The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, has launched the 2024 edition of the Green Ghana Day at the University for Development Studies (UDS) Dungu campus, in the Northern Region.
The ministry has targeted to plant 10 million trees across the country under the theme, “Growing for a Greener Tomorrow.”
The trees will be planted along degraded watershed areas and within communities, medians of roads as well as compounds of homes, schools, churches, offices and recreational grounds and parks.
At the launch, the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel A. Jinapor, indicated that the Green Ghana Project is one of the measures the government, under the outstanding leadership of President Akufo-Addo, has adopted to curb the incessant degradation of our forests, which has been ongoing for years without any conscious effort to replace them, and to contribute to the global fight against climate change.
“Available data shows that between 2010 and 2015 alone, the amount of forest our country lost, far exceeds the area of forest cultivated between 1963 and 2016, a whopping 53 years, which stands at 157,300 hectares,” the minister indicated.
According to him, since 2017, the Akufo-Addo Government has been committed to an aggressive afforestation and reforestation programme.
This has led to the cultivation of almost 721,000 hectares of forest between 2017 to 2023, under the Ghana Forest Plantation Strategy, in addition to several trees planted under the Forest Investment Programme(FIP), the Cocoa and Forest Initiative (CFI), the Green Street Project, the Ghana Cocoa Forest REDD+ Programme, Ghana Shea Landscape Emission Reductions Project, the Youth in Afforestation Programme, and the Youth in Plantation Establishment as an Occupation Programme, funded by the Forest Plantation Development Fund.
“Here in northern Ghana, the ban on harvesting, salvaging, trading, exporting, and importing of Rosewood, as well as the issuance of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) permits for the export of Rosewood, has led to the protection of a large majority of our Rosewood, which was near extinction.
“And I must commend our revered chiefs of northern Ghana, for their efforts thus far, in support of the protection of the forest cover of the Savannah zone, including the outright ban placed on all forms of tree harvesting within Savannah Region by the Savannah Regional House of Chiefs,” he stated.
The minister disclosed that in the last three years of its implementation, some 42 million trees have been planted across the country, consistently exceeding targets every year, and this has been verified by independent audit.
Mr. Jinapor appealed to the chiefs and people of northern Ghana, who could not achieve their targets last year, to come together, mobilise their people, and ensure that this year, they exceed their targets.
He also called on Corporate Ghana, to partner government adopt compartments in Forest Reserves and plant trees, which will be branded in their corporate names after planting, and which can be reported as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility and their efforts towards net zero.
“As we launch this year’s edition of the Green Ghana Day, let us all commit to come together on the Green Ghana Day to plant and grow, at least, 10 million trees for a Greener tomorrow, and the survival of generations unborn. Green Ghana Day is an extraordinary opportunity for us all to contribute to making our country Greener and habitable,” he urged.
Zangbaling Lana Dr. Yakubu Mahama, who delivered a speech on behalf of the Overlord of Dagbon, Ya Naa Abukari II, urged all paramount chiefs and the people of Dagbon to participate actively in this year’s Green Ghana Day exercise.
The Overlord of Dagbon appealed to the Forestry Commission to ensure that seedlings are available for everyone for a successful exercise.
The Northern Regional Minister, Shani Alhassan Shaibu, noted that greening the country is not merely a symbolic gesture, but a concrete action with enormous benefits, adding that the initiative contributes to economic growth, creates job opportunities, fosters community resilience and embracing sustainable practices.
“As we gather here today to launch the 2024 edition of this pivotal initiative, let us endeavour to draw strength from past achievements and channel our energies towards building and sustaining them,” the Northern Regional Minister said.
