The Human Environment and Livelihood Platform (HELP) Foundation Africa has commended the Government of Ghana for revoking Executive Instrument (E.I.) 144 and restoring the Achimota Forest to its full status as a protected forest reserve.
The foundation described the decision as a significant step towards strengthening environmental conservation, sustainable natural resource governance, and climate resilience in Ghana.
In a statement copied to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) and signed by Mr Kwadwo Kyei Yamoah, Executive Director of HELP Foundation Africa, the foundation said the decision demonstrated the government’s commitment to balancing national development with environmental protection and safeguarding the country’s natural heritage for future generations.
The foundation noted that the Achimota Forest remained Ghana’s most important urban forest and the only gazetted forest reserve within the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area.
According to the foundation, the forest plays a vital ecological role by improving air quality, reducing urban temperatures, mitigating flood risks, conserving biodiversity, storing carbon, and providing opportunities for environmental education, recreation, and scientific research.
It said the revocation of E.I. 144 would help restore public confidence in environmental governance and reinforce the constitutional obligation to protect Ghana’s natural resources in the national interest.
The foundation added that the decision underscored the long-term ecological, social, and economic value of protected forests over competing land-use interests.
HELP Foundation Africa particularly commended the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, for what it described as his leadership and responsiveness to concerns raised by stakeholders regarding the ecological significance of the Achimota Forest.
The foundation also acknowledged the contributions of civil society organisations, traditional authorities, professional bodies, environmental experts, academia, the Forestry Commission, the media, and citizens whose sustained advocacy kept the issue on the national agenda.
It said the collective efforts of the various stakeholders demonstrated the importance of constructive civic engagement in advancing environmental protection and environmental justice in the country.
The foundation expressed the hope that the restoration of the Achimota Forest Reserve would mark the beginning of renewed efforts to protect Ghana’s remaining forest reserves and other ecologically sensitive areas from degradation.
It further urged the government to build on this momentum by providing permanent and irreversible legal protection for the entire Achimota Forest Reserve and developing and implementing a comprehensive Achimota Forest Management and Restoration Plan.
The foundation also called for the restoration of degraded sections of the forest through indigenous tree planting and ecological rehabilitation; strengthened enforcement against encroachment, illegal development, and activities that threaten the forest’s ecological integrity; and the promotion of the forest as a flagship urban ecological park for conservation, recreation, environmental education, climate adaptation, and sustainable ecotourism.
It further urged the government to increase investment in urban forestry, integrate green infrastructure into national and metropolitan development planning, and expand protection and restoration efforts to other threatened forest reserves and critical ecosystems across Ghana.
