The 1994 forestry policy in Ghana gave ‘birth' to the concept of collaboration and decentralisation, with the hope that involvement of all stakeholders and the devolution of power to the lower levels could contribute to sustainable forest management and improvement in forest governance and livelihoods, especially at the community level. True to this, government, through the sector ministry and the forestry commission as well as civil society and the donor community have pursued several programs (establishment of CBOs-CFCS, CBAGs etc, boundary cleaning contract with forest fringe communities, Modified taungya systems etc) all aimed at promoting good forestry governance and livelihood innovations.
One of the main goals of establishing and managing the forests in Ghana by governments and individuals is to have a sustainable resource that can provide livelihoods. However, the various forest dependent livelihoods (FDLs) in Ghana, which should act as sources of income and motivation for sustainable management and conservation of the forests, are not well developed.
College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR) of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) has identified the need to incorporate Integrated Natural Resource Management principles into its strategy and curricula as a means to resolving complex environmental problems.
One of the main goals of establishing and managing the forests in Ghana by governments and individuals is to have a sustainable resource that can provide livelihoods. However, the various forest dependent livelihoods (FDLs) in Ghana, which should act as sources of income and motivation for sustainable management and conservation of the forests, are not well developed.
The conservation and wise use of tropical forest resources is of global concern. Recently, the international debate has been focusing on the issue of illegal logging and the legality of timber as a contribution to sustainable management of forests.