Lands Minister wants Parliament to step up approval of Wildlife Resources Management Bill
Parliament has been urged to expedite the passage of the Wildlife Resources Management Bill which seeks to ensure effective management of the country’s wildlife resources in accordance with international best practices, as well as encourage private sector investment in the sector.
The appeal was made by the Lands and Natural Resources Minister, Samuel Abu Jinapor, on Tuesday when he appeared before lawmakers to answer a question posed by Member of Parliament for Sissala West, Mohammed Adams Sukparu on the steps the ministry is taking to prevent the dwindling of natural forest timber resources and reduction in forest resources base of the country.
According to him, the government is implementing the Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Action Plan, to ensure that timber on the domestic markets is sourced, processed, and traded legally.
To strengthen the country’s legislation and regulatory regime, “we have laid before this august house the wildlife resources management bill to promote effective wildlife resources management. I want to use this opportunity to plead with the house, to expedite action on this Bill to strengthen our enforcement measures.” he said.
Whiles the government is taking these measures to protect the existing forest, the minister added that they will continue to pursue aggressive afforestation and reforestation agenda, to restore our degraded forest and increase the country’s forest estate.
Under the Ghana Forest Plantation strategy, for example, over six hundred and ninety thousand hectares [690000 ha] of forest have been cultivated between 2017 and 2022, far in excess of the forest cultivated in the fifty-three [53] years between 1963 and 2016.
This strategy is being implemented, in addition to several others, such as the Green Ghana Project, under which over forty million trees have been planted in the three years of implementation.
Other initiatives being implemented include the Cocoa and Forest Initiative (CFI), which seeks to halt deforestation associated with cocoa production; the Ghana REDD+ Strategy, under which the government is already receiving results-based payments for emission reduction.
There is also Forest Investment Programme (FIP)which seeks to support private plantation development, the National Alternative Employment and Livelihood Programme (NAELP), and the Ghana Landscape Restoration and Small Scale Mining Project(GLRSSMP)which seeks to restore degraded mine lands.
“These interventions will ensure that we significantly increase our forest estate and revenue flows to fringe communities. Ultimately, our goal is to move from over-dependence on timber extraction to forest conservation for ecotourism development, as is done in countries like Kenya, Zambia, Namibia, and South Africa.
We will continue to count on the support of this august House for the successful implementation of these programmes.”
The government since 2017 continues to implement measures aimed at protecting and conserving existing forests while restoring degraded ones, law enforcement has been intensified and Rapid Response Teams of the Forestry Commission deployed supported by the Ghana Armed Forces, to clamp down on illegal activities in Forest Reserves and Wildlife Protected areas across the country.
Reconnaissance, prospecting, and exploration activities in the Forest Reserves, the minister indicated remain suspended, while there continues to be a ban on the harvesting, trading, export, or import of rosewood.
