Liberia: How FDA Allows a Foreign Family to Hoard Forests and Hurts Communities

Oct 21, 2021 | William Harmon and Varney Kamara
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In 2018, the Bondi Mandingo Authorized Community Forest signed a logging agreement with Indo Africa Plantation Limited. The community agreed with the company to log in its 37,222-hectare forest in the Bopolu District of Gbarpolu County in exchange for development. Three years on, Indo Africa is yet to live up to the agreement, failing to pay the community land rental and harvesting fees.

Some 250 miles away in Zorzor District, Lofa County,  Bluyeama Authorized Community Forest faces a similar situation with Sing Africa Plantation Liberia, another logging company. Apart from their failing logging agreements, Bondi Mandingo and Bluyeama have one other thing in common: Both Sing Africa and Indo Africa are owned by a Singaporean family, the Guptas. The family also owns Starwood Incorporated. The three companies have the same executives, too, with Kumah Gupta their chief executive officer and Moses Mononporlor, community forest manager. 

The Forestry Development Authority (FDA) approving Sing Africa and Starwood to export logs despite owing Bluyeama and Matro-Kpogblen is a violation of the National Forestry Reform Law of 2006. Campaigners urge the FDA to conduct due diligence and use its oversight powers to stop companies from signing news deals when they did not perform well with previous ones. The communities themselves are taking action over the Guptas’ indebtedness to them, including cancelation of their contracts with the family’s logging firms.