3. Project Objectives, Results/Outputs, and Activities
3.1 Primary objective

Objective 1. 0: To conduct documentation and characterization of the sacred groves within the South Afadzato socio-ecological production landscape.

Objective 2.0: To promote the enrichment planting and natural regeneration of the sacred groves under serious degradation.

Objective 3.0: To organize and enhance the capacity of Traditional Health Practitioners (THP) who depend on the sacred groves and landscapes to enhance their capacity in processing and packaging of their medicine and get them certified.

Objective 4.0: To identify and support smallholder women farmers increase the economic wellbeing of the women farmers who depend on the Weto Landscape with enterprise development.

3.0 Project Outputs and Activities:
Output 1.0 All the sacred groves within the South Afadzato socio-ecological production landscape mapped and documented for publication and policy formulation for their management and protection.
Output 2.0: At least 100 000 indigenous seedlings raised and planted to enrich the degraded sacred groves.
Output3.0 Capacity of at least 20 traditional health practitioners built and supported to be certified.
Output 4.0 Smallholder women farmers along the landscape support with livelihoods enterprises (beekeeping, small ruminant rearing, and piggery) and Village Savings and Loan Scheme.
Planned Activities
Output 1.0 All the sacred groves within the South Afadzato socio-ecological production landscape mapped and documented for publication and policy formulation for their management and protection.
Planned Activities
Using the laid down traditional protocol, a nine-member project management Team (PMT) would be formed, trained, and empowered to work. The representatives of the PMT will include Traditional Leaders, Landowners, Women, Youth, Fire Volunteers and Traditional Health Practitioners. The Traditional Health practitioner would be profiled for engagement. Together with the NGO, they will conduct biodiversity audit to identify all sacred groves and places rich in biodiversity. A Local consultant would be recruited to map, identify major species, and characterize each identified sacred grove.
The PMT will collaborate with the owners of the sacred groves and with their permission document the history, and the traditional norms that govern each sacred grove and assess it needs. Severa community for a will be conducted tp. All the sacred groves within Afadzato South portion of the Weto Landscape would be documented for policy formulation and restoration either by enrichment planting or natural regeneration. There will be project announcement through community visit, education, and sensitization. The PMT formed will help to conduct the inventory of the major species and to characterize them as OECMs.
Output 2.0: At least 100 000 indigenous seedlings raised and planted to enrich the degraded sacred groves.
Planned Activities
The project will form a local tree nursery team and equipped with the necessary tools and equipment. The Community Tree Nursery Team would be trained in tree nursery development. In collaboration with Forest Research Institute of Ghana and the Forestry Commission, indigenous seeds comparable to those in the natural setting would be acquired. At least 100,000 indigenous herbal seedlings would be raised for enrichment planting in 13 sacred groves and four herbaria along the landscape. The characterized data identified would be restored, near extinct and other herbal species would be nursed, planted, and nurtured within the groves or where necessary, herbarium always created for easy access to medicinal plants.
Output3.0 Capacity of at least 20 traditional health practitioners built and supported to be certified.
Planned Activities
The project will identify and train all Traditional Health Practitioner in collaboration with District Health Directorate. At least 20 herbal practitioners would be supported to meet the registration requirement and to operate in accordance with the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) regulations. The practitioner would be train further in herbal preparation, packaging, and labeling using the FDA standards. District level council of Traditional health practitioners would be formed. District level herbal Beneficiaries of the project would be trained in sustainable management of medicinal herbs, processing, packaging to meet standards of FDA for certification and marketing of their products.
Output 4.0 Smallholder women farmers along the landscape support with livelihoods enterprises (beekeeping, small ruminant rearing, and piggery) and Village Savings and Loan Scheme
Planned Activities
The project will design community level financial mobilization scheme among smallholder women farmers and inculcate in them the habit of savings towards future investments. They would be trained in basic financial records keeping and leadership skills. The project will support small holder farmers with climate smart inputs of maize and rice to avoid product failure due to unpredictable weather variabilities. Since most of them sell their produce during harvest and ridiculously low price due to financial constrain, the project will develop a scheme to advance them with credit speculating on price hikes when it will be sold, and the difference given to them as real income.
At least 100 small holder women farmers would be supported to increase their produce by 40% and foundation stock piggery, small ruminant and beekeeping established according to interest. Ten small holder women farmers diversify their agriculture and increase productivity by 40 % They would diversify into livestock especially piggery since they are hardy, and their feed is derived from bye products of these farmers and can support the family nutritional values. For instance, rice bran from the rice mill constitutes a major feed for livestock.