The report is a first step in strengthening national and local focus on cross-sectoral governance that addresses overall chemicals management concerns rather than dealing with issues on a chemicals-by-chemicals basis. The National Situation Report (NSR) aims to identify specific areas of chemicals management that are likely to produce concrete environmental, health and economic benefits as a result of introducing sound management practices in economic and social sectors critical to the development of Liberia.

In light of the years of conflict and the continued challenges which the country continues to face with respect to poverty, food shortages, unemployment, among else, has led the authors of the National Situation Report (NSR) on the Sound Management of Chemicals to decide to adapt the methodology for the report’s preparation in order to better fit Liberia’s national circumstances. As such the methodology applied and approach taken for the preparation of this report is different as compared to the methodology applied throughout the implementation of UNDP-UNEP Partnership Initiatives in countries not set in a post-crisis environment.
The reasons for taking this adapted approach was largely due to challenges faced by the project as well as the project’s consultants related to very scarce data and information access, extremely limited financial and human resources and capacity in the field of chemicals management.