Along the coastal savanna zone of the central region especially in Gomoa district, the only forest ecosystems remaining are the traditionally protected areas, commonly known and called sacred groves. These areas serve as refuge for most endangered animals, economics trees, medicinal plants, birds and other forest resources. These remaining forests are either watersheds or cover for main rivers and streams providing the source of portable water in the district. Also, most of the rare plants in these areas are supporting the thriving traditional medical practitioners in the district. Some of the forests also serve as ecotourism attraction especially during Akwanbo, Aboakyer, Ahobaa, and other Traditional festivals and important funerals.

2. PROBLEM DEFINITION

A snapshot of the farmland and the traditionally protected areas at present shows that the importance of farmlands especially sacred groves around Okyereko, Adenntem and Adamukwa are being overlooked and destroyed by some indigenous people especially group hunters. While these forests are being destroyed through unsustainable farming practices the biological diversity of the forests are also being destroyed through annual bush burning, group hunting of wild animals and indiscriminate felling of indigenous trees for commercial and domestic purposes. Hunting of bees, rats and grasscutters are the order of the day which results in wildfire outbreaks in the area. Trees along rivers, streams, and in the forests are cut for commercial purposes.

There are 12 traditionally protected areas within the geographic area with a total area of about 100 ha. These groves harbour animal species like monkeys, antelopes, deer, grasscutters, birds, reptiles, and snakes. Economic trees like Wawa, Osina, Ceiba, Mahogany, and some species of medicinal value are found in these remnant forests. Even though there are traditional laws banning people from encroaching in the sacred groves and other protected areas people continue to trespass and set wild fires due to weak enforcement and disregard for traditional norms.

As a result, the community?s natural resources are vanishing; and the future population will hardly enjoy the environment. Finally, our land will gradually lose its fertility if great measures are not taken.

Okyereko Co-operative Afforestation society, the chief and elders of the community are highly concerned about the present conditions of the land especially the traditionally protected forests. Fortunately, the Chiefs and Elders are very much concerned with the demise of the natural resources and have therefore resolved to act to save the forest remnants. Besides in most of these traditional forests, the communities still accord a respect and the taboos are observed. No inhabitant dare go into the forest without permission with exception of some ignorant boys who always go to the forest for hunting and secretly set fires.

By the help of our Forest Services Division and GHAF, the people of Okyereko in collaboration with chiefs and elders, family heads and stakeholders, have come under one umbrella declare the whole land for Community Resource Management Area (CREMA) in order to preserve and protect the natural resources for the future population.

The project even though centered at Gomoa Okyereko shall service 12 other sacred groves at the nearest communities namely; Okyereko, Adawukwaa and Adzenntem where 9-member sub management committee has been established to join the Okyereko management committee to manage the project. (See Appendix 2 for the targeted traditionally protected forests and their locations).

PROJECT RATIONALE

Apart from the peaceful environment, economic, social and spiritual significance of the protected areas, the area have come under intense pressure facing a massive degradation and total demise. Our lands as well as the sacred groves are being destroyed through illegal activities. Some fires are allowed to sweep throughout the whole land almost every three months.

People now farm very close to the head waters, burn charcoal near the remaining forests and streams, hunt the endangered wildlife, and harvest fire wood without due regard to the resources being depleted. The destruction of natural resources has affected the people in the community and shall continue to affect the future population.

By undertaking this project, the natural resources shall be saved and protected; the forests will be saved and improved and will also serve as ecotourism attraction and could bring about improvement in the living condition of the people in the three communities.

3. THE OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT

The primary objective of the project is to restore, preserve, and sustainably manage the community natural resources and the traditionally protected lands in Okyereko, Adawukwaa and Adzenntem in order to conserve biodiversity for the socio-economic advancement of the people.

3.1 IMMEDIATE OBJECTIVES.

The immediate objectives are

a. To develop the capacities of the people in sustainable land, forest and wildlife management

b. To rehabilitate degraded lands and denuded forests including all the traditionally protected areas within the project areas

c. To introduce agroforestry and improved farming practices

d. To develop sustainable income generating alternative livelihoods to enhance biodiversity conservation in the area

3.2 EXPECTED OUT PUTS/RESULTS

1. Capacity for community sustainable land, forest and wildlife management practices developed. The expected results of this outcome are:

a) 200 ha Okyerko/Adzenntem Community Resource Management Area created and managed by traditional rules and regulations
b) Community Natural Resource Management Group for land, forest and wildlife management and biodiversity conservation formed and trained.
c) Community awareness in wildfire and land degradation control created.



2. Degraded lands and denuded forests within the project areas regenerated.

The expected results of this outcome are:
a.) Community agreements, participatory landuse plan and community based land and forest restoration plans formulated and implemented.
b.) 60 ha of denuded forestlands within the sacred groves replanted with indigenous species.
c.) Water conservation and soil fertility improvement techniques introduced to control soil erosion and improve on productivity.
d.) 60 acres of individual woodlots established in three communities.
e.) Establish 5ha of demonstration ecological sustainable livelihood farm planted with diverse fast growing and for the production of honey, snails, mushroom and small ruminant at Okyereko.

3. Promotion of sustainable agro forestry technologies. The expected outcomes are:
a. Community nursery capable of producing 100,000 seedlings annually established at Okyereko
b. 10 farmers trained as trainers on agro forestry technologies
c. 60 farmers assisted to establish agro forestry technologies demonstration farms
.

4. Small business enterprise development and livelihood activities introduced to enhance land and biodiversity conservation: The expected results are:
a. Small businesses in the production and processing of non-timber products like snail farming, honey production, small ruminants rearing and grass cutter rearing promoted.

4. PROJECT ACTIVITIES


Output 1. Capacity for community sustainable land, forest and wildlife management practices developed

Planned Activities

Activities to achieve this component are to create 200ha community resource management area in Okyereko, Adawukwaa, and Adzenntem. Initially, through participatory rural appraisal techniques, community maps covering the entire traditional areas would be undertaken so that appropriate protection strategies could be devised with the approval of the Chiefs, and landowners and the Forest Services Division. A nine-member Community Natural Resource Management Groups (CNRMG) would be formed and trained in each community to provide leadership for implementation of the project. At the central level, a nine-member Natural Resource Management Committee will be formed to manage the project and to formulate and implement landuse, fire and natural resource management plans. Training and capacity building programmes would be prepared and implemented for specific groups, individual planters and extension workers in nursery development, staking out, planting and nurturing of trees. Training programmes will also be developed and targeted specifically at farmers to enable them to develop and pass on knowledge to other farmers about sustainable land and forest management. In collaboration with local committee, a central nursery will be established at Okyereko to be operated and owned by the Okyerko group. A study tour for the CNRMG would be organized to Mankessim where similar projects are being implemented.

Indigenous knowledge and practices in land and forest management will be reviewed; new one enacted and enforced on wildfire management systems. In participation with local communities, fire protection and management plans will be developed to cover the whole project area.

Output 2. Degraded lands and denuded forests within the project areas regenerated.

Planned Activities

Planned activities to achieve results include finalizing and signing collaborative resource management agreements; bye-laws on the management of the CREMA, completion and adoption of the participatory landuse plans and formulating land restoration and forest management plans. The next step will be to survey and demarcate the planting sites with the CREMA with the full participation of local communities, Traditional Authorities, Stool Chiefs, and landowners. A reforestation plans to cover all planting sites will be prepared with the people. Local community groups and individuals will be registered and organized into Working Groups to plant at least 60 ha of the degraded areas in the sacred groves.

The project will establish 10ha of demonstration ecological sustainable livelihood farm planted with diverse indigenous fast growing timber species (entandrophragma angolensis, terminalia superba and cieba pentandra), woodfuel species and the production of honey, snails, mushroom and small ruminant at Okyereko. Individual farmers would also be assisted to establish and own similar farms following the same model. The beneficiary farmers would be assisted with inputs to plant, nurture, monitor, and maintain the farms.

In collaboration with the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, water conservation and soil fertility improvement techniques would be introduced to farmers. Farmers would be introduced to composting, planting or muccuna and other nitrogen fixing plants.

All the sacred groves within the CREMA would be surveyed to establish their original boundaries and buffer zones created around them. Enrichment planting will be promoted within the degraded scared groves to restore their biodiversity.

Output 3. Agroforestry and improved farming practices introduced to 60 farmers

Planned Activities

Community awareness creation and education on need for agro forestry land use systems. Community durbar would be used to create awareness on the need for introducing agroforestry technologies as a sustainable land use systems. The community would be given the option to select about 10 people to be trained as trainers of trainees in a three weeks training, field visits and establishment of demonstration plots on agroforestry.

Workshop on agroforestry technologies for trainers. One and half week?s theoretical training with pictorial illustrations would be organized for the selected participants. These participants will be the trainers who will impact the skills to be acquired to all members of the project community and its surrounding villages. Participants will be trained especially on how to utilize the participatory planning process for Agroforestry extension in the communities.

Establishment of agroforestry technologies demonstration plots. After the field visit the trainers would be assisted by MOFA and technical field staff GHAF to demonstrate on plots within the buffer zones specific technologies they have learnt both at the training workshop and the field visits. Fifty farmers would be assisted to set up 50 ha agro-forestry farms

An agroforestry extension manual would be developed with inputs from the training workshop, field visits and the community ?based demonstration plots established by the trainers. Since most of the inputs of the manual are the ideas from the community it is expected to be easily adopted and serve as a field guide to community development workers, NGOs, and other governmental agencies engaged in or likely to engage in agroforestry development

Output 4. Small business enterprise development and alternative livelihood activities established to enhance biodiversity conservation:

Planned Activities

Under this output the activities will include setting up trust groups and training them in business management and accounting. The project will evolve a revolving loan mechanism to assist the project beneficiaries to set up small businesses in snail farming, honey production, small ruminant rearing, mushroom farming and grass cutter rearing. Women would be assisted to trade in non-timber forest products and to develop local businesses to enhance biodiversity conservation by setting up a revolving fund.

5. PROJECT OUTCOME INDICATORS:

By the end of the planned the following would be the outcome indicators:

? 200 ha traditionally protected area preserved
? Capacity building for 100 community members to enhance their participation in land and forest management
? Participatory landuse plan and Forest Management Plan developed for the sustainable management of at least 200 ha of off-reserved forest as CREMA;
? Formation of 3 Natural Resource Management Groups;
? 50 ha of buffer zone created around the traditionally protected areas planted with indigenous species;
? 50 people will be trained in agroforestry;
? 5 ha ecological sustainable livelihood farms
? 20 people, including community leaders, farmers, women?s groups, landowners, teachers and students, trained in silviculture and forest management, nursery and tree growing technologies and plantation development;
? A minimum of 50 indigenous farmers will have undertaken specific training and capacity building in water conservation and soil improvement techniques.
? One central nursery and local community nursery established;
? 40 members of the CREMA benefit from small business enterprise programmes;
? 3 Forest Management Agreements and bye-laws on CREMA formulated and signed
? 20 member of CREMA undertake a study tour to learn best practices
? 6 sacred groves restored to conserve biodiversity.