The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Samuel A. Jinapor,MP has launched the Asunafo-Asutifi Landscape Programme, a Cocoa Forest Initiative 2.0 event aimed at enhancing forest conservation, landscape restoration and supporting the livelihood of forest communities.
The Lands Minister officially outdoored the program during a Cocoa Forest Initiative event on theme ‘Accelerating CFI 2.0 by Increasing Investments In Priority Landscapes In Ghana’ on Sunday, 03 December 2023, calling the international community, both public and private for an effective partnership with Ghana that will help scale up Ghana’s policies and initiatives aimed at protecting the forest.
The Asunafo- Asutifi Landscape Program is premised on four key areas of forest restoration, restoration of degraded lands, empowerment of the livelihood of residents of forest communities and creating a national forest system.
Hon. Jinapor reiterated calls for the renewal of commitments and fulfilment of promises from all stakeholders to ensure the successful implementation of the CFI 2.0, disclosing that the government remains unwavered in its resolve to ensure the actualization of the CFI 2-0 goals.
“With the climate crisis worsening, and the fears that we are gradually approaching global boiling, we must scale up our work on this initiative. We must renew our commitments, and work harder to protect our forests, through the implementation of CFI 2.0. Ghana remains resolute in this regard, and we will continue to adopt and implement policies and programmes that will ensure that the Cocoa and Forest Initiative realises its goal”, he said.
The Minister in his speech also brought to the fore some of the policies being implemented by the government of Ghana to empower cocoa farmers and encourage participating in efforts towards protecting the forest.
“To improve forest governance, the Government of Ghana is, also, implementing a Timber Tending Benefit (TTB), which provides an upfront payment to farmers for nurturing and protecting naturally occurring trees on their farms. Through this initiative, farmers are encouraged protect and nurture trees in their farms”, he stated.
“And to encourage sustainable farming practices, and ensure that farmers get value from their produce, the Government of Ghana has increased cocoa producer price by sixty-three point five percent (63.5%), from Sixty-Six US Dollars and Sixty Cents (US$66.60) per bag to One Hundred and Nine US Dollars (US$109), the highest price to be paid to farmers across West Africa in fifty (50) years”, he added.
He also took stock of the myriad of impactful benefits Ghana enjoyed from the CFI 1.0 and assured of the commitment by government to ensuring the success of the second one.
“The implementation of CFI 1.0, between 2018 and 2022, has proven to be a great addition to other projects and programmes being implemented in the Natural Resource and Environmental Governance Sector, as well as a useful tool in ensuring deforestation-free cocoa production.
“Anchored on the three (3) pillars of forest protection and restoration, sustainable cocoa production and farmers livelihood, and community engagement and social inclusion, we have been able to lay a solid foundation for a sustainable and responsible cocoa industry.
“Over seventeen thousand hectares (17,000 ha) of degraded forests have been restored, both on and off reserves, some twenty-seven million (27,000,000) trees have been distributed for planting, five (5) Environmental and Social Management Plans have been completed in Hotspot Intervention areas, and over hundred and fifty thousand (150,000) farmers have been trained in climate smart cocoa practices, with as many as six hundred and seventy thousand (670,000) trained in Good Agricultural Practices” he said.
The Cocoa & Forests Initiative is an active commitment of top cocoa-producing countries with leading chocolate and cocoa companies to end deforestation and restore forest areas, through no further conversion of any forest land for cocoa production.
