The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources has announced that ban on the harvesting, transport and export of rosewood from Ghana still remains illegal.
The Ministry made this known in a press release signed by its Chief Director, Prof. Patrick Agbsinyale.
According to the release, “The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources has noticed that in spite of the ban placed on the harvesting, transporting and export of Rosewood since 2018, some unscrupulous persons took advantage of the Christmas festivities to engage in the illegal harvesting and haulage of Rosewood.”
It said “This has culminated into several truckloads of Rosewood and other wood products that have been intercepted and currently parked at the Achimota Depot of the Forestry Commission waiting for punitive measures to be taken.”
“The Ministry hereby wishes to remind the general public that:
I. The ban on the harvesting, transporting and export of Rosewood still remains in full force and any person or group of persons who flout this ban will be arrested and prosecuted according to the laws of Ghana.
ii. The Forestry Commission has intensified its monitoring and patrol activities in hot-spot areas and they will impound any truck(s) conveying Rosewood and other wood products which have been illegally harvested.”
“The Ministry has also received several petitions from individuals and various groups in the timber export business demanding that the ban be lifted to enable them to evacuate supposedly abandoned and lying Rosewood logs. The Ministry wishes to inform these petitioners that their request cannot be granted,” it said.
“Lifting of the ban is not envisaged anytime soon in view of the uncontrolled destruction of the fragile ecosystem from where Rosewood is largely sourced,” according to the release.
“The Ministry wishes to commend the leadership of the Forestry Commission for putting in place effective arrangements to intercept and clamp down on these unpatriotic persons, even during the Christmas holidays. The Ministry is also particularly grateful to the various chiefs and opinion leaders who are collaborating with the Ministry and the Forestry Commission to clamp down on this menace.”
The Ministry urged the media to continue to educate the general public on the threats posed by deforestation and forest degradation caused by unsustainable exploitation of forest and wildlife resources across the country.
“We have a collective responsibility as a people to ensure that we leave future generations and their communities with richer, better, more valuable forest and wildlife endowments than we inherited.”
By Melvin Tarlue