Stakeholders from Liberia and Sierra Leone have renewed their commitment to strengthen cross-border peace, community cooperation, and sustainable natural resource management.
The event followed a two-day peace forum held in Tienii, Grand Cape Mount County.
The forum was organized by the Society for the Conservation of Nature of Liberia (SCNL) under the UN Peace-building Fund-supported Gola REAP Project.
It brought together approximately 70 participants from Liberia and Sierra Leone from September 22–23.
The gathering brought together local government authorities, traditional leaders, community representatives, government partners, civil society organizations, immigration officials, women and youth representatives.
They came from communities located along the Liberia-Sierra Leone border.
It was held under the theme: “Strengthening Peace and Protecting the Gola Forest Landscape.”
The forum created a common platform for communities, and institutions from the two countries.
Participants discussed issues affecting peace, security, cross-border relations, and the sustainable management of natural resources.
The initiative, according to release, comes against the backdrop of the close social, economic, cultural, and environmental ties that exist among communities along the Liberia-Sierra Leone border. While these connections provide opportunities for cooperation, participants acknowledged that unresolved disputes and other cross-border challenges can undermine peaceful coexistence, and affect efforts to protect shared natural resources.
As part of the forum, participants were divided into community-based groups to examine specific cross-border challenges, and develop recommendations.
The discussions considered issues ranging from land, and boundary disputes to human-wildlife conflicts, security concerns, livelihoods, cross-border voting, trade, and migration.
Participants were also encouraged to identify practical pathways for strengthening cooperation between communities on both sides of the border.
The process provided an opportunity for community members to move from discussing problems to proposing solutions that could be implemented through collaboration among local authorities, communities, government institutions, and development partners.
