What does the forest science-policy interface in Ghana look like? For some time now policy makers have blamed research scientists for not living up to expectation since they do not see what scientists do and what impact their work has on national development. In other parts of the world, this is also the case where it appears there is poor communication between scientists and the intended users of their research results. The forestry science/policy interface in Ghana has not been systematically examined. To enlighten stakeholders, a study was conducted among forestry research scientists of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), and some university researchers and policy and implementing partners in the forestry sector. The research focused on communication channels and their effectiveness, institutional arrangements and how they affect the interface between science and policy actors. In Ghana, the Forestry Research Institute of Ghana (FORIG) which mainly hosts forestry scientists is administratively under a different Ministry from the Forestry Commission which is the main client of research results. Interviews were conducted with 82 people; 45% being researchers and 55% being policy actors. Researchers mainly used publications and informal meetings to receive information from policy and end- users while policy actors mainly depended on meetings and official requests in receiving information. The study concludes that institutionalising communication channels such as informal network and face-to-face interaction seems to be more beneficial to both scientists and policy actors than just an administrative integration of their respective agencies.

Wood energy provides 70% of Kenya’s national energy needs and it is expected to continue as the country’s main source of energy for the foreseeable future. Wood is the standard cooking fuel for the majority of Kenyan households and also an important energy source for small-scale rural industries. Past studies on supply demand balance of woodfuel have shown a deficit. To address this deficit there is need for a comprehensive wood energy plan with implementation strategies which ensure its sustainable production. This paper outlines some of the strategies that need to be put in place for a sustainable woodfuel production. The strategies are both supply and demand oriented which are aimed at either increasing the supply or reducing the demand. The supply strategies include; enhancing on-farm tree planting, efficient management of rangelands and woodlands, development of fuelwood plantations by Kenya Forest Service. The demand oriented strategies include ; reducing demand through promotion of more efficient cooking stoves and charcoal conversion kilns, use of alternative sources of energy other than wood. Other strategies include formulation of woodfuel policies that enhances decentralized sustainable wood energy planning at all levels. The later can only be achieved if the wood energy institutional framework is strengthened and facilitated to collect wood energy data to be used in national energy planning alongside the conventional fuels that are currently given more emphasis. The decentralized wood energy planning is important as the strategies to be used for sustainable woodfuel production may vary from one region to the other

Quantifying carbon stocks in tropical ecosystems is crucial for understanding the global C cycle, formulation and evaluation of climate change mitigation measures, and the management of ecosystems for C sequestration. Additionally, the critical role of land use or cover as an important control of C storage in the terrestrial biosphere is undisputed. Currently, greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from land use change continue to attract global attention. It is estimated that emissions from land use change, mostly from developing countries, constitute 20 – 25% of all anthropogenic GHG emissions hence, the considerations of land use management in international climate change agreements as an option to mitigate the build-up of atmospheric GHGs. It is envisaged that land use-based mitigation initiatives, such as Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD), aside confronting deforestation and forest degradation, also has the potential to simultaneously contribute to climate change mitigation and development in local communities. This provides a new opportunity for Ghana, which hitherto has not benefited from the global carbon market, to further her developmental goals. The country’s attempt to implement land-based carbon projects is hampered by lack of baseline information especially on carbon stocks. Presently, our knowledge of Ghana’s carbon budget is limited by inadequate data on carbon stocks in the various cover types as well as the spatial distribution of these sinks. Moreover, quantifying forest cover changes are key requirements in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol implementation. There is awareness about the alarming pace of forest cover change in Ghana. Estimation of change is however based on “best guesses” rather than on scientifically robust methods. Thus, there is an urgent need to determine more reliable estimates of forest cover changes and associated carbon stocks at a resolution consistent with the scale of deforestation in the country.

In Ghana, small areas of intact or slightly degraded forests reserved for religious and traditional beliefs can be found in many places. These sacred groves, as they are called, have various underlying beliefs and prohibitions, most common is that cutting of trees for timber is not allowed. Though these groves add considerable value to the protected area of forests of high genetic value, which are poorly represented in state-managed forest reserves, yet they have come under intense pressure recently with many experiencing various degrees of deforestation and forest degradation. As ‘forest islands’ they remain among the most valuable biodiversity hotspots for which much could be obtained for the conservation and sustainable management of forests for the future.

In recent times, the role of local religious and cultural edicts for the preservation of these sacred groves has waned significantly and this is not peculiar to Ghana, but worldwide. Sacred groves and other small remnant forests could be important sources of ecosystem services (ES) not just for fringing local communities but also for entire landscapes.

The Ankasa Conservation Area, which incorporates the Nini-Suhien National Park and the Ankasa Resource Reserve, is considered the most biologically diverse forest ecosystem in Ghana. However, due to encroachment by local communities for unsustainable shifting cultivation and illegal logging in and around the area, the conservation area is being over-exploited resulting in deforestation and
degradation. This leads to poverty-forest resource depletion cycle and decreased quality of environmental services including increased emission of greenhouse gases.

The country’s attempt to implement land-based carbon projects is hampered by lack of baseline information especially on carbon stocks. Presently, our knowledge of Ghana’s carbon budget is limited by inadequate data on carbon stocks in the various cover types as well as the spatial distribution of these sinks. Moreover, quantifying forest cover changes is a key requirement in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol
implementation. Though there is national awareness about the alarming pace of forest cover change in Ghana, estimation of this change is however based on “best guesses” rather than on scientifically robust methods. Thus, there is an urgent need to determine more reliable estimates of forest cover
changes and associated carbon stocks at a resolution consistent with the scale of deforestation in the country.

In Kenya, eucalypts were introduced as early as 1902. About 100 species have since been introduced and 83 have been planted at various times at KEFRI Arboretum, Muguga (Gottneid and Thogo, 1975). Out of the 83 species planted in the arboretum, only 71 have survived. Of these 4 are fast growing, 14 are moderate, and 53 are slow growing (Annex I). The aim of the initial introduction was to identify fast growing Eucalyptus species to supply woodfuel for the Kenya-Uganda railway. The uses of eucalypts have since increased and now include timber, plywood, transmission poles, pulp, building materials, fencing posts, rails (fitos), windbreaks, ornamentals and environmental enhancement. Eucalypts are also important in providing products that would otherwise be sourced from natural forests.

The debate on climate change and ecosystem services has grown substantially over the past two decades.  The post-Kyoto protocol period particularly has witnessed increased formulation of financial mechanisms to compensate for green efforts towards carbon sequestration and reduction in deforestation.  In most cases, communities substantially depend on forests for their livelihoods or their actions have a direct bearing on the sustainability of the forests.  Will the economic incentives from emerging initiatives offer new sources of income to support rural livelihoods and reduce poverty?  There is ome doubt about this potential, because there is enormous evidence across the world to show that forest exploitation and use has not substantially benefited local people and Ghana is no exception.  This paper draws on existing evidence in Ghana to show that the lack of secure community tenure rights and the dominance of unaccountable authority - which leads to benefit capture by local elites - are critical constraints to equitable forest benefit sharing.  Building on the evidence, this paper argues that unless these issues are addressed in policy and practive, the potential economic benefits from the various emerging mechanisms under climate change and ecosystem services may not benefit local people; they may even reinforce the gap between the rich and the poor.