Ghanaians marked the day with joy last Friday, June 11, 2021 the day set aside for the nation to plant some 5 million trees. The ‘Green Ghana Project’ will go down in history as one of government initiatives which had the full support and participation of the general public and even the opposition political parties.
Unlike the usual criticisms from political opponents on every government program, this project united the country.
Since last Friday, both the traditional and social media have been inundated with pictures, videos, and heart-warming remarks from Ghanaians and politicians from all sides of the political divide, describing the initiative as laudable – one that must be sustained.
International media, such as the BBC and Aljazeera,gave the tree planting exercise global exposure by reporting on it.
The President’s initiative, executed through the Lands and Natural Resources Ministry, is said to be an annual project aimed at restoring the depleted forest of the country.
In collaboration with the Forestry Commission, varieties of seedlings were provided free of charge to Ghanaians to plant last Friday.
From school children, to judges, chiefs, the clergy, lawmakers, footballers, members of the executive and corporate entities, all planted at least one tree.
By midday last Friday, almost three million trees had been planted across the 16 regions of the country, authorities reported.
The exercise was for people to plant trees at places close to them, to be able to monitor and nurture the plants. As such, school children were seen planting trees on their school compounds. The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin and his two deputies planted their trees on the precinct of Parliament.
In a related development, the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and the Vice President Alhaji Mahamudu Bawumia also planted their trees at Jubilee House.
This was followed by a brief ceremony to officially launch the Green Ghana Project.
In his remarks, President Akufo-Addo said the nationwide exercise will not be a one-off event. “We intend to enhance ongoing afforestation programmes and see to the sustainable exploitation of our forest resources,” he added.
He explained that the forest is one of the most important natural resources of Ghana, as its continuous existence creates jobs, provides incomes for local communities, is a source of foreign exchange earnings through timber product exports and offers environmental protection, including watershed protection and climate change regulation.
“However, the exploitation of forest resources for national development has not been sustainable over the years. Deforestation and forest degradation are the greatest challenges to sustainable forest management in Ghana today,” the President said.
He continued, “The consequential effect of deforestation and forest degradation is severe climate change, which has dire consequences for our livelihoods, specifically the drying up of our water bodies, the pollution of our waters, loss of our prime timber species, loss of biodiversity and change in rainfall patterns and weather conditions in the country.”
To this end, President Akufo-Addo indicated that there is an urgent need to reverse the trend and restore the country’s forest resources, as much as possible, back to their original state.
“We do not have tomorrow or the day after tomorrow to do this. We have to act now!” he stressed
The President continued with an assurance: “I assure the Ghanaian people that Government is determined to ensure the survival of the five million trees being planted today. Together, we must and will protect our environment and ecosystem, and we must contribute to the world’s agenda at combating global warming. We have to protect planet earth and our homeland, Ghana.”
He appealed to all Ghanaians to embrace the Green Ghana Initiative introduced by Government, adding that “it is an ambitious initiative, and we will make the necessary effort to sustain it. God willing, this event will be an annual one, and planting targets will be reviewed upwards every year.”
“Whilst we all plant trees today, let us resolve to nurture, grow, and protect them to maturity. We have a collective responsibility to leave future generations and their communities with richer, more valuable forest and wildlife endowment than we inherited,” he added.
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