Naa Seidu Fuseini Pelpuo IV, the Overlord of the Wala Traditional Council, has assured the Forestry Commission (FC) of the readiness of the traditional council to provide lands for the “Green Ghana” project as part of support for the project.
“My traditional council is solidly behind you (Forestry Commission), in this project. If it is the land, we will provide you with land anywhere within the traditional council for the project”, Naa Pelpuo assured.
Naa Pelpuo gave the assurance when Mr Nelson Nyatia Sulemana, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Forestry Commission called on him at his palace as part of a one day working visit to the region.
The Deputy CEO was in the region to assess the level of preparation by the FC and the readiness of the people for the upcoming national tree planting day, scheduled for June 10, 2022.
Mr Sulemana also visited some 2021 Green Ghana project sites in Wa where the trees were surviving as well as a nursery at the Wa Forest Reserve where tree species such as eucalyptus, neem, rosewood, cassia, tick, mahogany, and cashew seedlings had been nursed for this year’s exercise.
He also met with some students of SD Dombo University of Business and Integrated Development Studies and the Dr. Hilla Limann Technical University to inspect trees that were planted last year and to encourage the students to participate in this year’s exercise.
Naa Pelpuo said the success of the project would help save the environment from total desertification and its attendant adverse consequences of climate change such as irregular rainfall pattern.
He explained that the felling of trees for charcoal burning was fast destroying the environment and lauded the move by the government to arrest the situation with the introduction of the annual tree planting initiative.
On his part, Mr Sulemana said the government had targeted to plant about 20 million trees this year with all preparations in place for the exercise.
He explained that every region had been allocated a target of the trees to be planted, with the traditional authorities having a crucial role to play in the exercise by encouraging their subjects to participate fully and effectively.
“The Green Ghana agenda is not just a Ghana agenda, but northern Ghana agenda. The trees here are being cut haphazardly for charcoal burning.
I expected charcoal to be produced in the south and brought to the north because that is where the trees are, but it is the vice versa”, Mr Suleman observed.
Mr Stephen Asamoah Duah, the Upper West Regional Manager of the FC indicated that the region had a target of about 600,000 trees to be planted on the Green Ghana Day.
He said the Lawra and Tumu Forests Districts were tasked to plant 200,000 and 250,000 trees respectively, while the regional office of the FC was tasked to plant the remaining 150,000 trees.
He added that it was the objective of the region to exceed the target with the support of the general public and institutions.
Mr Baba Musa Iddrisu, the Lawra District Forest Manager, explained that his outfit had earmarked to plant the trees in seven out of the nine forest reserves in the forest district, with about 30,000 seedlings available for the general public to plant.
Source: GNA