Ghana’s forest is regarded as one of the highest degraded in the developing world.

This rating is because the country’s total forest cover of 8.2 million hectares during the turn of the 20th Century has been reduced to about one million.

The rate of forest depletion is put at 62,000 hectares annually, which presents a major challenge to policy makers and environmentalists.

The Timber Industry in Ghana currently accounts for about 4 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 11 per cent of national export revenue, with average revenue from the sector stabilized at about 212 million dollars over the past five years.

The forest cover is being destroyed through activities such as mining, farming, illegal logging, and human settlement, among other things. Despite this precarious picture, nobody seems to be considering the negative effects on the forest.

Deforestation, which has brought about climate change, is also responsible for the increase in the concentration of infrared absorbing gases from human activities.

Some of the negative effects of forest depletion also include biodiversity destruction, reduction of rainfall, and tourism is destroyed.

Forestry contributed substantially to rural livelihoods because of the large segment of society that depends on it for its livelihood.

The Okyehene, Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori Panyin, who has been a leading advocate in environmental issues, recently launched a 10- year reforestation project, as part of activities to mark the Okyeman Environmental day, dubbed: “Plant Our Future”.

He  revealed that over 80 per cent of his state’s forest has been degraded through commercial logging both legal and illegal, unsustainable agricultural practices, bad mining practices, over population and expansion of settlements, poor environmental laws and poverty.

“We the people believe the best thing to do to reduce the pressure on the forests is to plant more suitable tree species to increase the size of the forest, to meet the needs of future generation as well as managing the existing ones.”

Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori Panyin said the project was a response to the overwhelming degradation of forest resources in Okyeman and its environs which used to be a densely forested area and earned the accolade “Kwaebibirem” meaning “virgin or pristine forest.”

By the end of the next ten years, 200,000 indigenous tree species will be planted annually while the people will be educated on the need to conserve the forests in addition to the establishment of alternative livelihood projects aimed at reducing poverty.

The Okyehene said by planting more trees, it will be possible “for us to meet our obligation under international protocols and conventions”.

As a result of the dwindling forest, there is shortage of wood supply for the industry and this has culminated in the dominance of foreign wood products on the Ghanaian market.

Alhaji Collins Dauda, Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, in an interview with BUSINESS GUIDE, disclosed that government was initiating steps to make forestry a sustainable part of the poverty alleviation agenda.

One of such efforts, he said, includes the implementation of a large scale commercial plantation development programmes throughout the country to serve as a mechanism for rural job creation and ultimately to help reduce poverty.

Another programme being pursued by the government, Alhaji Dauda outlined, is the expected restoration of depleted forests to fill what he estimates to be a 3.5 million-cubic meter per annum timber supply and timber deficit.

Forest reserves have become important in this era of climate change and biodiversity protection, and the destruction of forest reserves has become an issue of global importance.

In Ghana, illegal felling of timber is done indiscriminately and the Minister said his ministry would soon launch an attack on chain -saw operators- to get rid off them.

These chain-saw operators, as a result of their desire to make quick money, fell trees haphazardly, especially in forest reserves where tress are supposed to grow for about 40 years before they are mature for logging.

He said in line with the decision, he would soon inaugurate a special task force that would collaborate with the Military to chase the chain saw operators out of the forest.

“In past times, we used to mount barriers on high ways, this time we are going to chase them in the forest.

“I want to assure chain saw operators that after a month of the take off of the task force’s operation, there will be nowhere for them to hide,” he said, after suggesting that they withdraw and acquire permits that would allow them to operate legally from the off- reserve areas.

The activities of the chain saw operators are even more dangerous as Ghana has engaged the European Union on the voluntary partnership agreement that seeks to ensure that timber and timber products from Ghana originate from legal sources.  

Alhassan Attah, Executive Director of the Timber Industry Development Division (TIDD) of the Forestry Commission, believes the wood industry contributes significantly to income generation at all levels of activity from logging, haulage processing and even from wood waste.

According to Vice President John Mahama, in a key note address at the just ended three-day International Tropical Timber Organisation (ITTO) conference on promotion of Intra- African trade in timber and timber products, the international demand for timber and timber products from Ghana and many other African countries had worsened things.

This is partly because of the “global financial crisis and the growing demand for timber to be sourced from legal and sustainable sources.”

The three-day conference, which commenced on June 30 and ended on July 3, was expected to identify and analyze constraints that inhibited the expansion of the intra-African market for tropical timber and timber products, as well as options to overcome the constraints and key players who could help remove them.

A study by the ITTO makes it clear that although the US continues its dominance as the most lucrative destination for Ghana’s kiln-dried lumber and rotary veneer, the recent economic crisis has caused a slump in demand for the country’s timber products, particularly Mahogany and Odum.

Vice President Mahama has therefore called for the need for a high level of collaboration between African countries as part of efforts to create alternate markets to offset the downturn.

In the end, the participants at the ITTO conference unanimously agreed on the need for African nations to remove barriers that inhibited growth in the sector to enhance untapped opportunities for tropical timber protection

“There is the need for forest reserves to be protected. The Forest Reserves remain the hope of protecting the remaining forest cover in Ghana from further destruction, and efforts aimed at the rehabilitation of Ghana’s depleted forests is important,” said an unnamed conference participant.

“Calls for consented efforts from all well-meaning Ghanaians to join forces to fight the unfortunate situation in order to save the forest reserve for future generations are in the right direction,” observed another participant.