Amb. Yorlay Advances Strategic Economic Cooperation -Woos France Support in Fisheries, Forestry, Environment

MONROVIA – A dispatch from Paris, France sayd Dr. Teeko T. Yorlay, Liberia’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary has been holding a high-level strategic meeting with Mr. Gabriel Normand, Advisor to the Minister at the French Ministry for Ecological Transition, Biodiversity, Forestry, the Sea, and Fisheries.

Ambassador Yorlay conveyed the Government of Liberia’s steadfast commitment to strengthening the longstanding and cordial bilateral relations between Liberia and France. He emphasized Liberia’s interest in establishing a structured framework for collaboration in three critical sectors: Fisheries, Forestry, and Environmental Protection.

Fisheries Cooperation

Ambassador Yorlay drew attention to the pressing challenges posed by climate change to Liberia’s coastal communities and marine ecosystems, including sea-level rise, coastal erosion, and extreme weather variability, and made requests for support from the French Government.

He made specific requests for strengthening Liberia’s capacity to monitor and protect its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) from Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, marine pollution, and illicit maritime activities, and to enhancing climate resilience and supporting the development of sustainable marine-based economic opportunities.

The Liberian diplomat also asked for the promotion of academic and technical cooperation, particularly through the Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture at the University of Liberia.

Forestry Sector Engagement

Highlighting Liberia’s commitment to forest conservation, Ambassador Yorlay noted the country’s establishment of five major protected areas: Sapo National Park, East Nimba Nature Reserve, Lake Piso Multiple Use Reserve, Grebo-Krahn National Park, and Gola Forest National Park.

He outlined several areas where a French technical and financial partnership would be invaluable—capacity-building  support for the Forestry Development Authority (FDA), including the establishment of a fully functional Project Management Unit; development of eco-tourism infrastructure, including ecolodges and visitor centers; training of forest rangers and provision of scholarship programs in Biodiversity Conservation and Natural Resource Management; facilitation of joint scientific research focused on Liberia’s biodiversity, and support for transboundary landscape management and the development of a national carbon policy framework.

Ambassador Yorlay also sought French technical assistance in the areas of carbon measurement, reporting, and verification (MRV), greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory systems, and the establishment of safeguards information systems.

Commending France’s global leadership in environmental governance, Ambassador Yorlay referenced key French-supported initiatives, including the EU Mission to Restore Our Ocean and Waters, the United Nations Ocean Conference, and the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Treaty.

He expressed Liberia’s gratitude for the opportunity to deposit its instrument of ratification of the Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Treaty during the recent UN Ocean Conference held in Nice, France, in June 2025.

Ambassador Yorlay further expressed interest in deepening cooperation in technical and financial support to strengthen the operational capacities of Liberia’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Coast Guard, and Forestry Development Authority (FDA); access to satellite-based vessel tracking systems (AIS/VRM); collaboration with French research institutions such as IFREMER on joint marine research missions; assistance in implementing coastal zoning regulations, piloting coastal resilience projects, and advancing initiatives in aquaculture, mangrove restoration, and marine renewable energy.

He reaffirmed Liberia’s commitment to building a strategic partnership with France anchored in shared values of environmental stewardship, marine protection, biodiversity conservation, and climate resilience.

The Ambassador emphasized Liberia’s readiness to contribute local expertise, enhance environmental enforcement mechanisms, and align national policies with international environmental obligations.

France’s Response and Future Collaboration

In response, Mr. Gabriel Normand welcomed Liberia’s proactive engagement and lauded its leadership in environmental and climate governance. He affirmed France’s readiness to explore two principal avenues of cooperation: bilateral engagement, which entails reviewing existing agreements, if there are any, and establishing new frameworks to guide bilateral cooperation, and multilateral engagement, which is to identify and support Liberia’s participation in relevant international agreements to enhance its technical capacity and global integration.

Mr. Normand also acknowledged Liberia’s ratification of the BBNJ Treaty and pledged to mobilize support from relevant French governmental institutions to assist Liberia in the outlined priority areas.

Additionally, Mr. Normand highlighted two strategic policy priorities for the French Government–combatting Plastic Pollution, the encouraging of Liberia’s support for the adoption of a global treaty to eliminate plastic pollution, and COP30 participation, the inviting of Liberia to actively engage in shaping Africa’s regional voice during the upcoming COP30 Climate Summit.

This high-level engagement reflects the Embassy of the Republic of Liberia’s continued diplomatic efforts, under the leadership of Ambassador Teeko T. Yorlay, to deepen and expand bilateral relations with the French Republic and other countries within its diplomatic jurisdiction.

These efforts are consistent with the Government of Liberia’s foreign policy focus on economic and development diplomacy. The meeting concluded with expressions of mutual goodwill and a reaffirmed commitment to fostering Liberia–France cooperation in the spirit of sustainable development, environmental protection, and shared prosperity.