Accra, Oct 27, GNA - Professor Dominic Kweku Fobih, Minister of Lands, Forestry and Mines on Thursday thanked the Netherlands Government for its support in the promotion of ecotourism and wildfire management in the Northern and Brong Ahafo regions.

He said through that support the two regions have experienced a significant reduction in wild fires in recent years.

Prof Fobih who was welcoming Ms Lidi Remmelzwaal, the new Netherlands Ambassador to his office in Accra, asked that support in the management of wildfires be extended to the Volta Region and the Affram Plains to protect Ghana's major water bodies.

He said there was the need to protect the water bodies so that the rate of evaporation would be reduced, adding that plans were far advanced for trees to be planted along riverbanks to protect the rivers. "Your government has also supported us in the validation of timber and we are grateful, because through that we are able to sell on the European market," Prof Fobih said

Ms Remmelzwaal said her government was willing to support the conservation of nature's resources, adding that, water was an important resource that needed to be conserved for future generations. "The policy of my government is to focus on areas that we have comparative advantage. Although we cover a lot of areas in Ghana, we want to concentrate in few areas that we can do very well," she said. Ms Remmelzwaal said the Netherlands government was one of the biggest donors to Ghana's budget and pledged that support in that area would be strengthened.