Hon. Dr Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah, the Western Regional Minister marks the 2023 Green Ghana day in shama.
The Green Ghana Day Project is a government initiative to ensure the vegetation cover of the country is enhanced.
For this, reason, the Western Regional Coordinating Council, together with other stakeholders have planted a variety of seedling plants as part of marking the day at the Shama District.
Goshen Global Vision implementing the Urban and Peri-Urban Forestry project with funding from the U.S Forest Service, donated 2,500 tree seedlings, including fruit trees to be planted for the Green Ghana project.
Delivering a speech to commemorate the day, the Western Regional Minister Hon. Dr Kwabena Okyere Darko Mensah notes that forests are one of our most important resources, which directly impacts our health and well-being.
He mentioned the consequences of human activities on the destruction of the natural environment.
“We are going green to ensure that all necessary measures to preserve our natural resources for future generations are taken into consideration. Our forest is one of the most important resources we have, and they have a direct impact on our health and our well-being.
Despite the many benefits our forest provides we are in danger. Human activities have caused the degradation of the forest. Deforestation and other human activities are causing irreparable damage to our forests,” The Minister stated.
The Minister also said, “The western region lost 799 hectares of tree cover from fires alone. The other activities cause us to lose over 498 kilometers
of hectares. So, clearly, we are losing a lot. There’s an emergency on our hands, and we must do whatever it takes to protect it.”
Touching on the theme for Green Ghana Day, Our Forest, Our Health, he said we need to ensure the environment is green and contributes to well-being.
He, however, revealed that the maiden edition of the Green Ghana Day witnessed a survival rate of 72 per cent and there is a need to grow more trees to exceed the quoted target.
“You may agree with me that many of the medications we use are from plants. Losing this plant would rob us of future discoveries that could save millions of lives.
Ensuring our environment is green doesn’t benefit the planet but also helps us to save money, time, and resources so that we can enjoy life while ensuring that future generations have access to clean air and water.
I encourage you to plant more trees in our various environments, schools, churches, and backyards to exceed the quoted target,” He added.
Deputy Director of Operations of the Forestry Commission, Lydia Opoku called on Ghanaians to support the initiative of the President and the Forestry Commission to plant within the community to improve the community. Western Region, she says is to plant 150,000 seedlings.
Seedlings were planted on the premises of the Volta River Authority, VRA and KEDA Ceramics Limited.
(taken from Shama District Assemble Facebook page)
