GANTA, Nimba County – The Environmental Protection Agency(EPA) of Liberia with support from the United Nations Development Program(UNDP) and Partners, holds the third and final regional validation workshop on Liberia’s Nationally Determined Contribution-NDC for stakeholders from five counties of Liberia. Those counties include Bong, Lofa, Nimba, Grand Gedeh and Rivergee.
The revision process benefits experts’ reviews and analyses of the various sectors as well as various consultations involving Government Agencies, CSOs, private sector, youth and women groups and academia to ensure broad based participation in drafting climate change actions that will meet NDC targets.
This process which is proceeding through a multi-partner approach supported by the UNDP, Conservation International, and the European Union Long Term Technical Assistance is in its final stages with a goal of meeting it’s June 2021 deadline for submission.
Representing the EPA, the Chief Technical Assistant of the EPA Prof. Benjamin Karmorh welcomed the participants and announced to them[participants] that because the NDC revision process is almost at a close, the organizers have brought everything gathered from consultations to be reviewed, discussed and adopted prior to submission.
“And as far as we are concern, what we have collected, what we have compiled seems to be good but it’s going to better if we have your input into this national document,” announced Prof. Karmorh.
He, however, called on the participants to be more engaged with facilitators and attentive as the presentations about climate change, its effects and how it can be mitigated go on.
“So while we are here, we will be expecting your inputs; those views you expressed will be captured and I can assure you that under the leadership of Prof. Tarpeh Liberia will submit her nationally determined contribution before the Conference of Parties-COP26,” he emphasized.
Those sectors under review for the revised NDC include Short-Lived Climate Pollutants (SLCPs), Green Corridor, Energy, Waste, Health, Agriculture, Forestry, Fisheries, Coastal zones and Transport/Infrastructure.
The overall key objectives of the regional workshop include ensuring that all relevant stakeholders are involved in the validation of the draft revised NDC; ensuring that all key relevant stakeholders are aware and understand Liberia’s NDC revision process as well as the national targets and commitments and to enhance collective and increased national participation and ownership to promote climate change actions in Liberia.
At the close of the event, regional stakeholders welcomed the dialogue and engagement and unanimously endorsed the revised NDC, including the sectoral targets for mitigation and adaptation. Stakeholders have also called on the government and partners to ensure that the implementation of the NDC be characterized by the same level of multi-stakeholders engagement and ownership.
Endorsing the draft revised NDC and representing all superintendents of the five counties, the superintendent of Grand Gedeh County, Kai Garlo Farley applauded all the partners for including their expertise and ideas in the validation process of the NDC revision.
Participants also suggested the need for increase awareness on the NDC including translating it into local languages
It is expected that following the completion of the regional validation, the revised NDC will be validated at a high level event on June 2, 2021; EPA has committed with the incorporation of stakeholders input in the revised NDC that Liberia is certain to reaffirm its commitment to the Paris Agreement with the timely submission of the revised NDC ahead of COP26. The NDC validation exercise has been marred by training of stakeholders to ensure that regional actors understand the NDC and have the capacity to implement climate actions in their respective activities.