matt Karinen

said his company’s vision for Liberia is to cultivate over 240,000 hectares of

oil palm in Grand Kru, Sinoe and Maryland Counties, (including 40,000 hectares

via out growers), with the goal of producing more than one million tons of palm

oil per annum.



He said the company will provide direct employment for an estimated 40,000

persons, as well as develop infrastructure, train out growers and provide them

low cost seedlings for cultivation and production of final brand of consumer

products for local consumption and export to Economic Community of West African

States (ECOWAS) countries.



“The investment will also fully follow the government’s environmental master

plan and standards,” Karinen assured the Liberian Vice President.



He disclosed that Veroleum will need to use the rehabilitated ports of

Greenville and Harper for the export of oil palm products and import of needed

materials.



The Veroleum official expressed optimism that his company as well as other palm

oil producing entities such as Equatorial Palm Oil and Sime Darby can transform

Liberia into one of the major producers of palm oil in the world for export and

to meet domestic needs.



Karinen and his colleague, David Rothschild, were in the country last week

holding discussions with officials of the Ministry of Agriculture, Environmental

Protection Agency, National Investment Commission (NIC) and other relevant

government agencies.



In remarks during the meeting, Rothschild said he was impressed with the

transformation taking place in post-war Liberia, noting that he has seen

considerable increase in building and in commercial ventures in the capital

since he started coming to the country about 15 months ago.



They expressed optimism that the company would begin operations in Liberia in

six months, and hoped the legislature would speed up ratification of their

concession agreement.



Karinen pledged that his company would forge a symbiotic (mutually beneficial)

relationship with small farmers (otherwise known as out growers), training them,

supplying them low cost seeds and other materials and integrating them in farmer

cooperatives while providing them with loans.



He also challenged the Liberian government to take advantage of the country’s

rich soil and ideal climate to transform the lives of its citizens as has been

the case in Indonesia and Malaysia.



Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.



Copyright 2009 | Liberian Observer Online | www.LiberianObserver.com

Source URL (retrieved on Jan 12 2010 - 8:52pm):

http://www.liberianobserver.com/node/3918



+++



9) African Aura Mining Inc - Grant of Stock Options

/NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION IN THE UNITED STATES OR FOR DISSEMINATION TO US NEWS WIRE

SERVICES./



TSX-V: AUR

AIM: AAAM



TORONTO, Jan. 12 /CNW/ - The Board of African Aura Mining Inc ("African Aura" or

the "Company") announces that, pursuant to its Stock Option Plan, it has granted

incentive stock options to certain directors and employees of the Company. The

share options were granted over a total of 1,208,750 common shares, representing

approximately 2.3% of the issued share capital of the Company at an exercise

price of Cdn$1.22 per share, exercisable immediately and for a period of five

years from 8 January 2010.





The allocation of stock options to directors was as follows:





-------------------------------------------------------------------------

                                  New options issued   Total options held

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

David Netherway   Chairman             300,000              555,123

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Luis da Silva     President & CEO      220,000              557,500

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Guy Pas           Director             125,000              468,750

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

David Evans       Director             125,000              462,500

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Steven Poulton    Director             150,000              357,938

-------------------------------------------------------------------------





These options were issued for nil consideration.





About African Aura Mining Inc.





African Aura is an established African exploration and development company

listed on the TSX-V (AUR) and London's AIM (AAAM). African Aura is focused on

the development of world-class iron



ore and gold deposits in highly prospective, under explored countries of

sub-Saharan Africa. The Company has a highly motivated and experienced team with

a record of discovering mines and



taking projects through development and into production in African.



African Aura's assets include the New Liberty gold deposit and the Putu iron ore

project, both in Liberia, as well as a 59% interest in diamond producer Stellar

Diamonds Ltd. A pioneer in



Africa, African Aura has attracted some excellent strategic partners and

shareholders always with the objective of preserving or enhancing shareholder

value.



For further information: on the Company you are invited to visit its website at

www.african-aura.com, or SEDAR's website at www.sedar.com, or contact one of the

following: African Aura



Mining Inc., Luis da Silva, President & CEO, Tel: +44 (0) 20 7299 4212;

Evolution Securities Limited, Simon Edwards, Chris Sim, Neil Elliot, Tel: +44

(0) 20 7071 4300; Pelham Public



Relations, Charles Vivian, James MacFarlane, Tel: +44 (0) 20 7337 1500



+++



10) China-Union starts work on Liberian iron ore project

Shanghai 12 January 2010 07:24



China-Union Investment Co has started work on its Bong mine project in West

Africa's Liberia, estimated to have 4 billion tonnes of iron ore reserves, said

a company official. "Preparatory



work, including for mine design and construction, at the deposit is underway,

but...



Copyright © Metal Bulletin Ltd. All rights reserved.



+++



11)See also: http://liberianature.blogspot.com/



###



Complete archives at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Nature_Liberia/

1) LPRC Allays Public Fear about Petrol Shortage, 2) BHP and ArcelorMittal

discuss Africa venture, 3) African Aura Mining appoints Severstal executive

board member as non-exec director, 4) BHP, Arcelor in alliance talks over West

Africa, 5) Solar water pump provides safe drinking water for Liberian community,

6) Liberia: Several Logging Companies Lack Finance - Report, 7) Palm Oil Master

Plan To Attract US$2.6bn Investment, 8) ArcelorMittal in JV talks with BHP

Billiton, 9) ArcelorMittal, BHP discuss Africa iron ore JV, 10) ArcelorMittal,

BHP in Talks on African Joint Venture (Update2), 11) 'No Land Dispute in

Marshall' Ellen's Aide-Decamp Refutes Allegations, 12) Liberia: Water

feasibility team warns of outbreak of diseases, 13)See also:

http://liberianature.blogspot.com/







1) LPRC Allays Public Fear about Petrol Shortage

Liberian Observer

Publication Date: January 20, 2010 - 3:45pm

Updated: January 20, 2010 - 8:58pm



[photo: Acting LPRC Managing Director T. Nelson Williams and Tankers awaiting

loading at LPRC rack As LEC Sheds Load in Monrovia]



By: George D. Kennedy



MONROVIA – Reduction in the supply of petroleum products, especially gasoline,

at filling stations by the Liberia Petroleum Refining Company (LPRC), has

created public fear that there is a shortage of the commodity.



As such, the company has announced that it still has gasoline to supply filling

stations across the country.



The reduction in the quantity of petroleum supply by LPRC to its key customers,

including Total Liberia Incorporated, a leading petroleum supplier and filling

station in the country,



rendered Total incapable of fully supplying the Liberia Electricity Corporation

(LEC). The shortage led LEC to announce a shedding load to its customers

Tuesday.



“LEC regrets to inform its many customers and the public in general,

especially those in the Congo Town, Central Monrovia, Old Road and Sinkor

communities, that due to the inability of our



supplier, Total Liberia Incorporated, to supply us fuel, there will be load

shedding to our customers,” LEC announced in a statement Tuesday.



The statement, signed by Acting LEC Deputy Managing Director, Varmunyah F.

Sheriff, further read: “As soon as our fuel supplier resumes its supply, we

will revert to our normal schedule of electricity supply.”



However, the LPRC management said that although gasoline importation had been

delayed last week owing to the shortage of petroleum products in the sub-region,

mainly Ivory Coast, where the



country gets its major supplies, the company was making use of its strategy

reserves to protect the market.



This correspondent went to the LPRC loading rack Tuesday and saw an array of

tankers ready to be loaded with petroleum to supply filling stations.



LPRC’s storage tank for its strategy reserves stores products that can supply

the market for about three weeks if the products were rationed. About 90 percent

of petroleum products used in



Liberia are imported from the Ivory Coast.



The management also clarified that only gasoline, not fuel, was in short supply.



Speaking with the Daily Observer’s Business Correspondent in an exclusive

interview yesterday, Acting LPRC Managing Director, T. Nelson Williams, said a

shipload of products, mainly



gasoline, was expected to arrive in the country today, January 20.



He said LPRC had cut down daily gasoline supply from over 100,000 gallons to

70,000 gallons per day and was rationing it to its major customers across the

country, including the United



Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL).



LPRC currently supplies more than 30 filling stations across the country.



The daily petroleum consumption rate, including fuel, is well over 200,000

gallons per day in Liberia.



Williams said the decision to cut the supply was meant to protect public

interest and to avoid the depletion of the reserves until supply arrives.



LPRC, he said, had instructed three of its major petroleum importers, especially

of gasoline, to source alternative markets, mainly in Europe, in order to avoid

future petroleum shortages.



He expressed the hope that the importers will be successful in having access to

the two European markets.



When asked if there were specific markets being sourced to supply Liberia so as

to avoid future petroleum shortage in the country, the Acting LPRC Managing

Director disclosed that LPRC management and petroleum importers had identified

and agreed to enter Spanish and Dutch markets.



“Importers have agreed to bring in petroleum products from Spain and

Holland,” he said.



Meanwhile, the Acting LPRC boss has lauded employees of the company for the

motivation they have demonstrated in the discharge of their functions.



He said LPRC’s employees are working overtime daily to ensure that the company

achieves its goals.



The Acting LPRC Managing Director pointed out that the company will, during the

course of this year, be heavily engaged in the rehabilitation of its facilities.



“Upgrading our facilities,” he said, “will increase LPRC’s capacity to

store more reserves to counter prospective shortages.”



Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more



information or to request publishing permission.



+++



2) BHP and ArcelorMittal discuss Africa venture

The Financial Times

By Matthew Kennard in London



Published: January 20 2010 02:00 | Last updated: January 20 2010 02:00



BHP Billiton and ArcelorMittal have entered into preliminary negotiations about

combining their iron ore assets in Liberia and Guinea.



BHP, which releases its quarterly production update on Wednesday, pointed to the

“execution capabilities and financial strength” of both companies as the

reason for a joint venture.



ArcelorMittal said the interests of the companies in Liberia and Guinea were

“proximate and could be more competitive if brought together in a combined

operation”.



The assets of the two companies in Liberia and Guinea include the licences from

the local governments for exploration. None of the assets is at production

stage.



BHP has four Liberian leases and a 43 per cent stake in Euronimba, which owns 95

per cent of the Nimba project in Guinea.



Arcelor’s assets in Liberia comprise its interest in the iron ore mining

leases in Nimba county, the railway from Yekepa to the port at Buchanan and the

Buchanan iron ore port.



Analysts say a joint venture could limit the downside in a turbulent region.



“Guinea has already seen regime change not so long ago,” said John Meyer,

analyst at Fairfax. “It seems likely it will see another regime change before

the completion of the projects.”



But, he continued: “BHP are expert in moving millions of tonnes of iron while

Arcelor are well experienced in working in challenging jurisdictions. The

combination could form a strong allegiance between a producer and consumer.”



In December, BHP signed an agreement with Rio Tinto to establish another iron

ore joint venture, which combined both companies’ Western Australian assets in

a deal estimated to be worth more than $10bn.



Tim Williams, analyst at Ernst & Young, said: “The logic is the same as the

Australia agreement. The big thing with iron ore is logistics: it’s getting

the stuff out of the country.



There’s lots of it around but it's got to be good quality and you have to ...

get it on a ship, which usually means building a railway or pipeline. So the

synergies of developing iron ore projects can be huge.”



The companies say they will continue to discuss the potential benefits of a

combination and negotiate with local governments. They expect this process to

take several months.



Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2010. You may share using our article

tools.



+++



3) African Aura Mining appoints Severstal executive board member as non-exec

director

Wednesday, January 20, 2010



African Aura Mining (AIM: AAAM, TSX-V: AUR) has announced the appointment of

head of strategy and corporate development at Russian steel and mining giant

Severstal, Boris Granovsky, as a non-executive director of the company.



Severstal holds a 4.72% stake in African Aura through its subsidiary Lybica

Holdings B.V. Severstal’s investment provided for US$15 million cash being

injected into the joint venture company, now renamed Severstal Liberia Iron Ore

Ltd, as well as an additional US$15 million debt facility, which will be used

for specific advancement towards a definitive feasibility study.



Granovsky is responsible for defining the iron ore and coking coal strategy for

Severstal Resources, origination and execution of M&A transactions, greenfield

projects and partnerships. He is a member of the Severstal Resources' Executive

Board and a member of the Board of Directors for several portfolio companies and

joint ventures.



“We are very pleased to further cement our relationship with Severstal by

having Boris join our board. It reaffirms our joint venture partner's commitment

to the Putu iron ore project as



we seek to build on our already substantial 1 billion tonnes inferred

resource,” said president and chief executive of African Aura, Luis da Silva.



Severstal owns mining assets in Russia and in the US, thus securing its supplies

of raw materials.  Its enterprises are located in Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan,

United Kingdom, France,



Italy, United States and Africa. In 2008, Severstal produced 19.2 Mt (million

tonnes of steel), while its revenues amounted to $22.4 billion and EBITDA

(earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) was US$5.4

billion with EPS (earnings per share) of US$2.2.



Copyright © Proactiveinvestors.cm, 2009. All Rights Reserved.



+++



4) BHP, Arcelor in alliance talks over West Africa

Andrea Hotter

The Australian

January 20, 2010 12:00AM



STEEL giant ArcelorMittal and miner BHP Billiton are discussing combining their

iron ore interests in Liberia and Guinea, creating a platform for a West African

iron ore business.



The assets include BHP's 43.5 per cent interest in Guinea's Euronimba, which

owns 95 per cent of the Nimba project, including exploration leases at Dieke and

Nimba North, as well as the miner's four Liberian leases.



Also at stake is ArcelorMittal's 70 per cent interest in five Liberian leases

and rights to upgrade Liberia's Yekepa-Buchanan railway and Panamax port.



Talks to combine the assets were expected to take several months, and the

companies were seeking the support of the west African governments, BHP said.



"At this stage it is premature to comment on the nature of the overall

investment. We are at early stage of reviewing the opportunities and development

options," a BHP spokeswoman said.



Mining companies have had a rough ride in Guinea since the death of longtime

dictator Lansana Conte in December 2008.



Junta chief Captain Moussa Dadis Camara seized power but the self-appointed

president's behaviour became increasingly autocratic.



Holding negotiations with international mining companies live on national

television, he threatened to close mines and confiscate projects.



The country now has an interim leader, General Sekouba Konate, after Dadis fled

following an assassination attempt.



Dow Jones Newswires



+++



5) Solar water pump provides safe drinking water for Liberian community

Submitted by J Strange on 19th Jan 2010 12:00:03



In association with a local charity foundation, Sollatek supplied a solar water

pump system capable of pumping out 3.5 gallons of clean water per minute from a

depth of 30 meters. Running 24 hours per day; thanks to a solar array of 4x80Wp

and 4 solar batteries, the system is virtually maintenance free



The Duport road clinic serves a very large community in a local Liberian town.

This clinic operates 24 hours per day and 7 days per week with limited access to

water. Residents used to seek drinking water from unhealthy sources: wells,

covered and exposed, while others travel outside of the community to far

locations for safer drinking water.



In association with a local charity foundation, Sollatek supplied a solar water

pump system capable of pumping out 3.5 gallons of clean water per minute from a

depth of 30 meters. Running 24 hours per day; thanks to a solar array of 4x80Wp

and 4 solar batteries, the system is virtually maintenance free. The community

now enjoys access to a regular flow of fresh drinking water, fuelled by the free

and abundant power of the sun.



For more information on Sollatek products and solutions visit:

http://www.sollatek.com



©PRFire

Blog



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a regular customer, get in touch and we'll offer you a discount on press release

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© Copyright. All Rights Reserved PR Fire



+++



6) Liberia: Several Logging Companies Lack Finance - Report

New Democrat (Monrovia)



Festus Poquie



19 January 2010



It has now emerged that several companies bidding to log the country's rain

forest and those being contracted, lack the requisite financial capacity and

other legal documentations to venture in the forestry sector.



Series of due diligence reports that this paper has obtained reveal that over 10

companies that bided to log the country's forest, including those granted

concession, felt short of the US$15 million capital requirement one has to

obtained before being awarded a forest management contract.



Yet, according to documents, government ignored that vital information and

surrendered one of Africa's most valuable rain forests to those companies.



The report further claimed that information on the Article of Incorporation,

audited financial statements, tax clearance and bank statements of those

companies "financial backers" who show serve as the true measure of their

financial strength are unavailable.



In some instances, it is observed in the report that several of the companies do

not have legal agreement with some of the institutions they claimed to be their

financial backers.



This indicates that foreign companies are entering the forestry industry under

false pretext with relative less financial potency and bargaining. These

companies at most present false financial analysis wherein they undervalue the

country's forest.



For instance, in October, 2008, ex GEMAP Controller, Thomas Downing informed the

then Forestry Development Authority, Managing Director, John Woods, that Carbon

Harvesting Corporation - a company negotiating for carbon concession, has

presented a fraudulent financial analysis on a 400,000 tract in River Cess

County and that the value of the forest is being under stated.



"The analysis of the logging activity is not sensible. The report estimates that

the River Cess Forest, if logged under an FMC [forest management contract] would

yield annual tax revenue of US$120,000.



"A better estimate would be at least 40- times that amount. The base land rental

alone would be US$1 million per year. Stumpage and export taxes would increase

the figure to, perhaps, US$4.6 million per year. and the annual bid land rental

could add millions of dollar more" the then GEMAP officer revealed.



Amongst companies that have not demonstrated that they can acquire the minimum

necessary capital as due diligence reports have indicated are: Global Woods,

Timbertek, Southeast Resources, EuroLiberia, Atlantic Resources, Geblo,

Unitimber etc.



FDA officials contacted said they believe that the process leading to the

awarding of contract was good, though they are not involved with the granting of

concession.



Copyright © 2010 New Democrat. All rights reserved.



+++



7) Palm Oil Master Plan To Attract US$2.6bn Investment

Liberian Observer

Publication Date: January 19, 2010 - 7:03am

Updated: January 19, 2010 - 12:38pm



[photo: Tate Munro.jpg Winrock Int’l-Liberia Director, Tate Munro



By:Leroy M. Sonpon, III



MONROVIA – In an attempt to boost the economy of Liberia amidst the global

financial meltdown, a two-day workshop to draw a master plan for the palm oil

industry is expected to be held from Thursday, January 21 to Friday, January 22,

2010 at Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.



Participants at the workshop, themed “Liberia Oil Palm Workshop & Trade

Fair,” will include smallholders in the country’s oil palm industry as well

as donors, investors, senior government officials and international partners.



The director of the oil palm processing component of the Liberia Smallholder Oil

Palm Revitalization Project, Tate Munro, told the Daily Observer over the

weekend at his Congo Town office



that the industry is expecting an investment of at least US$2.6 billion by the

three companies contracted to begin operations in the country – Sime Darby,

Veroleum and Equitorial Palm Oil.



Along the coast from Cape Mount to Maryland Counties, palm trees will planted by

the international companies, while local palm oil industries will graded, Munro

said.



The Palm Oil industry consultant added that the workshop is intended to train

the 220,550 smallholders in palm oil industry in yielding high products and in

accessing credit and cultivating 100 percent of their products.



“Statistics show that palm trees in Liberia have lived over 30 years, which

means they are old and there is a need for new ones.



“There is also a need for the improvement of processing equipment, how to have

access to credit and improve the palm oil product as well as teach the farmers

the importance of the kernel and chaff.



“Research has it that the locals lost 50 percent of their oil during

production, and 35 percent of the palm trees are not harvested because of lack

of equipment,” Munro explained.



According to the Winrock International representative, some topics that are

expected to be addressed are global trends in oil palm, the West Africa Regional

Summary on Palm Oil Activity and the current status of Liberia’s oil palm

activities and value chain.



Others include the Poverty Reduction Strategic (PRS), adding value, investment

opportunities, environmental protection (opportunities and threats) and gender

mainstreaming and inclusivity.



The two-day workshop will be organized by the Ministry of Agriculture, in

collaboration with Sustainable Tree Control Program (STCP), United States Agency

for International Cooperation (USAID), the United States Development Authority

(USDA) and Winrock International.



“We expect the Vice President of Liberia, Mr. Joseph N. Boakai, to give the

opening remarks, while the Minister of Agriculture Dr. Florence Chenoweth will

give the welcome remarks.



“The aim of this workshop is to make a blueprint of Liberia’s palm oil

master plan, which we expect to be completed within a year.



“We expect about 1,000 participants, and there will also be a trade fair,

selling of materials made from palm tree and freedom mill, which is used to

process palm oil,” Munro said.



The trade fair is organized by the Miss Boss Lady Entertainment International.



Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more



information or to request publishing permission.



+++



8) ArcelorMittal in JV talks with BHP Billiton

THE HINDU

New Delhi, January 19, 2010



[photo: AP file photo of Lakshmi Mittal, president of the Board of

ArcelorMittal.]





World’s largest steel maker ArcelorMittal and mineral giant BHP Billiton are

in initial talks to combine their iron ore interests in two African countries-

Liberia and Guinea- into a joint venture.



“ArcelorMittal announces it has entered into initial discussions with BHP

Billiton to potentially combine our respective iron ore mining and

infrastructure interests in Liberia and Guinea within a joint venture,”

ArcelorMittal said in an emailed statement from Luxembourg.



Australia’s BHP Billiton confirmed the development in a separate emailed

statement.



“The iron ore interests of the two companies in Liberia and in Guinea are

proximate and could be significantly more competitive if brought together in a

combined operation,” ArcelorMittal added.



Over the next few months, both the firms would assess the merits of potential JV

and will work with governments of Liberia and Guinea to seek their support.



“The partners will continue to assess the merits of a potential JV and will

work with the respective governments of Liberia and Guinea to seek their

support. It is anticipated that this will take several months,” BHP Billiton

added.



The financial details of the proposed JV could not be immediately ascertained.

ArcelorMittal possess huge captive reserves of iron ore across the globe. BHP

Billiton is a leading producer of ferrous and non-ferrous minerals.



Keywords: ArcelorMittal, BHP Billiton, iron ore, joint venture, busines, New

Delhi



THE HINDU



+++



9) ArcelorMittal, BHP discuss Africa iron ore JV

Published on Tue, Jan 19, 2010 at 14:48

Updated at Tue, Jan 19, 2010 at 15:29  |  Source : Reuters



ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steelmaker, is in talks with miner BHP

Billiton to combine their iron ore assets in Guinea and Liberia in a joint

venture.



ArcelorMittal said in a statement on Tuesday that the companies' iron ore

interests were close to each other's and could be significantly more competitive

if brought together. The two would assess the merits of a partnership in

coordination with the governments involved in the coming months.



ArcelorMittal's iron ore assets straddle the border between Guinea and Liberia.

Its mining there is in the process of being revived since the end of the civil

war in Liberia, but is not currently active. It expects first shipping in 2011.



Neither ArcelorMittal nor BHP, the world's largest mining group, would specify

the size of their deposits. Rio Tinto and BHP -- the world's second and third

biggest iron ore producers respectively -- last month signed a USD 116 billion

iron ore joint venture agreement to combine their Western Australian iron ore

operations.



Brazil's Vale is the world's top iron ore miner. ArcelorMittal has been pushing

to increase its self-sufficiency in iron ore in recent years. The African

venture would be its first



combination of iron ore assets.



It said in the second half of last year that it planned to reinitiate some

projects to capture growth in emerging markets and to continue to expand into

mining.



Source : Reuters



+++



10) ArcelorMittal, BHP in Talks on African Joint Venture (Update2)

By Simon Casey and Thomas Biesheuvel



Jan. 19 (Bloomberg) -- ArcelorMittal, the world’s largest steelmaker, is in

talks with BHP Billiton Ltd. on combining their iron ore mining interests in

Liberia and Guinea.



“The parties will be working together over the coming months to assess the

merits of a partnership,” Luxembourg-based ArcelorMittal said today in a

statement. The companies’ operations



“are proximate and could be significantly more competitive if brought

together,” it said.



ArcelorMittal is securing iron ore supplies as the price of the steelmaking

ingredient surges. It may buy more mines in 2010, Bill Scotting, head of

strategy, said last month. BHP, the



biggest mining company, is seeking tie-ups to cut costs and aims to save at

least $10 billion a year through an iron ore joint venture planned with Rio

Tinto Group in Australia.



ArcelorMittal rose 16 cents, or 0.5 percent, to 32.22 euros by 10:08 a.m. in

Amsterdam trading. BHP slipped 5 pence, or 0.2 percent, to 2,069.5 pence in

London.



“These deposits are potentially huge,” Liberum Capital Ltd. wrote in a

research note today. “We view this potential merger of operations, though

long-dated, as positive for both stocks



since it should deliver material” spending “synergies through shared

infrastructure and transportation,” it said.



The steelmaker will ship its first iron ore from Liberia in 2011 after slowing

development last year because of the global financial crisis, ArcelorMittal said

in September. The company is



redeveloping the Nimba mine after it was abandoned in 1992 as civil war engulfed

the west African nation.



ArcelorMittal said in 2008 it expected to produce 12.5 million metric tons of

ore a year from the mine, located in Northwest Liberia on a finger of land

jutting into neighboring Guinea.



Melbourne-based BHP said in its 2009 annual report that it was exploring the

Nimba deposit in Guinea.



BHP’s project may hold 600 million tons of iron ore and ArcelorMittal’s 1.5

billion tons, Liberum wrote.



To contact the reporter on this story: Thomas Biesheuvel in London

tbiesheuvel@....

Last Updated: January 19, 2010 04:28 EST



+++



11) 'No Land Dispute in Marshall' Ellen's Aide-Decamp Refutes Allegations

  The Informer (Monrovia)

18 January 2010



The Presidential Aide-decamp of Margibi County, General Richard Wright, has

refuted "false allegations" that there is land dispute in Marshall City, Margibi

County.



Speaking to this paper in Marshall City recently, General Wright said

allegations by City Mayor Konah Marcurley that he (General Wright) and two

others identified by the mayor as Philip



Garpue and George McGee are falsely claiming ownership of the land is

misleading.



He said he was surprised to have read a local daily that quoted Marshall City

Mayor Konah Marcurley as saying 'the land has no ownership'.



General Wright further told this paper that he believes the Lord Mayor is being

"misguided by hidden hands" to cause confusions in the area.



He explained how the City Mayor once investigated a case between him and one

Philip Garpue and that he (General Wright) was granted right to the ownership of

the land.



"At that time", he added "Philip Garpue had carried some 70 men bearing

cutlasses to survey 150 acres of the land in my absence."



He added that the mayor investigated and found out that Philip Garpue does not

own a land in Marshall.



General Wright said he wondered why the Lord Mayor would at this time select

going to newspaper to misinform the public about the ownership of the land.



Recently, City Mayor Konah Marcurley was quoted by Renaissance Newspaper as

saying the Wright's property is in dispute and is being claimed by three men.



The newspaper further quoted the City Mayor as indicating that as a result of

the dispute, he Mayor Marcurley, has declared the land as 'Imminent Domain', and

also accused General Wright



of 'attempting to assassinate him over night'.



But General Wright noted that City Mayor Marcurley was "joking", saying he has

no right to declare a private property 'Imminent Domain'.



He then called on the Liberian Government to go into the area in order to

ascertain the rightful ownership of the land.



The Aide-decamp to President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf disclosed that after the City

Mayor conducted the investigation and discovered that Philip Garpue does not own

a land in Marshall City,



he requested him (General Wright) to leave his deed and other relevant documents

of the property for safekeeping in his (City Mayor's) office.



"Since that time, my trouble started", General Wright stated in an interview

with our reporter.



"The action of the City Mayor has made me to believe that my life is at stake",

General Wright categorically stated.



On allegation of attempting to kill the mayor and family, the Presidential

Aide-decamp described as "nonsense, lies and unfounded" allegation by the Lord

Mayor that he General Wright led



men armed with sticks, knives and other objects to his residence at night in an

attempt to kill him.



The General said he was "not surprised about this baseless allegation because

Mayor Marcurley is being misled by some hidden hands."



"The land is mine. I will resist any person from taking control through any

mean", General Wright emphatically stressed.



Meanwhile, General Wright is calling on the City Mayor of Marshall and his

collaborators to refrain from spreading lies about the land, saying Mayor

Marcurley does not know the history of



the area, and noted that the mayor's attitude is tantamount to retarding the

progress of the Wright family and destroying his good reputation he has fought

to build over the years.



+++



12) Liberia: Water feasibility team warns of outbreak of diseases

Date: 18 Jan 2010

STAR Radio



Written by Charles Gbollie



The team conducting a feasibility study on water supply and sanitation project

for government has warned of an outbreak of diseases in the absence of adequate

water supply.



The study is being carried out in Monrovia and three county capitals including

Buchanan, Kakata and Zwedru.



An official of the team Dr. Yemi Suleiman said there is a population increase in

these areas and people could develop different ailments due to the lack of

sufficient water supply.



Dr. Suleiman said the feasibility study is now in its final stage and would come

to an end in February this year.



He said a donor conference to fund the project would be held in March with key

international agencies represented.



According to Dr. Suleiman, water shortage has doubled in Liberia with water

production falling at twenty-five percent.



He said this means the shortage gap has increased to about twenty-five million

gallons a day.





+++



13)See also: http://liberianature.blogspot.com/



###



Complete archives at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Nature_Liberia/

1) Who owns the land? President Sirleaf produces deed to disputed property, 2)

China vows to boost relations with Liberia, 3) Global Witness launches forest

transparency initiative, 4) Palm Oil Master Plan Talks Held Today, 5) ED grills

Madhu Koda on multi-crore illegal transactions, 6) MOA Decentralization

Continues…Opens Offices In Lofa And River Gee, 7) Ellen, Morris’ Farm

Residents In Serious Land Dispute, 8) Trade Fair On Oil Palm Industry Opens

Today In Liberia, 9) The new UL Fendell Campus is expected to take this shape

and form after completion, 10) EPA seeks preservation of wetlands, 11) The

‘Iron Soap’ Business…, 12)See also: http://liberianature.blogspot.com/





1) Who owns the land? President Sirleaf produces deed to disputed property

Written by Sorbor George

Friday, 22 January 2010

STAR Radio



Star Radio has finally obtained a copy of the deed giving President Ellen

Johnson Sirleaf title to four acres of land in the Morris Farm Community in

Paynesville.



The Deed states that the President acquired the land in 1979 from the Karngar,

Kofi Suah and Garvoi families.



According to the document, the deed was probated on June 18 a little over thirty

years ago.



Residents of the area recently alarmed that the President was trying to

illegally claim their property.



Attempts to conduct a survey of the contested property sparked angry reaction

from the residents but the president later intervened and assured the occupants

would not be immediately evicted.



Star Radio has since launched an investigation to establish the facts.



+++



2) China vows to boost relations with Liberia

English.news.cn   2010-01-22 22:37:15  FeedbackPrintRSS



BEIJING, Jan. 22 (Xinhua) -- China was willing to work with Liberia to expand

cooperation and promote bilateral ties, said Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang on

Friday.



"We should work together to tap potentials for our cooperation," Li said when

meeting with Liberian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Chief Minister of Cabinet

Olubanke King Akerele.



Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang (R) meets with Minister of Forieign Affairs of

Liberia Olubanke King Akerele in Beijing, China, on Jan. 22, 2010. (Xinhua/Yao

Dawei)



Hailing the relations between China and Liberia, Li also discussed China-Africa

ties with the minister, saying that the Chinese government attached great

importance to the solidarity and cooperation with African nations.



"We will make full coordinations with Liberia and other African nations to

fulfill the fruits of the fourth ministerial meeting of the Forum on

China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC)."



At the meeting held in Egypt in November 2009, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao

announced eight new measures to strengthen pragmatic cooperation in the next

three years.



The eight measures include the fight against climate change, intensification of

technical-scientific cooperation, reinforcement of African financial capacities

and increased access of African products to the Chinese market.



"We should take follow-up actions in an orderly way and push forward the new

type of China-Africa strategic partnership," Li told the Liberian minister.



This would help deepen China-Africa friendship and benefit the African people,

he noted.



Akerele was here on a visit at the invitation of her counterpart Yang Jiechi.

The two ministers had talks earlier Friday.



Yang said since China and Liberia resumed diplomatic ties in 2003, the two

countries had maintained political mutual trust, fruitful economic cooperation

and close cultural exchanges.



Yang appreciated Liberia's adherence to the one-China policy and its support for

China on the Taiwan and Tibet-related issues.



"China is ready to make joint efforts with Liberia to maintain high-level

exchanges, deepen economic cooperation and expand cultural exchanges, in a bid

to achieve greater development of bilateral relations," Yang said.



Akerele applauded China's great support and assistance to Liberia, saying her

government valued the friendly cooperative ties with China.



Liberia welcomed more Chinese business to make investment there, and was willing

to expand cooperation with China in various sectors, she said.



Liberia would also work with China to strengthen communication and coordination

on the international and regional issues, such as climate change and reform of

the UN Security Council, she noted.



Akerele also spoke highly of China's active and comprehensive fulfillment of the

FOCAC fruits, saying that her country would work with China to advance the

Liberia-China cooperation and the Africa-China cooperation within the FOCAC

framework.



Shortly after the end of the Liberian civil war in late 2003, the West African

nation reestablish diplomatic ties with China. China joined the peacekeeping

mission in Liberia in December 2003 under a resolution of the UN Security

Council.



Editor: Mu Xuequan

Copyright © 2000-2010 Xinhua News Agency.



+++



3) Global Witness launches forest transparency initiative

TTJ (Timber Trades Journal)

22 January, 2010



Campaign group Global Witness has published a “Forest Sector Transparency

Report Card” to highlight best practice in developing countries and expose

wrongdoing.



The group launched the card and an associated website

www.foresttransparency.info at an illegal logging update at Chatham House in

London on Wednesday.



The card, a collobarative project with campaign groups in Cameroon, Ghana,

Liberia and Peru, assesses 70 transparency indicators across 15 themes ranging

from – “Is there a Freedom of Information Act?” and “Are logging

contracts made public?”



Report highlights show that forest sector transparency is generally poor, with

very little public access to information.



Problems include insecure land and forest tenures, as well as secret mining

contracts “running roughshod” over forest protection measures.



On the positive side, some elements of good practice are at work in each country

and transparency is increasingly being recognised as an issue.



+++



4) Palm Oil Master Plan Talks Held Today

Publication Date: January 21, 2010 - 5:51am

Updated: January 22, 2010 - 1:20am



[photo: Agriculture Minister, Florence Chenoweth]

Over 100 Major Stakeholders Expected

By:

Leroy M. Sonpon, III



MONROVIA – A two-day workshop to link key oil palm industry stakeholders,

encourage increased value chain participation for sustainable investment and

draw a master plan for Liberia’s oil palm industry began at the Samuel Kanyon

Doe Sports Complex in the morning, bringing together over 100 stakeholders.



The workshop, which took place from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., was organized by the

Ministry of Agriculture in collaboration with Mercy Corps, Sustainable Tree

Crops Program (STCP) and Winrock International.



The two-day intensive consultative and trade fair event was sponsored by the

United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the US Department of

Agriculture (USDA) and Oil Palm Association of Liberia (OPAL).



According to the organizers, national, regional and international specialists in

the oil palm industry were expected to facilitate the workshop deliberations and

showcase their capabilities in traditional and mechanical milling, kernel

processing, oil palm, cuisine, soap making, morel and other oil palm-related

activities.



Deputy Minister for Planning and Development at the Agriculture Ministry, James

Logan, told journalists that about US$2.6 billion investment is expected to be

invested in the palm oil industry from three palm oil companies – Sime Darby,

Golden Veroleum and Equatorial Oil Palm.



Logan further divulged that at the end of the workshop about 220,550

smallholders of palm oil are expected to yield high products and have a guide

from the master plan.



Agriculture Minister, Dr. Florence Chenoweth, said the initiative will guide

Liberia towards understanding the demand for developing a national oil palm

master plan that will promote equitable economic growth and environmental

sustainability, in line with Liberia’s Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS).



Some of the topics that were expected to be discussed included global trends in

oil palm over the last 40 years, the current status of Liberia’s oil palm

sector and value chain.



0Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.



+++



5) ED grills Madhu Koda on multi-crore illegal transactions

PTI

Updated on Friday, January 22, 2010, 00:46 IST

Tags:ED grills Koda, multi-crore illegal transactions, Jharkhand





Ranchi: Former Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda, now in Birsa Munda Central

jail here, was today questioned for over four hours by Enforcement Directorate

(ED) sleuths on alleged hawala and mines transactions.



"Madhu Koda was questioned from 11 am to 3.45 pm by a team of ED headed by the

agency's Deputy Director D N Podar. The team have come from Delhi," a jail

official said here.



Enforcement Directorate sources said during the marathon grilling, Koda was

asked on an ED questionnaire on alleged illegal investments and hawala

transactions.



The questioning took place 82 days after the nationwide joint raids by the ED

and Income Tax in 70 premises, including those of Koda and his associates.



The questioning will continue tomorrow, the jail official said.



Soon after the raids on October 31, IT Deputy Director Ujwal Choudhary had made

a disclosure of Rs 2,000 crore scam covering illegal investments and hawala

transactions.



Another senior IT official had said the files of mining department between 2004

and 2008 had been examined as the raids revealed purchase of mines in Liberia

and other foreign countries.



The raids were a follow-up action after the ED booked Koda and seven others on

October 9, 2009 in connection with Rs 4,000 crore scam involving the mine

purchases. Koda's aides Binod Sinha and Sanjay Choudhary were still at large

despite facing arrest warrants from IT and state Vigilance Bureau.



Koda was arrested on November 11, 2009 by the state Vigilance Bureau, which is

probing a disproportionate assets case against him, and sent to judicial

custody.



Koda's former cabinet colleagues Enos Ekka, Harinarayan Rai and Kamlesh Singh

were also in judicial custody in connection with separate DA cases.



While Rai and Ekka had won in the recently concluded assembly elections, Singh

lost.



A Lok Sabha member, Koda had fielded his wife, Geeta who won the Jagannatpur

assembly seat in the elections.



PTI



+++



6) MOA Decentralization Continues…Opens Offices In Lofa And River Gee

The Inquirer

Jan 21 2010



In continuation of the Ministry of Agriculture Decentralization Exercise, two

additional integrated decentralized offices have been opened in Lofa and River

Gee Counties.  The first office recently dedicated in Buchanan, Grand Bassa

County as well as a Technology Transfer Center in District # 3.



The Agriculture Decentralized offices will coordinate all agricultural related

activities in the county, reaching out to farmers to enable them become self

sufficient in food production.



Speaking at the opening ceremony of the decentralized office in Voinjama city on

Friday, January 15, 2010, Agriculture Minister Dr. Florence Chenoweth said the

government of Liberia is rebuilding the agricultural sector to meet up with

twenty first century challenges and as such, the Ministry should be visible and

functional in the counties.  She therefore called on development partners in the

sector to help with agro machines that are of standard and not outdated.  She

said that for the first time in Liberia, there is an increase in rice production

and the United States Government has provided funds to purchase Liberian grown

rice to feed children in Liberian schools. Beans grown in Liberia and palm oil

will also be included in the food basket.



Dr. Chenoweth said we live in a world where one billion people go to bed hungry

everyday and it saddens her to know that Liberia is at the bottom of that list. 

She acknowledged with appreciation the hard work and productivity of the people

of Lofa but however admonished them to do more in vegetable production.  The

Minister challenged them to go into poultry farming so that eggs can be

available and affordable for the Liberian people and pledged her support in this

endeavor.  Dr. Chenoweth cautioned Lofians not to sell their produce to

neighboring Sierra Leone and Guinea but to make sure it stays in Liberia for the

greater good of all. For his part, the Superintendent of Lofa County Hon.

Galakpai Kortimai welcomed the Minister and



her entourage to Lofa County. He thanked the Government of Liberia through the

Ministry of Agriculture for the office which he said Lofa can be proud of. He

said Lofa was known as the bread basket of Liberia and they as citizens of Lofa

are doing everything to regain that pre-war status.   During the week-long

visit, Dr. Chenoweth toured farms, seed multiplication



sites, fish ponds, industrial plants, academic institutions, farming

cooperatives and met with chiefs, elders, farmers, women group, local and

international NGOs operating  in Lofa, Bong and Margibi counties.



Meanwhile, Hon. Richelieu A. Mitchell, Acting Deputy Agriculture Minister for

Research and Extension has formally opened the River Gee Decentralized Office in

Fish Town.  He is being



accompanied by the Registrar General of the Cooperative Development Agency (CDA)

Mr. Gibson Tulay to inspect other agricultural projects and programs in the

South Eastern region.



©2005 - 2010 The Inquirer Online



+++



7) Ellen, Morris’ Farm Residents In Serious Land Dispute

Morrison O.G. Sayon

The Inquirer

Jan 21 2010



Serious land dispute has erupted between the President of Liberia, Ellen

Johnson-Sirleaf and residents of Morris Farm in Paynesville.  The situation is

believed to be intense something that caused the Liberian leader to send two

pick-up full of officers of the Liberia National Police led by one Col. Power of

the National Security Agency (NSA) along with some surveyors to



survey the land on Tuesday.  A notice under the signatures of Moses T. Tehswen

Sr. and Maxwell C.F. Gwee Registered Land Surveyors said Madam Johnson-Sirleaf

owned four acres of land in the Morris Farm Community and survey on said

property should have been on December 19, 2009. According to the Surveyors, the

survey is to re-demarcate a four acre parcel of land situated



within the vicinity of the New LBS Compound, Morris Farm, Paynesville City.  

The property is said to be owned by Madam Sirleaf and is adjacent to properties

owned by the late D. Franklyn



Neal, Reginald J. & Adelaide P. Gardner.



But residents of the community who claimed to be legitimate owners of the

property said the area in question is not for the President but wants to use her

presidential power to evict them



from their rightfully owned properties.   Isaac N. Gborway, Spokesman of the

community said Madam Sirleaf at one point visited the community with the late

Julu Johnson and acquired whether the area was Wood Camp. Mr. Gborway said the

President told them that she bought a land in 1979 in Wood Camp and of which she

keeps paying taxes for up to the present, which she is still



in search of. “She asked, is this Wood Camp?”   “She was here in 1997 and

contested the election and served on the Good Governance Commission  in 2004 and

she never one day came here to claim land but now that she has become president,

she is claiming land here because she wants to  use her power to take us from

our property, this will not happen,” the Spokesman said.



Gborway said they have done everything possible to stop Madam Sirleaf from

taking over their land but to no avail. “We even contacted our representative

but she was nearly beaten by some of the Presidential guards. They even beat two

of our children here for our own property,” he said. Residents of the

community have vowed to resist any attempt by the President to take



over their land.  A group of police yesterday, thronged to the troubled spot to

ensure that the survey is conducted despite the refusal by residents of the

community. The group's spokesman told members of the affected community not to

be part of the survey as the Surveyors were being escorted by several police

officers to conduct what residents of the community described as



an illegal survey on their land.    Several modern houses including a

multi-million dollar children home (The Lord Prayer) Orphanage Home, seven

schools and other facilities have been constructed on the land said to be owned

by Madam President.



Gborway said the administrators are still alive and can attest to their

documents and that there is no question about who really owns the property.

“We are prepared to go to court or die for our land and we can't allow anyone

using presidential power to take our property.” Mr. Gborway noted.



©2005 - 2010 The Inquirer Online



+++



8) Trade Fair On Oil Palm Industry Opens Today In Liberia

The Inquirer

Jan 21 2010



Vice president, Joseph N. Boakai will today address a two-day workshop and Trade

Fair on Liberia's Oil Palm Industry at the Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex in

Paynesville, outside Monrovia.The two-day event that is being hosted and

organized by the Ministry of Agriculture in collaboration with its partners,

including Mercy Corps, Winrock international and Sustainable Tree Crop Program, 

will link key oil palm industry stakeholders and encourage increase valued chain

participation for sustainable investment in Liberia's oil palm sub-sector.The

Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Florence Chenoweth stated that this initiative will

guide Liberia towards understanding the demand for developing a National Oil

Palm Master Plan that will promote equitable economic growth and environmental

sustainability in line with Liberia's Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS).



A release from the Ministry of Agriculture says the two-day event, sponsored by

the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the US

Department of Agriculture and the Oil Palm Association of Liberia (OPAL), will

bring together national, regional and international specialists in the oil palm

industry.  These experts will facilitate the workshop's



deliberations and showcase their capabilities in oil palm activities such as

traditional and mechanical milling, kernel processing, oil palm cuisine, soap

making and morel, among several



others.Some of the topics to be discussed will include Global Trends in Oil Palm

over the past 40 years; current status of Liberia's oil palm sector and valued

chain as well as food



security and cash crop for Liberians.



©2005 - 2010 The Inquirer Online



+++



9) The new UL Fendell Campus is expected to take this shape and form after

completion

Published on Liberian Observer (http://www.liberianobserver.com)

By ldodoo

Created Jan 21 2010 - 6:07am



[photo: UL Fendall Campus]



Families Express Shock over UL's Action

By:

Lennart Dodoo



MONROVIA – The Tarr and Clark families, who sued the University of Liberia

(UL) for ‘illegal possession’ of more than 625 acres of land at its Fendell

campus, have expressed dissatisfaction with the findings of an alleged survey

recently carried out by the university through the Ministry of Lands & Mines on

the land in question.



According to lawyer representing the two families, the alleged conduct of the

survey by the UL is a breach of the Constitution of Liberia, which prohibits

survey of land without appropriate land documents.



The families, in a bill of information filed at the Civil Law Court at the

Temple of Justice on Capitol Hill, said they had not received any document(s)

from the university to prove its legitimate ownership of the land. They argued

that the university should not have conducted a survey without documents.



“Informant strongly believes that this act of the respondent (UL) is

contemptuous and ought to be corrected by the court,” the families stated in

the bill of information.



Counsel for the Clarke and Tarr families, Cllr. John Nenwon, said the university

had sent a note acknowledging receipt of the bill of information, but had not

replied.



On Wednesday, January 20, the UL failed to appear in court after receiving a

notice of assignment. Instead, the institution filed a bill of information

requesting suspension of the case to next week.



The bill of information, signed by Cllr. William A. N. Gbaintor, stated that the

suspension of the matter will allow him time to consult with Dean A.B. David

Jallah, who has been handling the case on behalf of the UL.



Jallah is reportedly out of the country and is expected to return to Liberia

today.



Last year, the Tarr and Clark families filed a five-count petition against the

University of Liberia before Circuit Court Presiding Judge, Yusuf Kaba, at the

Temple of Justice. The petition was filed during the September Term of Court.



In their petition, the families stated that following the death of Marboe Tarr

and William Clark, the heirs applied to the Monthly and Probate Court for

Montserrado County, which



subsequently issued letters of administration to the two families for

administration of the intestate estate.



The families contended that when President William R. Tolbert, Jr. (deceased)

visited the university in 1979, he entered into discussions with the lawyers of

Tarr and Clark families to purchase 100 acres of land from them for the

relocation of the UL.



The petition further stated that the discussion advanced to a point where the

University commenced payment for crops and live trees on the 100-acre plot of

land.



The two families, in their petition, said following the April 12, 1980 military

coup in which Tolbert was killed, the UL did not only “refuse, fail and

neglect to pay for the 100 acres of



land, but exceeded and occupied beyond the 100 acres over the objection of the

petitioners”.



“The act of the University is a clear violation of the petitioners’ right to

own property as guaranteed by the Constitution of Liberia,” the legal counsel

of the families said.



The families submitted that they had presented a series of communications to the

UL authorities, notifying and urging them to see reason to pay for the property

but to no avail.



The families, through their legal counsel, also prayed the court to bring a

judgment of liability against the UL and to evict, eject, and oust the UL from

their deeded property.



As an alternative, they prayed the Court to grant judgment that the UL will pay

US$1,000 for each lot it occupies and to further grant unto the petitioners any

other relief as the Court may deem legal, just and proper in the premises, with

all costs against the UL.



In response, the president of the university, Dr. Emmet Dennis, the Chairman and

Board of Trustees, Deans and Faculty, filed a 12-count respondents’ return to

the petition on behalf of the UL.



The returns were signed by Cllr. David A.B. Jallah, Dean of the Louis Arthur

Grimes School of Law at the UL.



In its respondents’ return, the UL argued eminent domain. The UL, Dennis said,

is hundred percent state-owned, and “as such, no private individual can evict

the UL from the land on which it operates and which is derived from the Republic

of Liberia.”



The respondents pointed out that the UL is an integral part of the sovereign

state of Liberia and that all real estate in Liberia originally belongs to the

sovereign.



“Even where the properties had been sold to individuals and the sovereign

desires to use such property for public good, as the case may be, it may enter

upon and take possession of the said property under its right of eminent

domain,” the institution contended.



“Even if it is established that the 625 acres of land belongs to the

petitioners, the sovereign reserves the right to reacquire and entire quantity

of land.”



The University also said that they were not aware that the land actually

belonged to the late Maboe Tarr and William Clark.

0Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.



Copyright 2009 | Liberian Observer Online | www.LiberianObserver.com

Source URL (retrieved on Jan 22 2010 - 1:59am):

http://www.liberianobserver.com/node/4153



+++



10) EPA seeks preservation of wetlands

Written by Moses Wenyou

Wednesday, 20 January 2010

STAR Radio



The Environmental Protection Agency has again warned against the continued

misuse of wetlands in the country.



The Executive Director of the EPA told Star Radio many people especially those

in the Monrovia area   consider wetlands as wastelands thereby using them as

dumpsites.



Dr. Alfred Armah said wetlands could serve as tourist sites if   kept clean.



According to Dr. Armah, using wetlands as dumpsites can be dangerous because the

population largely depends on water from swamps and creeks.



Dr. Armah said it is the responsibility of all residents to keep their

surroundings clean.



The EPA boss also cautioned individuals involved in illegal sand mining to

desist as the Agency will not relent to close down sites not approved for such

activity.



Meanwhile, the Environmental Protection Agency says is has begun preparations

for this years’ observance of Wetlands Day on February 2nd.



EPA Executive Director Dr. Alfred Armah said the day will be commemorated with a

massive clean up activity in the swampland located on the SKD Boulevard.



+++



11) The ‘Iron Soap’ Business…

Publication Date: January 20, 2010 - 6:11am

Updated: January 20, 2010 - 8:09pm



“You first need to cut them out with a spoon before molding them into balls

and placing them in the cool air to get dry.”



By: N'djarabie N'na



Located about three miles from the compound of one of Liberia’s trailblazers,

Paramount Chief Suacoco, lies a hut inhabited by a couple and their two children

in Suacoco Chiefdom, now Suacoco City. The district of Suacoco is named after

Liberia’s first female paramount chief, “Madam Suacoco” as she was

popularly known.



For two months now, this couple, Kortu and Moses, have been involved in the

production and sale of a traditional soap known across the sub-region as “iron

soap”. The product is very



popular in countries such as Guinea and Côte D’Ivoire. The name “iron

soap” was coined for it based on its ability to withstand water and not melt

as easily as other soaps do. Some refer to as “Kabaclone,” which means

‘rock.’



“You can wash a load of clothes three to four times with iron soap, yet it

will be as if you just bought it. It is the type that we, the poor people,

prefer. With iron soap, we don’t need to worry about buying soap all the

time,” a cross section of mothers said of the traditional soap during a recent

tour of Suacoco.



It seems as though the majority of the families, especially the women in this

town, are migrating from intensive rice, cassava or vegetable farming to the

production of Iron Soap, a business they vividly described as highly successful.

Everyone had his or her own story to tell about how they got involved with the

business.



One such story was that of Korto and Moses.



The Daily Observer’s Women & Family columnist sat down with the couple in an

interview during one of their soap production sessions in the back yard of their

self-contained mud house. We asked them what the driving force was behind their

involvement in the “Iron Soap” business.



“It has been a tough struggle with life,” Kortu said. We have, over the

years, depended solely on farming to make ends meet, but nothing has really

changed in our lives. The change I can tell you about is endless poverty.

Poverty kept growing by the second, minute, hour, and day. Our lives kept

deteriorating day-in-day-out because of the [intensive] manual work we did on

the farms.”



“You know what?” Moses chimed in. “Our inputs exceeded our outputs. Do you

get what I mean? We used to take all we had saved to invest in rice, cassava or

vegetable farm but gained practically nothing out of it. We barely reaped enough

for our sustenance. So what’s the point? The manual work alone was extremely

taxing. Acquiring rice seedlings for the following year was a task all by itself

since we harvested barely enough to sustain us. Preserving seedlings was out of

the question because we needed to eat and stay alive! Otherwise, it would be a

different story altogether.”



So the couple took the meager resources they had left and began the business.



“Two months ago,” Kortu said, “I decided to invest the little money

[L$500] we had saved over a period of four months in this soap business. I

realized that most women in this area have turned to this business; and

according to them, it is fast and has lots of profit. So, I decided to join and

see how I, too, could make it. I started by buying and re-selling and few months

later, I began my own production right here,” she said, pointing to the

backyard of their house.



W&F asked the couple what it takes to make iron soap.



“It depends on the quantity you need and the expected profit you want,”

Kortu said. “For me, my resources are still in the growing stage, so I go by

what I’ve got thus far. Actually, you only need palm oil and caustic soda. I

can spend L$1,300 on six 5-gallon containers of palm oil during the Suacoco

market day (every Friday); L$1,800 on a bag of caustic soda.



“For the production,” she explained, “you have to first dilute the bag of

caustic soda in water little-by-little. After that, mix the gallons of oil with

the diluted caustic soda water and begin thoroughly stirring the solution.

Gradually it will begin to change from liquid to solid; you then need to start

molding it into small, small round balls to give you your Iron Soap.



You can choose to mold it into either L$10 or L$20 sizes and, depending on how

you mold it, it is possible that you produce as many as 400 or 500 pieces of

soap.



“I have come to realize that what my friends said of this business is actually

true. We are able to make over L$ 5, 000 from a two-day sale,” she said.



In other countries (Côte D’Ivoire for instance), the majority of those

involved in the Iron Soap business actually process the palm oil themselves

instead of buying it by gallons. Those who do say this helps to cut down their

cash outflow and maximize their profits. For them, all it takes is the

acquisition of caustic soda and manpower.



W&F asked the couple what made them so sure that by quitting farming, greener

pastures awaited them in the Iron Soap production business.



“I’m self-employed, and I make enough money to keep my business going,

[keep]my two children in school and have something on the table for my

family,” Kortu said. “Let me tell you: farming



is extremely difficult, and we don’t ever get what we want. We remain at a

particular spot and never experience change. So, we decided to try something

else and this is it. I think this business is good for me, like any other woman

[involved in this business will tell you].”



During our tour of their backyard yard, we noticed that the couple kept portion

of the diluted caustic soda, which looked like a pan of clear water, right by

the house. So we asked them whether they knew and understood the danger of

caustic soda and the fact that it kills children.



“We are aware of the danger of this substance,” Moses said. “We try to

protect our two children from it by keeping far away from the house, under the

banana tree. Our children are too



young to be around this kind of work, but when they get older, we will teach

them about it and make them to understand and to be careful around the

materials.”



Copyright Liberian Observer - All Rights Reserved. This article cannot be

re-published without the expressed, written consent of the Liberian Observer.

Please contact us for more information or to request publishing permission.



+++



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