On 11th June 2021 Ghana will undertake the most ambitious project yet in her efforts to turn the depleted forest cover in the country around.
If there is a single restoration project which all Ghanaians should partake in, the Greening Ghana initiative cannot be overlooked.
We doff our hats for the initiators of this project whose five million trees to be planted across the country will go a long way in reversing the despicable story about our flora.
To have folded our arms over the past decades as though nothing untoward was taking place beats imagination. Better late though than never.
It is not enough to plant the trees and walk away without nurturing them. Â Trees too require attention so they can draw the necessary nutrients from the soil for their sustenance.
We are excited that at last Ghanaians are beginning to appreciate the importance of trees. Those still hanging out on the fence outnumber the lover of the greens. It will take time and perseverance by the already initiated to convince such persons to join the greening project.
We appreciate the great job personnel of the Forestry Commission are doing to reverse the negative picture of our forests. The Timber Monitoring Unit of the Commission is doing a great job and deserves a pat on the back. Today moving timber products from the hinterland to the South is no longer a walk on the park as it used to be.
Those responsible for felling trees older than their parents and even grandparents are now apprehensive of personnel of the Timber Monitoring Team and the Commission’s Rapid Response Team arresting them, which is good.
The role of trees in convectional rainfalls and the protection of water bodies from sunray-occasioned evaporation cannot be ignored.
Trees check erosion and provide the natural habitat for some rare species of game wildlife some of which are today on the verge of extinction because of the dense foliages in which they live in the canopies.
The hurricane-like storms now prevalent in the Northern parts of the country and preceding downpours are triggered by the absence of trees to break the winds.
Our rainfall patterns have been negatively impacted by the many felled trees. Even rosewood and shea trees are not spared the irresponsible conduct of some persons.
But for personnel of the Forestry Commission the remaining trees standing in our forests would have long been lost the fallouts from which are beyond our ken.
The insatiable demand for gold by the youth especially in gold-bearing water bodies and forests has aggravated the situation; trees are felled with reckless abandon to pave way for illegal mining activities.
Apart from the five million trees scheduled for planting on 11th June 2021 we wish to ask that a periodic planting of trees be inscribed on the national calendar for schools, communities and other groupings across the country. This way we should be able to restore the previous state of our forests.
When the Brazilian section of the Amazon, the world’s largest rainforest cover was threatened by fires, the developed world spoke against the development. Forests were being burnt to pave way for the establishment of cattle ranches. With the Amazon responsible for a certain percentage of global oxygen supply France and other developed countries could not fold their arms for the forest rape to continue.
We in Ghana should also appreciate the fact that our forests play major roles in the supply of oxygen for us and the world at large.
The National Commission On Civic Education (NCCE) should be equipped to join in the campaign to green the country.
School children too should be encouraged to form Green Ghana Clubs. This way they would grow to become ‘green responsible’ citizens.
Kumasi in particular must regain its previous status of Garden City. Greening Ghana Ahoy!