Nduom opposes sale of Achimota Forest

A founder member of the Progressive People’s Party (PPP), Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom, has kicked against the sale of the Achimota Forest, the largest remaining urban green-belt in the country.

In his view, at a time Ghana was threatened by climate change, the sale of the forest to foreign based Aikan Capital Investment was not in the interest of the country and its future generations.

Dr Nduom wondered “the Ridge Park has been destroyed, with government officials in the lead, and I wonder if it is now the turn of the Achimota Forest.”

Background

The Forestry Commission, through the sector ministry, the Lands and Natural Resources, has signed an agreement with Aikan Capital Limited to convert the Achimota Forest into an international eco-tourism facility.

Under the agreement, Aikan Capital Limited is expected to invest a total of US$1.2 billion in the development of the Accra Ecopark Project, the first of its kind in Ghana.

In justifying the deal, the government said the forest was under serious threat from encroachers.

Safeguard environment

Sharing the concern with a cross-section of the media in Accra on Tuesday, Dr Nduom, who is also a top notch entrepreneur, pointed out that the sale was in direct contravention of the Directive Principle of State Policy, as captured in Chapter 6 Section 9 of Ghana’s Constitution, which enjoins the state to protect and safeguard the national environment for posterity.

“The state is abandoning this principle,” he insisted and, therefore, urged the government to shelve the idea and make the efforts possible to reclaim what has been illegally acquired and developed by encroachers.

He declared, “if our forbearers saw the need to conserve the Achimota Forest, then it is incumbent on our current leaders to do same for future generations.”

Country’s green belt

Expressing worry that most of the country’s green belts were disappearing, with no shred of concern from officialdom, Dr Nduom asked: “Why should the Achimota forest be transformed into a leisure centre and an amusement park because those entrusted with the power to protect it cannot do so?”

He added: “If there are encroachers, what do you do? If it is buildings that these encroachers have built in the forest, you break them down, clear the forest of the waste and debris, sack those settlers and restore it to its original status.”

Ecotourism facility

Meanwhile, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Nii Osah Mills, has explained that the conversion of the Achimota Forest into an ecotourism facility will, among other benefits, generate revenue for the government while functioning as a first-class recreational centre within the city of Accra.

The minister further justified the action by stating that illegal settlers were encroaching vast areas of the Achimota Forest, with others constructing unauthorised roads which they use to dump waste materials, and that led to a sharp reduction in the size of the forest from 500 to 360 hectares.

But Dr Nduom insisted that the government must show leadership in dealing with the problem head-on, instead of opting for lazy solutions that would undermine the well-being of the country today and in the future.

He maintained that the forest should not be sold to any investor in the first place, but rather preserved for present generation and generations yet unborn.