Hen Mpoano, a non-governmental organisation (NGO), focused on coastal and marine ecosystem, has launched a reforestation exercise to replant trees on degraded areas within the Cape Three Points Forest Reserve (CTPFR) in the Western Region.
The exercise, crucial to restoring biodiversity, improving ecological resilience, and strengthening community engagement in forest conservation, was part of this year’s World Environment Day celebration.
It was on the theme: “Nurture nature, secure our Future,” part of the NGO’s ongoing efforts to raise awareness on environmental conservation and promote community participation in the sustainable management of natural resources, including forest reserves.
The exercise formed part of the “Enhancing Community-Based Forest Management of Biologically Important Rainforest in Southwest Ghana” project being implemented by Hen Mpoano.
The project, with funding support from the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) through Bird Life International, sought to promote collaborative forest governance between the Forestry Commission, including both the Wildlife Division (WD) and the Forest Services Division (FSD), and local communities.
The project would focus on enhancing wildlife protection, restoring degraded forest and wetland habitats, and supporting alternative, ecosystem-based livelihoods for forest-dependent households, such as village savings and loans associations (VSLA) and nursery work.
It would also strengthen community-based forest monitoring structures to improve long-term conservation outcomes.
Speaking at a community durbar and the tree planting exercise at Adalazo in the Ahanta West Municipality of the Western Region, Mr Justice Camillus Mensah, a Programmes Manager at Hen Mpoano, said Ghana was one of the leading countries with primate forest loss rates, and that it was important for all stakeholders to join hands and protect the nation’s forest reserves, particularly the CTPFR.
He said CTPFR in the Western Region represented the country’s last remaining expanse of intact coastal rainforest, spanning approximately 5200 hectares.
The reserve had been recognised as a Key Biodiversity Area (KBA), Globally Significant Biodiversity Area (GSBA), and Important Bird Area (IBA) that harboured rich biodiversity, including over 27 tree species, 17 species of medium to large mammals, and 45 butterfly species, among others.
However, he noted that the Cape Three Points forest reserve continued to be threatened by illegal logging, poaching, encroachment, and illegal mining activities (galamsey).
Mr Mensah stated that to safeguard this critical ecosystem, Hen Mpoano in collaboration with its key partners would plant over 15,000 commercially important tree species to restore some 30 hectares of degraded patches within and around the forest reserve.
That, he added, marked a significant step towards restoring degraded habitats and reinforcing community-led forest protection and restoration efforts.
“This tree planting initiative stands as a symbol of hope, reaffirming the collective responsibility to protect Ghana’s forests for present and future generations,” Mr Mensah stated.
He called on communities with forest reserves to actively protect such resources from activities that destroyed them for collective benefits for current and future generations .
Mr Charles Afosah, Project Lead at West African Primate Conservation Action (WAPCA), one of the key implementing partners of the project, said the CTPFR was under severe existential threats from illegal mining and logging activities.
He said per their routine patrols in the forest reserve, the devastating effects of illegal mining activities in the forest could cause dire consequences on biodiversity.
While, commending Hen Mpoano for the initiative to restore degraded areas within the CTPFR, he appealed to security agencies to step up efforts in clamping down on the galamsey menace to help save the country’s only coastal forest from further destruction.
Madam Tracy Boadi, an Ecotourism Officer at the Wildlife Division of the Forestry Commission, said trees were important for both human and animal lives, and encouraged the citizenry to adopt the culture of tree planting to help protect the environment for all.
Mr Elijah Adu, a resident of Adalazo, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency on the sidelines, praised Hen Mpoano for strengthening community engagement in forest conservation, and said they would do their part in protecting the forest reserve from destruction by illegal activities.