Asaase Economy Environment Ghana Opinion

Green as our homeland, Ghana

It’s a month to go to 11 June, writes Samuel Abu Jinapor, Minister of Lands and Natural Resources . . . and the countdown to Green Ghana Day has begun

Asaase Yaa May 11, 2021

5,138

Multiple reports and scientific studies show that Ghana’s forest cover is under grave threat after decades of unsustainable depletion, with all the adverse consequences for our nation’s survival.

Clearly, there is an urgent need for a collective, determined and sustained effort to restore the forest cover of our nation.

The time for action is NOW.

It is for this reason that, in accordance with the vision of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who doubles as the co-chair of the United Nations secretary general’s Group of Eminent Advocates for the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, together with other partners, has launched the Green Ghana Project. This seeks to plant and nurture to maturity five million trees on 11 June 2021, Green Ghana Day.

The planting of five million trees in a day is an integral part of the masterplan for the Green Ghana Project, which seeks to restore Ghana’s forest cover in the short to medium term.

Countless benefits

It is instructive to record that the forest and wildlife resources have long been major contributors to Ghana’s socio-economic development, providing formal and informal employment, livelihoods, export earnings and environmental benefits such as watershed protection, ecotourism, temperature regulation and mitigation of climate change impacts.

Ghana tropical forest

More than 85% of Ghana’s population depend on forest resources for subsistence and to satisfy their sociocultural needs. The timber trade and industry, for example, is Ghana’s fourth biggest foreign exchange earner, which contributes 6% of our gross domestic product and 11% of our total export earnings.

In spite of the numerous benefits derived from the forest, the exploitation of these resources for national development has not been managed sustainably over the years.

Ghana’s forest cover as of 1990 stood at 8.2 million hectares. However, the forest estate of Ghana is now about 1.6 million hectares. In other words, Ghana has lost 80% of her forest cover over the period.

The principal drivers of deforestation and forest degradation have been identified as agricultural expansion (50%), wood harvesting (35%), population and development pressure (10%) and mining and mineral exploitation (5%).

Additionally, our systemic failure to engage in aggressive afforestation over the years has resulted in a lack of restoration of our forest cover once it is harvested.

Lie back in drought?

The rates of deforestation and forest degradation are quite alarming, and there is the need to embark on vigorous interventions to reverse this trend of depletion.

Deforestation and forest degradation are perhaps the greatest threats to sustainable natural resource management today. They have dire consequences for agriculture productivity, food security, poverty alleviation, protection of water bodies, rainfall patterns and drought, as well as severe effects of climate change on the environment.

This is why, on Green Ghana Day, His Excellency President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo; the Speaker of Parliament, Alban S K Bagbin; the Chief Justice, Justice Kwasi Anin-Yeboah; and other prominent citizens such as the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, and Yaa-Na Mahama Abukari II will publicly plant trees. This patriotic act by our leaders is to inspire the nation to action and thereby save our environment.

Parliament, our political leaders, traditional leaders, corporate Ghana, the security agencies, green activists, local government leaders, teachers, students, nurses, informal sector employees and the public at large will be galvanised to contribute their resources, energy and support to make the Green Ghana Project a success.

Call to action

Arrangements are being made for the supply and distribution of seedlings of various tree species, particularly economic trees, across the 16 regions of Ghana. Seedlings will be available for collection at all regional and district forestry offices, all district assemblies, and selected locations that will be announced in due course.

The public is hereby invited to participate actively in the Green Ghana Project on 11 June 2021 to make a significant impact on Ghana’s forest cover. Together, we have a collective responsibility to leave future generations and their communities with richer, better, more valuable forest and wildlife endowments than what we inherited.

Residents of Ghana: on this day, 11 May – one clear month to 11 June, Green Ghana Day – the Government of Ghana, through the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, calls on all and sundry living in our beautiful country to count down to the historic day when we shall join forces to plant five million trees.

Green Ghana – let’s go planting. Let’s count down to 11 June, Green Ghana Day.