Green Match – Updates
A Rocha Ghana is currently protecting 25,800 hectares in the Atewa forest and over the past 12 months we have continued to press the government to properly protect more of the forest by turning it into a national park. We are continuing our work with the local communities to establish local governance structures and livelihood schemes that help manage this special landscape through supporting 56 Community Resource Management Committees (CRMCs). We are also working in Mole national park, in Northern Ghana empowering over 600 women to earn money through planting and harvesting from indigenous trees.
In Kenya this year, A Rocha has secured a further 1,200 acres of woodland habitat to further establish a nature reserve for Dakatcha. The County Government of Kilifi (CGoK) officials have expressed strong support for our land purchase strategy, recognizing its importance in supporting both biodiversity conservation and protecting the livelihoods of local communities.
In Uganda, A Rocha continues its exploration of the biodiversity of the West Bugwe forest – one of the few forests left in Eastern Uganda! We are working with local communities to protect it and better understand its value: Having looked for birds, butterflies, trees and mammals, our attention over the past few months has been snakes! We are keen to understand what type of snakes are present in the forest and how we can help reduce the unfortunate human-wildlife conflicts. So far, the team have recorded eight species, many of which are clear forest specialists. Sadly, a great number are found on the side of roads having been run over by the traffic.
We are continuing to work together with local communities to find ways to minimize some of the negative effects of living with forest wildlife. Baboons and monkeys often raid crops, while snake bites can be life threatening. All to foster sustainable coexistence practices in and around West Bugwe Central Forest Reserve.
Our newest project in eastern Nigeria is currently engaging with 100 farmers across five communities in Achia and Mbagbaa with sustainable and eco-friendly measures to improve their crop production. One community member who received the training reported “the (organic) manure [you] gave has helped my pepper, ground nuts and maize. The maize produced three cobs on each plant rather than one or two, and the weight was heavier.” Another member shared how the training opened his eyes to the need for sustainable ways of living saying he was “very happy [you] came here to study how we still maintain nature of God’s creation. We are making this planet of ours bad by cutting trees without any plan for replacing them. Children who will grow tomorrow will benefit from what we are doing today.” We are now looking at expanding this work to communities in the Kwande district.
We hope you are as encouraged as we are with these updates! Threats persist, requiring sustained and increased efforts and A Rocha remains committed to protecting six of African’s forests long-term.