Lost in the Forest: A Journey Through Ghana’s Forest Management

"A people without children would face a hopeless future; a country without trees is almost as helpless". -Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919), 26th President of the USA

Ghana has a long tradition of government interventions in forest management at different times all aimed at sustainable management of Ghana’s forest estate. The effects of the many interventions have contributed in getting the country to where it is in the management of our forests. As part of my contributions to the “International Year of Forests, 2011”, I would like us to take a journey through forest management in Ghana and see where we got lost and try to find our way back.

The very first formal National Forest Policy was adopted in 1948 following the visit and Report on Forests by H. N. Thompson, Conservator of Forests in Southern Nigeria, in 1908 (Owusu, 1999). Thompson’s report convinced the government of the need to take control of the forests following a series of failed attempts by the colonial government to properly manage the forests of Gold Coast (now Ghana).


The 1948 Ghana’s Forest policy:

The key issues in the policy were;

1. to reserve sufficient forests and forest lands to supply the benefits needed by the people;
2. manage the reserved forests for sustained yield of timber;
3.conduct research to support utilization and forest management;
4. utilize resources on non-reserved forest lands fully before their liquidation by farming;
5. promote local administration of forest and educate the local people to understand the value of forest; and
6. train staff or develop Africans to higher positions.

This policy directed forestry activities in Ghana over a long period of time, until 1994 when a new policy came into being. There are interesting things to note about the implementation of the 1948 Forest Policy;

1. Among all the key issues in the 1948 policy, the colonial government and subsequent governments after independence in 1957 seem to have focused more on the exploitation of forest resources, mainly timber.
2. Promotion of local administration of forestry, for instance, received very little attention though it was seen as very crucial to the sustainable management of the forest.
3. The economic benefits of forests were actively pursued and the ecological importance was side-lined.
4. Research to support utilisation and forest management received little attention. Rather, research was focused more on economically viable tree species to be harvested for export.

The direction of this policy led to increasing emphasis on central government administration, control and ownership of the country’s forests. Local people’s involvement in forest management was not pursued as the policy had stated. According to Owusu (1999), there were an increasing marginalisation and even alienation, of local communities in the administration of forests; a trend towards forestry being practised only by foresters for the nation’s benefit; and a trend towards what some early forest researchers have called the “timberisation” of forestry. This was the state of Ghana’s forests from the post-independence period to the late 1980s.

"He who plants a tree plants a hope".– Welsh proverb


References

Gyampoh, B.A., (2008). “The Sustainable Forest Management puzzle: policies, legislation, deforestation and the climate change issues in Ghana”. Sustainable Forest Management in Africa Symposium, 3rd to 8th November 2008. University of Stellenbosch, South Africa.

Owusu, J. G. K., (1999). Policies and Legislation concerning Forests, Forestry and Wildlife. Proceedings, Workshop for Media Personnel on Forestry and Wildlife Reporting. IRNR-UST, 6-11 June 1999.

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Christians Destroying The Environment To The Glory Of God?

“I know quite certainly that I myself have no special talent; curiosity, obsession and dogged endurance, combined with self-criticism, have brought me to my ideas” – Albert Einstein.

Whenever I have had cause to criticise myself and the Christian faith that I strongly believe in has turned out to be both torturous and rewarding. Being a Christian, in my opinion, should automatically make one an Environmentalist! After all, the God we claim to be worshipping created everything around us and it must be part of our conviction to protect what God has created. But when I see so-called Christians destroying what the God they claim to be worshipping has created, it saddens me. What even makes it sad is when they use quotes from The Bible to ignorantly endorse what they are doing. A popular scripture mostly misunderstood or mischievously twisted to suit such bad treatment of the environment to meet selfish desires is God command to subdue the earth in Genesis 1:28, “God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

There are so many churches built in flood plains and it beats my mind when I see such things. These churches have blocked water courses and creating big problems for people when it rains and they believe they are worshiping God! I feel bad when I see such things. Go to a suburb of Kumasi called Susanso (off KNUST-Amakom Road) and see a number of churches all built in a water way. These churches are blocking the flow of the river and causing flooding whenever it rains. Is that what God would like? That we destroy what He has created and create inconveniences for others because "we want to worship Him”?

One Sunday morning, after returning from Church service around 10:00 GMT, I was listening to a radio station in Kumasi which was broadcasting a church service of one church also built in a water way. The pastor was teaching the congregation on the need to have FAITH in God despite all odds and I was enjoying the sermon. To my anger and dismay, I heard the Pastor recounting how the church building came to be. According to him the whole place was marshy but he decided to build there to the glory of God (Indeed!). He recounted how his friend who is an architect advised him to stop because building at such a place because it would be impossible. The pastor continued, “I didn’t give up, I promised my friend that I will build the church. And today you are here and can testify the church has been built. If I should tell you the amount of money spent on cement, stones and sand to fill this place in order to get this building put up, you will marvel. But it has been done to the glory of God”. Throughout the uttering of these things, the congregation shouted, “Amen”, Praise the Lord”, etc. I was amazed! Whaaaaaaat? Destroying God’s creation to the glory of God? God knew why he created a river there and made that land marshy! The Bible says that God created everything. “…. And God saw that it was good! (Genesis 1:21). And those who claim to be worshiping the God who created everything are now destroying everything! It’s a shame.

And so, it has been happening. Through ignorance, selfishness and mischief, Christians are destroying their environment. The Bible recognises the value of all things God created and we are to treat God’s creation with care and respect. Let’s seek knowledge and live well.

“My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6)

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International Year of Forests: Focus on Ghana’s Forests

“Man is preceded by forest and followed by desert” – French Proverb.

Fifty-four (54) years ago, Ghana gained independence from British colonial rule. Each year, huge amounts of money are spent to celebrate our independence anniversaries, including the famous “Ghana@50”. After Ghana@50, a probe was set up to investigate how those monies were managed. That’s great! I wish that Ghanaians start taking keen interest in probing how we have managed the various sectors of our country. How we have managed our natural resources should engage our attention at the highest level. Ghana is well endowed with several natural resources including tropical rainforests, which has been a major source of revenue for the country. Ghana’s forests have influenced its climate, soil and water resources which have supported Ghana’s agricultural sector, the backbone of the country’s economy. Cocoa, which has been so central to Ghana’s development, has been influenced by the forest’s micro-climate.

With such a critical role being played by forests, it just stands to reason that more effort will be channelled into making this resource sustainable and stay in good shape. However, sustainable management of Ghana’s forest has been a major issue for successive governments since colonial times. Available records indicate that at the beginning of the last century, a third of Ghana’s total land area of 238,540 squared kilometres was covered by high forest whiles the remaining land was covered by savanna woodland (Antwi, 1999). Unfortunately, this forest cover has seen rapid depletion in the last 100 years; especially in the last 50 years where sustainable forest management is being trumpeted everywhere.

One cannot think of achieving sustainable forest management without policies to guide decision making on the use of the resource and legislation to provide legal backing to those policies (Owusu, 1999); and that is an area Ghana is not new to. As early as 1908, a report on Ghana’s forests was presented to the colonial government by H.N. Thompson in which he recommended establishment of a Forestry Department; creation of forest reserves; and some regulation of timber felling and exports. Thompson’s report formed the basis for the colonial government’s forest policy. After the recommendations from Thompson, there has been several interventions in the form of ordinances, policies and legislation all aimed at regulating activities in the forest sector but little seems to have been achieved. Some have attributed the reduction of Ghana’s forest to the failure of Ghana's Forestry policies and strategies to ensure that forest resources were managed on economically viable, socially beneficial and environmentally sound principles.

This year, 2011, is the United Nations’ International Year of Forests, under the theme: “Celebrating Forests for People”. Let’s throw more light on Ghana’s forests. Ghana is having a fair share of global environmental problems: change in weather patterns; recurrent droughts severely affecting agricultural activities; flooding; soil erosion; habitat destruction which is threatening biodiversity; water pollution; decreasing river discharge and inadequate supplies of potable water. How does the disappearance of our forests fit into this puzzle? What should be done to sustainably manage our forests?

“The forest will answer you in the way you call to it” – Finnish Proverb.

References:
Antwi, L. B., (1999). What we have: Our Forest Heritage. Proceedings, Workshop for Media Personnel on Forestry and Wildlife Reporting. IRNR-UST, 6-11 June 1999.
Owusu, J. G. K., (1999). Policies and Legislation concerning Forests, Forestry and Wildlife. Proceedings, Workshop for Media Personnel on Forestry and Wildlife Reporting. IRNR-UST, 6-11 June 1999.

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