By Varney Kamara and Samuel T. Jabba
The killing of a teenage cocoa farmer in River Gee County has intensified concerns over violent disputes linked to Burkinabé migration into Liberia’s forested southeast.
In late September, a 15-year-old Deppu Kobera, an Ivoirian working in the Kwawe Gee Forest, was found beheaded and shot after disappearing three days earlier. Police confirmed foul play but have made no arrests.
Kobera’s death highlights the growing conflicts surrounding Burkinabé migrants—known as “Mossi”—who cross into Liberia from Côte d’Ivoire in search of fertile cocoa farmlands. Their arrival has been marked by deaths, land disputes, and deforestation. Court records show dozens of cases involving Burkinabé farmers in southeastern Liberia over the past three years.
“I believe their influx will create some maximum-security threat in the country in the future,” warned Uriah Zokruah, Deputy Commander of the Grand Gedeh Police Detachment.
Shad Dweh, Senior Magistrate of the Zwedru City Court, described the disputes as “a complex problem that requires cooperation between the Liberia Immigration Service, the Police, the Forestry Development Authority, and communities.”
Many Burkinabés cross borders into Liberia from neighboring Côte d’Ivoire by canoe, motorbike, or on foot. Once here, they enter into informal contracts, wherein they invest money and labor, while Liberian hosts and landlords contribute land. Over time, the migrants have come to outnumber their hosts across communities. They are a constant feature on highways and footpaths, having farming tools in their hands.
“We do not want trouble,” Soré Sayouba, a Burkinabe farmer in Grand Gedeh’s Gbarzon District, tells The DayLight. “We feel sad about what is happening, but when there is confusion, everyone gets blamed.”
Liberia Immigration Service recorded 55,000 Burkinabes in Liberia as of August, with 48,000 in Grand Gedeh County alone. There are 4,000 in River Gee, 2,000 in Nimba, and 426 in Maryland.
The Liberia Immigration Service estimates 55,000 Burkinabés are currently in Liberia, with 48,000 concentrated in Grand Gedeh County. Smaller populations are spread across River Gee, Nimba, and Maryland. Many enter by canoe, motorbike, or on foot, striking informal contracts with local landowners: migrants provide labor and investment, while hosts contribute land. Over time, migrants have come to outnumber their hosts in several communities.
“We do not want trouble,” said Soré Sayouba, a Burkinabé farmer in Gbarzon District. “We feel sad about what is happening, but when there is confusion, everyone gets blamed.”
A drone picture of a new farm shows cocoa thriving while trees decay. The DayLight/Samuel T. Jabba
The tensions extend beyond migrant-host relations. In March, a land dispute between the Kiteabo and Glaro sub-tribes in River Gee left three people dead. Violence erupted after Kiteabo tribesman Eric Nyenpan was allegedly shot while setting up tents on disputed Cheapoo Island. Retaliatory attacks destroyed Glaro villages, killing Sabastine Saylee and Aaron Teah.
“It is a tragic thing,” said Assistant Police Commissioner Theophilus Togba. “We are trying to establish the motive behind these acts.”
Similar disputes have flared in Grand Gedeh. In Gbao and Cavalla districts, Tojallah men allegedly abducted Burkinabé farmers working for Bargblor clansmen on contested forestland. Once linked by intermarriage, the two communities now clash bitterly over boundaries.
Family disputes add another layer. In 2023, Anthony Rancy, son of a former senator, sued his relative Robert Bestman, accusing him of using Burkinabé migrants to farm cocoa on land inherited from the late senator. The Zleh Town Court ruled in Rancy’s favor, sentencing Bestman to nine months in prison for trespassing.
A drone shot of Pierre Village-1, a Burkinabe settlement in B’hai Jozon, Grand Gedeh County. The DayLight/Samuel T. Jabba
Conflicts also pit Burkinabé farmers against each other. In 2018, a Toe Town court mediated a dispute between Ali Kabore, a Burkinabé farmer, and resident Goeyeazon Belaydee over a breached cocoa agreement. More recently, police arrested several Burkinabé migrants in B’hai District after a land clash left three injured, two critically.
Beyond violence, cocoa farming has fueled deforestation. Burkinabé farmers, skilled but aggressive in clearing land, often fell trees or burn their bases to plant cocoa. Drone footage shows cocoa thriving beneath vast tree graveyards.
Liberia, home to 40 percent of West Africa’s remaining Upper Guinea forests, lost about 390,000 hectares of primary forest between 2002 and 2024, according to Global Forest Watch. A Global Witness report found that from 2021 to 2024, Liberia lost forest equal in size to Luxembourg, with cocoa farming a major driver.
These farms extend into forestry concessions, proposed national parks, and community forests—areas where farming is illegal under Liberia’s Forestry Reform Law. In December, 21 migrants were arrested in Grand Gedeh’s Konobo Community Forest, following earlier arrests of 31 Burkinabé teenagers accused of encroachment.
Back in River Gee, Kobera’s death remains unresolved. Meanwhile, in Katebo, 21 suspects—including five Ivoirians and three Burkinabés—face charges of murder and illegal weapon possession in connection with the deaths of three men during tribal clashes. Their case is before the 15th Judicial Circuit Court.
As cocoa continues to lure migrants into Liberia’s forests, the path of the “brown gold rush” is increasingly marked by bloodshed, bitter divisions, and vanishing trees.
Additional reporting by Paul Rancy in Grand Gedeh and Prince Copeland in River Gee
