MERCHANTABLE ROSEWOOD TIMBER NOW SOLD IN NORTH AND WEST GONJA DISTRICTS LIKE FIREWOOD

All evidence on the ground point emphatically to the fact that, the highly prized merchantable timber species, rosewood, has become the most expensive and fastest selling commodity in some parts of the Northern Region now. Rosewood highly prized in China and also in some Asian timber markets is now sold in North and West Gonja districts like firewood. Areas where hitherto, even robust Kia trucks and even tractors would not dare tread to convey farm products to market centres and also for ambulances to convey emergency health situations to health centres have now opened to heavy duty traffic, mainly by forty-footer cargo trucks, carrying contraband rosewood logs. These forty-footer loading trucks are also competing for space in remote communities and also providing compressor force to the on-going Fufulso-Sawla road, which is currently under construction. This is happening albeit the ban on export of rosewood, announced by Hon. Alhaji Inusah Fuseini, Minister for Lands and Natural Resources which came into force on the 1st of January, 2014.

Good tidings has brought misfortune to Green Gonjaland

There is truth in the saying that, 'just one road in a forest, will turn it into a desolate desert overnight'. The commencement of road construction works on the Fufulso-Sawla road, long on the wish list of all Gonjas, tourists to Mole National Park and all travellers who use the road to connect to Upper West from Tamale, was heralded with much joy as it meant new opportunities as a result of improved transport systems and trade within these agriculturally productive areas of the Northern Region.

It was never to be expected that, this opportunity will come with such a huge sacrifice as losing the large acreage of remnant lush and thriving woodlands in the fragile savannah ecosystems of Northern Region. What started as salvage activities, with the issuance of salvage permit by the Forest Services Division (FSD) of the Forestry Commission for the removal of trees along the stretch of road has turned into a nightmare of massive and flourishing illegal logging and trade in rosewood. Even more alarming, these salvage permits were issued with no monitoring system in place, turning salvage activities into a massive rosewood logging and timber trade in the North and West Gonja Districts with no end in sight.

If the FSD was indeed monitoring they would have known by now that, there are always chainsaw operators in the bush cutting more fresh logs, providing opportunities for timber merchants to continuously submit requests to collect logs, as part of a salvage. The question I ask is, when will the issuance of salvage permits stop? Do we have to wait till the last rosewood tree is removed before the FSD will stop issuing salvage permits for rosewood? This is a clear case of abuse of the salvage permit system. It is one thing to talk about putting in place processes to start issuing timber validity license (TVL), when in practice already existing systems for legal timber is been clearly abused, by the very officers and agencies who are there to ensure to due diligence. What is the guaranteed it won't be another failed attempt at effectively regulating malpractices and illegality in the timber trade in Ghana? Deforestation continues at an unprecedented rate in Ghana now, topping the chart of countries with high rate of deforestation rates in Africa now.

Timber legality and the abuse of Salvage Permits

According to several critical reviews of Acts and Legislative Instruments and other documents regulating forestry and the timber industry, for timber to be legal in Ghana, it has to, it has to meet certain criteria covering the (1) source, (2) resource allocation, (3) harvesting operations, (4) transportation, (5) processing, (6) marketing, and (7) fiscal regulatory systems. In terms of resource allocation which is of much interest to this publication and for which the offenders of the forestry operations in off-reserve areas are applying, three allocation modalities are specified and approved by legislation. These are competitive bidding, Timber Utilisation Permit (TUP) and Salvage Felling. With respect to Salvage Felling or permit, current legislation allows the issue of permit for the salvage of trees from an area of land undergoing development such as road construction, expansion of human settlement or cultivation of farms. On the basis of the existing legislation and regulations, how does a salvage operation meant for salvaging logs along the stretch of Fufulso-Sawla road, now translate to salvaging of a specific timber species, in a non-timber concession area of more than 15km radius, outside the area of actual development, and for this salvage operation to continue close to 2 year?

Efforts by the several civil society groups like A Rocha Ghana, Gonjaland Youth Association and some concerned district assemblies to halt the illegal logging and trade in rosewood, under the disguise of salvaging abandoned logs/billets have fell on death ears. The devastation continues. Unfortunately, traditional leadership within the area has not demonstrated commitment to bring this devastation to a halt. As it is now, most of the chainsaw operators are parading the names of traditional leaders within the area to perpetuate their illegal trade; this of course cannot be substantiated. What is even more disturbing is the apparent connivance of some police officers and their inability to stem this problem in the bud. Findings attest to the fact, there has not been any successful arrest and prosecution of these illegal operators by the police command responsible for West and North Gonja District, where the logging is most felt. The only record at the West Gonja District Court is the one that was lodged by the management of Mole National Park, under the Wildlife Division of the Forestry Commission.

Not even a ban order issued by the Hon Minister of Lands and Natural Resources has yielded any solutions. The ban has obviously not been effective because a contradictory salvage permit was issued by the Hon Minister himself a month after the ban, to allow two companies again salvage logs with operations ending on the 23rd of May, 2014.

During the period of the ban and the release of this new permit which contradicts the Ministers own ban order, there was no system of monitoring to ensure that due diligence was followed. What happened and continue to happen is that, areas that were hitherto not affected by the logging prior to the ban, have now become the target locations for logging, contrary to an order to only collect logs. The logging has escalated beyond control, to the extent that logs are now piled by the roads sides, and sold like firewood to timber merchants.

Agencies at the National, Regional and District levels have all closed their eyes and ears to this devastating destruction of the fragile ecosystem of the savannah woodlands of the Northern Region of Ghana. Nobody seems to care, as we see the carnage of illegal logging tear the onces green and lush vegetation of Gonjaland apart. What is even troubling is that, these operators are making incursions into forest reserves and if not closely monitored they will surely extend their activities into Mole National Park, the premier and largest protected area in Ghana.

The plight of affected Communities
Affected farming communities, which include almost all the communities in West and North Gonja Districts, find themselves under siege, as they see chainsaw operators come into their fallow lands and take invaluable resources without any attempt to stop. If they come in the name of the landowners who are they as community people to stop them, is always their cry for not taking any action.

Rosewood trees growing close to seasonal small streams and rivers, important hotspots in the savannah areas are not spared.

I do not doubt the fact that, the trade has its positive sides as well. Of course a lot of young men are reaping some income from participating in these activities. That notwithstanding, we cannot condone an illegal activity just because it is providing the much needed jobs that we have all been praying for. School going adolescents have abandoned school just to engage in this activity. Can we blame them when even their teachers (mostly pupil teachers who salaries are still outstanding) have abandoned the classrooms and are busily looking for rosewood to cut.

More than ever, there are more tractors in the communities than were provided by SADA. Don't be mistaken, they are not there to aid farming activities this year, but to bring the logs from the bush so the trailers can carry them away.

Headquarters of illegal logging and Call for Urgent Action

If I may borrow and apply the words of His Excellency President John Mahama, there is no doubt that the North and West Gonja Districts of the Northern Region has become the headquarters of illegal rosewood logging with other merchantable species becoming the target of illegal loggers in recent times.

I therefore humbly ask his excellency President John Mahama to come to the aid of the people of Gonjaland, home of his birth to secure what is left of the once lush woodland vegetation of Gonjaland. The District Assemblies are doing their best, but in the wake of the involvment of forces that be, they are virtually helpless and only an Executive order, backed by sufficient enforcement save these fragile lands from total destruction. We saw how urgent he took the issue of clearing of parts of Aburi Gardens by the local assembly. This issue should by now have got his attention and set in motion a machinery to halt these activities. Unless there is more to rumours that the powers that be are responsible, that is why all efforts to end it by environmental activists is coming to naught.

I will also entreat the traditional leadership of Gonjaland to show commitment by issuing a traditional order to ask all chainsaw activities in Gonjaland to cease and back community and district action to stop this destructive activities.

We also need a statement from the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources to update us on the current state of the ban and the way forward to dealing with the menace of illegal logging and trade.

With respect to the Forest Services Division of the Forestry Services Divison, I urge them to leave up to the responsibility and vision for which the Forestry Commission was set up, which is 'To leave future generations and their communities with richer, better, more valuable forestry and wildlife endowments than we inherited'.

By Daryl Bosu
Environmentalists