Francis Owusu Antwi, the Bono East Regional Minister, says the region is set to plant and nurture 775,530 different species of trees to restore the forest and vegetative cover this year under the Government’s Tree for Life (T4L) initiative.
He said farmers, youth and women groups and students would be mobilized to plant and nurture the trees for the nation to derive the optimum benefit.
Mr Antwi said this when he launched the region’s T4L initiative at Atebubu, saying the Regional Coordinating Council would support agroforestry systems that combined crops and trees for both economic and environmental benefits.
He commended President John Dramani Mahama for the T4L, and called on everybody to embrace and support the initiative towards “making our forest green, healthier and resilient”.
Mr Antwi said: “The legacy that we leave behind must include forests that breathe life into our communities and farmlands that are rich and thriving”, saying “our forests are the lungs of our planet because they provide oxygen, regulate rainfall and restore biodiversity”.
The forest also acts as carbon sinks that help mitigate the devastating effects of climate change, he added, stressing that “In Ghana, trees are not just ecological treasures, but they are vital to our economic survival and cultural heritage”.
From providing fuel wood, charcoal and medicinal plants to sustaining water sources and protecting soils, the importance of trees cannot be overstated, Mr Antwi explained.
“Here in the Bono East Region, our natural heritage is a source of pride and yet, we also face the harsh realities of land degradation, erratic weather patterns, and deforestation due to unsustainable farming practices, logging, overgrazing and bush fires”.
“The time has come for us to reverse these trends with urgency and determination”, the Regional Minister stated.
Describing the T4L as a people centered and community-driven movement, Mr Antwi said the initiative would greatly restore degraded lands, enhance agricultural productivity and foster environmental stewardship.
“We will therefore lead local communities in sustainable land management practices and monitor and evaluate reforestation efforts using modern technology and traditional knowledge systems”, he stated.
Mrs Lucy Amoh, the Bono East Regional Manager of the Forestry Commission, stressed the need for a collective approach towards rehabilitating degraded lands and forest, restoring polluted water bodies and creating green jobs in eco-tourism, agro-forestry and fish farming for sustained economic livelihoods.
Mr Emmanuel Omane, the Atebubu/Amantin Municipal Forestry Manager, told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview that 24,000 trees would be planted in the municipality, and urged corporate bodies and individuals to support the exercise.
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