EU and Partners Launch Forest Restoration Scheme in Ghana

The European Union, in partnership with Ghana's Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources and the Forestry Commission, has launched the Ghana Forest Restoration Grant Scheme. The initiative kicked off at the Subri River Forest Reserve, signaling a renewed commitment to revitalizing degraded forest landscapes and enhancing rural livelihoods.

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The EU support for these projects is part of our broader EU Sustainable Forest and Cocoa Programme, a €6 million (GHs 80 million) initiative to promote deforestation-free cocoa production, sustainable land use, and climate resilience.

This significant national undertaking aims to restore 14,000 hectares of forest across Ghana's diverse ecological zones. It will also build the capacity of 20,000 farmers and rural residents, with a particular emphasis on empowering women and young people. The scheme is funded by the EU through the European Forest Institute as part of its €6 million Sustainable Forest and Cocoa Programme.

Sylvia Severi, Head of Co-operation at the EU in Ghana, highlighted the initiative's focus on sustained tree survival, community ownership, and long-term ecological recovery. She noted that the scheme builds upon the success of the annual "Green Ghana Day." The program will work closely with communities, integrating local knowledge and participation through agroforestry, natural regeneration, and tree planting.

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These projects are not only restoring landscapes, but they are also supporting communities to build sustainable futures.

Joseph Nelson, the Western Regional Minister, emphasized that the projects extend beyond landscape restoration, actively supporting communities in building sustainable futures. Mary Perpetua Kwakuyi, Executive Director of Goshen Global Vision, one of the implementing NGOs, stated that the projects demonstrate how collective action, uniting government, civil society, and local communities, is essential for building sustainable and resilient forests.

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These projects are proof that sustainable, resilient forests can only be built through collective action, bringing together government, civil society and local communities united by this common goal.