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Table 3.6 Sierra Leone's technical regulations in force, September 2016
Title Reference
Others
Environmental management systems – Requirements with guidance for use SLS: ISO 14001_2004
(...)

Sierra Leone is neither a member nor an observer of the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV). Sierra Leone is a party to the Convention on Biological Diversity.

Agriculture is usually given priority in the Government's various development programmes. One of the four priorities in the Agenda for Change (2008-12) was to raise agricultural production and productivity. In 2012, the Government embarked on an Agenda for Prosperity , setting a pathway to middle income status by 2035. The first pillar aimed at achieving economic diversification by investing massively in agriculture, manufacturing, and tourism, which were identified as possessing strong potential for long-term inclusive and sustainable growth. [6]

[6] The Agenda for Prosperity relies on 8 pillars: (...) managing natural resources; (...)

The agriculture sector is under the oversight of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Security (MAFFS). In 2009, the Ministry developed the National Sustainable Agriculture Development Plan 2010-2030 (NSADP) , a framework linking some objectives of Agenda for Change to specific actions. (...)

Sierra Leone's cocoa production is relatively small compared with other regional producers, such as Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire. The authorities' strategy is to focus on the fair-trade organic segment as a niche market. The National Export Strategy (NES) is the main policy framework for the subsector. Over its 5-year framework (2010-15), it plans to invest about US$72 million in the subsector through policy actions geared towards increasing production, enhancing the application of quality standards, and developing a robust market system. Through the NES, cocoa growers were provided with fermentation boxes and drying tables. With a view to supporting organic cocoa farming in Sierra Leone, the Government provided training and fair trade certification opportunities. The NES also supported the modernization of the regulatory framework with respect to certification and conformity assessment.

According to FAO estimates , forest covered 38.1% of Sierra Leone's land area in 2010, down from 40.4% in 2000, and 43.5% two decades earlier. High reliance on biomass-based energy, logging activities, and to some extent the extension of agricultural and mining activities are contributing to this declining trend. The contribution of the sector to GDP declined from 6.6% in 2005 to 4.6% in 2012.

The overall goal of the Government in the subsector is to ensure sustainable management of forest resources, and biodiversity conservation. The MAFFS is responsible for forest issues. Its Division of Forestry is responsible for policy implementation. The Forestry Act of 1988 and the Wildlife Act of 1972 are the main pieces of legislation in the sector.

The Director of Forestry is in charge of forest resources management. Forests are classified as: national production forests, oriented toward the production of forest produce; national protection forests, destined to the preservation of the forest and the protection of related species; and community forests. Community forests are designated on the basis of an agreement between the Director of Forestry and the Chiefdom Council. They are under the jurisdiction of relevant chiefdoms but the Director of Forestry retains the authority to issue permits for their exploitation.

The Forestry Act sets a permit requirement for operations in classified forests. A permit is required, in principle, for: cutting, burning, uprooting, damaging or destroying trees; removing any timber or forest produce; clearing land; building roads or structures; taking any earth, clay, sand, gravel or stone; cultivating crops and grazing animals.

There are three types of forest utilization rights:
a. forest utilization licence: grants the holder the right to perform the designated activities in the area covered by the licence. Licences are usually issued for a period not exceeding one year for a fee of Le 5 million. Longer periods may be granted for activities such as clearing land or planting trees or crops;
b. forest utilization concession: may include, in addition to the right of felling and extracting timber or other forest produce, the right to build infrastructure for carrying out these activities, including roads, bridges, and saw mill factories. Utilization concessions are granted for periods not exceeding 10 years, but may be extended to 20 years if the project includes substantial transformation of the forest product. Applicants for forest concession must submit, together with their application, a forest management plan making provisions for, inter alia, forest protection; the allowable annual cut; protected species; and the methods of felling and extracting timber, sylviculture, and reforestation measures. Concessions are negotiated with the Paramount Chief or the Government, depending on the status of the forest. There are currently five concessions licences, all issued for community forests;
c. forest plantation concession: gives the holder the right to clear an area with the aim of restocking it. It is generally valid for the estimated optimum growth cycle of the forest vegetation to be planted.