A $54.5 million Shea Landscape Emission Reduction Project has been launched.
The project is aimed at restoring degraded shea parklands and improving existing stock of Economic and Multi-purpose trees in the Northern Savannah landscape of Ghana.
The Seven-year project, part of the Parkland Restoration Fund set up by the Global Climate Fund, is to be implemented by the Forestry Commission with the support of private sector actors from the Global Shea Alliance and UNDP.
Performing the virtual launch as part of a keynote address at the 2021 International Shea Conference, Vice President Bawumia challenged the Forestry Commission to see the project as a strategic investment to stop shea parkland destruction and empower communities and their ecosystems to build climate and economic resilience.
The Green Climate Fund is contributing a grant financing component of $30 million, representing a significant milestone in Ghana’s Forest Carbon Financing interventions.
Recalling the very important economic and cultural roles played by the shea tree in the lives of the people of Africa and the world, particularly in the Northern part of Ghana, Vice President Bawumia bemoaned the fact that Ghana’s shea exports currently enter the global supply chain at the bottom with low market value and therefore low income for the primary producers, and outlined ongoing efforts to turn this around.
Dr Bawumia also expressed worry about the cutting down of Shea trees, which could have an impact on global warming.
Vice President Bawumia commended the Global Shea Alliance for setting up the Parkland Restoration Fund as part of the Shea Parklands Initiative under the Global Climate Fund. The fund is aimed at mobilising resources to grow 10 million trees and to protect 4 million hectares of shea parklands.
The Global Shea Alliance, a non-profit industry association, has members across more than 30 countries who contribute, since its establishment 10 years ago, to sustaining the shea industry.
