Jelinkon CREMA, Koster Keunen West Africa signs conservation agreement

Conservation Agreement has been held between the Jelinkon CREMA and Koster Keunen West Africa (KKWA), leader of the beeswax market of the West African sub-region on October 20 with the support of Northcode-Ghana and Noé.

The Agreement binds the producers to adopt sustainable beekeeping practices and the CREMA to preserve its ecosystems by restoring degraded areas, monitoring illegal activities, enforce the CREMA regulations as well as carry out environmental awareness and education campaigns, whereas the private company, KKWA also commits to buy high-quality beeswax from the CREMA’s registered beekeepers at a premium rate, provide technical support and pay a Conservation Premium of 2,5 GHS per kilogram of beeswax purchased from the CREMA into the CREMA’s Conservation Fund Account.

This way, KKWA ensures a sustainable supply chain for its business and the CREMA gets conservation benefits and funding to support its conservation actions.

This Agreement is the 7^th of Conservation Agreements signed under the ECONOBIO programme and the first of Conservation Agreements linked to beekeeping value chain being developed in the Mole Ecological Landscape. It is a milestone achievement of the component of the ECONOBIO programme led by Northcode-Ghana which supports the beekeeping activities and organic vegetable farming benefiting directly more than 250 producers (over 50% women).

“This Conservation Agreement has taken Jelinkon to the international community, it is showing our good work and telling our story. Jelinkon is a united community, we will continue to unite and protect our forest and ensure that our children benefit also benefit from it. We are grateful to all our partners for supporting us with this project” stated the CREMA Chairman, Mr Joseph Kani Vaglikuolri.

Located in the western fringe of the Mole National Park, the Jelinkon Community Resource Management Area (CREMA) is a Community Protected Area with diverse fauna and flora dominated by shea trees (Vitellaria paradoxa) and dawadawa trees (Parkia biglobosa) and covers 14,560 ha of community land. The Jelinkon CREMA, consisting of 10 communities with a Devolution of management authority from the Government of Ghana since 2008 have been working to protect their forest, land and other natural resources of significant importance.

Since 2018 with the support of Northcode-Ghana, a Ghanaian NGO and Noé, a French INGO, through a programme titled: ECONOBIO, which combines biodiversity conservation and sustainable value chain development through private sector collaboration, the CREMA has been further empowered not only to conserve their territory but also to engage is sustainable beekeeping to diversify their income and to improve their living standards.

By collaborating with private companies like Koster Keunen West Africa, the project secures long-term agreements that guarantee technical support and market access for the producers of honey and beeswax and provide financial autonomy to the CREMA to undertake conservation actions.

Officials of Northcode-Ghana, KKWA, Noé, Wild Life Division of Forestry Commission, Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Sawla-Tuna Kalba District Assembly, the Jelinkon traditional chief and opinion leaders, and representatives of the Jelinkon CREMA Exceutives and representatives of each beekeeping groups attended the historic and colourful signing ceremony.