Project background

  
Increasing need for timber

There is an increasing need for timber from sustainable sources. The demand for plantation timber will grow strongly as the area of natural forest diminishes. Natural forests will produce less and less timber, and these forests become ever more important for the preservation of our natural heritage and of the environment as a whole. Transformation of degraded land into well managed forest plantations is therefore a sound solution.

World demand for certified wood products is growing exponentially, making forestry an increasingly interesting investment opportunity. Commercial plantations have been successfully developed in Central and South America, yet Africa's huge potential has remained virtually undeveloped.

Contribution to reduction of CO2 emissions

Below, a graph is plotted that was produced by Righelato & Spracklen (Science, 2007). The six horizontal bars at the bottom of the graph represent the avoided CO2 emissions by using bio fuels instead of fossil fuels. The four bars at the top represent the potential CO2 fixation per hectare over 30 years by a change in landuse. 

According to this graph, conversion from tropical forest to tropical cropland (tropical deforestation) appears to generate enormous amounts of CO2 emissions (fourth bar from the top). This type of land conversion actually took place in the Asubima Forest Reserve between 1986 and 1999. The third column from the top indicates that afforestation activities on tropical cropland is the best way to reduce CO2 emissions. Considering this, the plantation activities of FORM Ghana will contribute in a very positive way to the reduction of CO2 emissions. Of course we want to note that future harvest activities should be taken into account in the calculation. 

Opportunities in Ghana

The government of Ghana has a presidential policy to provide incentives for investors to contribute to reforestation of so called degraded Forest Reserves (FR) which are managed by Ghana's Forestry Commission. Timber companies in Ghana who have logging rights are obliged to plant trees in degraded areas to replace every tree that is logged.

FORM Ghana has extensively researched Ghana's potential for sustainable forestry. Conditions are favourable: vast areas suitable for reforestation, a well developed wood processing industry, a solid infrastructure (main roads, ports) and a very supportive Government.

Due to co-funding of the Dutch Agency for International Business and Cooperation FORM Ghana was able to start this project.