Sunyani, July 16, GNA – The Forestry Service Division (FSD) cultivated 8,752.85 hectares of teak, oframo and cedrella tree species in the Brong-Ahafo Region under the Modified Tuangya System between 2001 and 2009.

The Modified Tuangya System (MTS) was launched by former President John Agyekum Kufuor at Ayigbe in the Wenchi Municipality in 2001 to promote food security, restore degraded forests and create employment for the youth in the region.

Under the system, farmers are supported with farm inputs to plant their food stuffs and assisted in clearing pegging and planting of the various tree species in and along the forest reserves.

The project was outsourced to 30 private developers and created employment for more than 10,000 youth in the region.

Mr Thomas Okyere, Regional Manager of the FSD, disclosed this to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview in Sunyani.

Giving the breakdown, Mr Okyere said a total of 1,585 hectares were cultivated at the Paamu Forest Reserve in Berekum, 700 hectares at Mpamesu Forest Reserve in Dormaa, 777.3 hectares at Tain One Forest Reserve and 500 hectares at Tain Two Forest Reserve in Sunyani.

At the Sawsaw Forest Reserve and Amoma Shelter Belt, a total of 770 and 4,000 hectares of forest plantations were cultivated respectively, whilst at the Bechem Bosomkese Forest Reserve saw the cultivation of 424.25 hectares, he added.

Mr Okyere said under the Division’s model plantation, a total of 70 hectares of tree species were cultivated in the Sunyani Tain One, Sawsaw and Kintampo Bosomoa forest reserves.

Under the HIPC plantation project, the FSD also cultivated 8,715 hectares of the same tree species within the same period and 3,921 hectares of plantation under the forest management project, he said.

Mr Okyere disclosed that in 2010, the Division cultivated 4,259.8 hectares of plantation with 1,135.8 in forest reserves and 3,124 hectares off-reserves.

He stated that 1,786 youth were engaged to work in the forest reserves whilst the off-reserves created job opportunities for 3,943 youth in the region.

Mr Okyere explained that the programme was outsourced to ZOIL, a branch of ZoomLion, in-charge of afforestation, which undertook the cultivation whilst the African Brigade were in-charge of supplying seedlings.

He said the FSD would cultivate a total of 2,000 hectares of tree species at Atebubu, Sunyani, Kintampo, Bechem, Dormaa and Goaso and that cultivation had begun at Kintampo and Dormaa.

He said land demarcation had been completed whilst clearing and pegging were on-going at the remaining areas.

Mr Okyere explained that the FSD in collaboration with the Municipal and District Assemblies as well as some security agencies had set up a monitoring team to patrol the plantations whilst forest guards manned the reserves.

He expressed concern about the activities of illegal logging in some of the forest reserves in the region and called on community leaders, chiefs, assembly members and the district assemblies to help stop the practice.

Mr Daniel Donkor, Assistant Regional Manager of FSD, said Brong-Ahafo had 21 forest reserves and mentioned fire outbreaks and illegal logging as major contributory factors to the gradual degrading of the reserves.

“If strict measures are not put in place the region will experience desertification in the next five years,” Mr Donkor cautioned.

He appealed to the judiciary and the police to endeavour to ensure rapid prosecution of cases of illegal logging brought before them.

Mr Donkor observed that Ghana lost huge sums of money every year to illegal logging adding “if this is not brought under control posterity will not spare us”.

He advised all stakeholders to contribute their quota to preserve the national heritage for future generations.