Kiape, Mankuma and Sonyo in the Bole District of the Northern Region are natural resource dependent communities and yet the areas have come under serious threat of bushfires, land degradation and desertification which endangers the main sources of livelihood of the local population particularly smallholder farmers. Located in the savanna ecological zone, the Bole District experienced rainfall once in a year and therefore the vegetation cover which is mainly grass and sparsely located tree dry up in the non- raining reason. Most often, hunters, farmers, charcoal burners, natural honey extractors and even curious youth set fire to the dry vegetation cover which leads to destroying the habitat as well as other life organism and plant species. Bush fires in the District have become an annual ritual and have also destroyed food crops on the farms. Therefore, bush fires have become a source of biodiversity destruction as well as livelihoods destruction. This project aims at training actors whose activities can lead to bush fires (hunters, charcoal burners, farmers, herdsmen, natural honey extractors and youth). Actors such as farmers often adopt slash and burn crude system of food production, hunters, charcoal producers, natural honey extractors employ the use of fires in their daily activities which often results on wanton bushfire in the district. Introducing Wild fire policy education to all stakeholders would enhance knowledge and reduce bushfires. Inculcating better and good agronomic practices among farmers to save lands in danger from slash and- burn cultivation with the dual purpose of preventing vegetative cover losses and erosion as well as forest fragmentation. Livestock and domestication of other wildlife such as grass cutters, bee-keeping activities among farmers, hunter, charcoal produces, natural honey extractors, to reduce and prevent outbreak of bushfire, safe plants and wildlife in the district
1.3.2 Primary objective
The primary objective of the project is to prevent bushfires by initiating climate smart agriculture and promoting biodiversity conservation and livelihood enterprise establishment.
1.3.3 Specific objectives
a) To educate and build capacities of the local communities in wildfire management, biodiversity conservation and climate smart agricultures.
b) To rehabilitated the degraded areas
c) Introduce farmers to SLM technology and support them to practice conservation agriculture, composting, and zai compost applications
d) Support farmers, hunters and charcoal producers with alternative livelihoods[livestock, bee-keeping agree-processing etc]
1.3.4 The rationale (justification) for the project.
The prevention of bush fires in the Bole District has a direct positive relationship with GEF Small Grants Programme overall objectives. Bushfires are sources of extinction of various flora and fauna and particularly kills the few scattered trees which are dried in the dry season. Therefore, the prevention of bush fires is a sure way of enhancing biodiversity conservation. Also, bushfire result in the emission of carbons into the atmosphere thus contributes to the depletion of the ozone layer. Again, whenever bush fire destroys food crop, farmers farm produces it endanger their livelihoods, food insecurity and most of them turn into the forest products for coping strategy; most women will resort to charcoal burning and this has negative implications on afforestation. Also, whenever the bushes are bent most water bodies dry and in the process life in those water bodies are destroy. There bush fires prevention has a direct positive relation in the achievement of the GEF Small Grant objectives particularly in the areas of enhancing sustainable forest, conservation of carbon stock, reduction of emissions and capacity development and knowledge management. The project when implemented is intended to achieve the following benefits; biodiversity protection, protection of water bodies and sustainable land management, agro-ecological food production systems etc
1.4 Project Results/outputs
• 300 farmers educated and their capacity strengthened and supported in preventing wildfires, biodiversity conservation, SLM technology, compost preparation, zai compost applications and climate smart agricultural practices.
• Estimated 300 hectares of forest and farmlands be protected from wildfire and 60 hectares of degraded areas recovered and planted with trees.
• 150 farmer/hunters, charcoal producers and farmers supported to with organic smart farming and to produce livestock as alternative income generating activities.
1.5 Description of Project Activities
Output 1: 300 farmers educated and their capacity strengthened and supported in preventing wildfires, biodiversity conservation, SLM technology, compost preparation, zai compost applications and climate smart agricultural practices

Planned Activities
1.1 In collaboration with the Forestry Commission, will educate the communities on Ghana National wildfire policy- recognizing the contribution of bushfires to air pollutions, climate change, disappearance of plants and animals, soil degradation, farmers’ livelihoods destruction, Ghana developed national Wildfire policy document but unfortunately the very farmers for which the policy document is aimed at are not aware and perished due to lack of information. Farmers in the 3 selected communities would be educated in detail through capacity building and sensitization workshops. These will enhance their understanding on the causes, prevention, roles and responsibilities under wildfire managements and sanction of bushfires outbreaks. This activity would be executed using resources persons with in-depth knowledge from CSOs, state agencies responsible for wild fire management and prevention. A radio discussion would follow as public outreach activity in order to cover the enter district

1.2 Form, train and equip Community Bush Fires Prevention Volunteers (CBFPV). TIZAA-YELLI Community Development shall facilitate the formation of (CBFPV) in each community to support the efforts of the communities and district as a whole to prevent wildfire outbreaks in the district. Each group shall be made up of 50 strong able men and women farmers in each community. The especial group would be well equipped and shall receive detailed training in bushfires management and prevention to enable them function properly. They would be given additional roles and responsibilities of training their colleagues’ farmers, hunters, natural honey extractors and charcoal producers on wildfire management skills in the bole district. They would assist to develop of a comprehensive bush fire management strategy for implementation in their respective communities.

1.3 Conduct community–wide education on climate change, biodiversity conversation and effective natural resource management. Farmers will also be trained to understand the nature of climate change situation in the country, its impacts on the livelihoods, and some of the adaptations strategies in the various communities. They would also be educated to understand the linkages of the climate change and bio-diversity conservations, the importance conserving bio-diversity in the eco-system and how bushfires impact negatively on the total stock of bio-diversity in the district. Resources persons from EPA and FSD shall be brought in to facilitate the training in the district

1.4 Form, train and equip farmers in biodiversity conservation, SLM technology, compost preparation, zai compost applications and climate smart agriculture.

Output 2 300 hectares of forest and farmlands be protected from wildfire and 60 hectares of degraded areas recovered and planted with trees
Planned activities

2.1 Survey and earmark degraded areas to be put under natural regeneration

2.2 Set up community nursery with 100,000 seedling capacity

2.3 Identify and register household will to re-plant their farms under agroforestry technologies.

2.4 Support registered farmers to plant trees to enrich degraded areas- the farmers shall be trained on tree management skills and how to integrate trees in their farming activities. Portions of degraded areas in the 3 communities would be earmarked and enrichment planning would be undertaken to recover those areas. Seedlings such as cassia, grafted mangos etc shall be supplied and farmers will be supported to plant on their individual farms, and degraded areas of the communities
Output 3: 150 farmer/hunters, charcoal producers and farmers supported to with organic smart farming and to produce livestock as alternative income generating activities

3.1 Conduct livestock and other livelihood support training- livestock such as goats, rabbits and grass cutters shall be introduced to farmers, hunters as alternative livelihoods options in orders to reduce over dependence of the wildlife and avoid the use of wildfires. Animal droppings shall be generated to support the good agricultural practices component of the project. Bee-keeping activities would be introduced to natural honey extractors and charcoal produces to save bio-diversity from wildfire destructions. The various actors shall be trained and equipped with start-ups to enable them practices on their own.

3.2 Introduce farmers to organic farming and SLM technology and support them to practice-Eg Composting, zai compost applications etc. farmers in these area has very little skills in organic farming and sustainable land management practices which makes largely, the use of crop residues and avoid burning in land preparation for food security. A total of 150 farmers shall be trained in different component of organic farming and sustainable land management practices. The training shall be done with the support of MOFA as the district agricultural unit through farmer capacity building workshops and follow up coaching on the ground.