By Abebe Dawuni
Yendi (NR) Feb.14, GNA – Tree Aid, a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) has mobilized 65 villages to plant trees along the Dakar river in Yendi.
The participants included 50 nutrition gardens, 15 briquette groups) developed and effectively functioned to involve 70 percent women as members.
The 3,051,000 trees grown in riparian buffers zones and open parklands included farmlands in 75 selected villages (inclusive of 1,302,00 trees planted and 1,749,000 Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) and shea grafting trees) around Dakar river catchment for land and water bodies restoration and protection.
50 nutrition gardens were supported to grow 300,000 trees and 15 grass briquette groups established as their path of the project.
Some of the communities included Kulkpene, Jagands, Gmatudo, Jedoyiliawory amongst others.
Mr. Robert Atawura, project coordinator of Tree Aid Ghana announced this during his presentation on Dakar River trees restoration at a stakeholders workshop.
It was organized by Tree Aid Ghana for 77 participants drawn from Yendi, Mion, Gushegu, Burkina Faso and Bolga and funded by Ecosia and Global Shea Alliance at Yendi in the Northern Region.
Mr. Atawura said the project which started in 2018 seeks to restore and protect 35 riparian buffer communities/zone on the Dakar River catchment area in the Yendi Municipality, Gushegu Municipality and Mion District of Northern Region.
He said the project would support rural poor for water shed management, unlock the potentials of trees to reduce poverty and protect the environment.
Touching on targets which were set to achieve, 2023 Mr. Atawura said in addition they had set up Village Saving and Loans Association (VSLA) groups, provided 10 boreholes to 10 communities, training of lead Farmers On Nursery Management FMNR 1,749,000 in-situ grafting 6,667 trees and briquette.
He said some of the species planted included mahogany, baobab, cashew, cassia, mango, shea, tamarinda, African locust, while four degraded sites at Neyido, Gmatudo, Kpasanando and Korachido Nkwanta had been identified and enclosed for research purpose.
He said enclosures could help to restore degraded lands and provide a range of benefits for the farmer and the environment.
Mr. Atawura added that the challenges includesaid bush burning remained an annual ritual in the areas and their environs and gave negative impact on the socio-economic lives of the people who were predominantly farmers.
He said illegal logging of tress by either the community or other community members was also a challenge.
He said jingles were currently running for the next three months at Radio Sankara in local languages on bush fire, and associated effects.
Mr. Paul Mahama Project Officer of Tree Aid Ghana on his presentation on Ghana Shea Landscape Emission Reductions Project (GSLERP) said GSLERP was a five-year project (2022-2025) funded by Green Climate fund/ECOSIA (cost-hared) spearheaded by Global Shea Alliance (Tree Aid and others).
Mr. Mahama said the project was located in 30 communities in Yendi, Mion and Gushegu and the main activities included raise, plant and protect 140,745 shea seedlings, conduct fallow vegetation management covering 2029.54 hectors of land, train 300 women in sustainable parklands management and engage 40 women in nurseries.
He said they had set up three women cooperatives on group dynamics and cooperative governance also to train 1200 women on shea aggregation, marketing, auditing and warehousing, supply 1500 improved cook stove to women groups amongst others.
He said 48,300 non shea species planted (mahogany, baoba, albizia, cassia, mango), while some of the challenges were harvesting of farm produce, limited time for watering of shea seedlings, while some communities relied on the water at nurseries for domestic use putting pressure on system, reducing quantity available for watering, and frequent breakdowns.
During questions and contributions, participants appealed to the overload of Dagbon Ya-Na Abukari II and his chiefs to enforce the law on group hunting in Dagbon, felling of sheanut trees, dawadawa trees for firewood and charcoal, assemblies to control Fulani herdsmen from using their cattle to destroy trees planted along dakar river.
GNA