By Alex Ababio
Ghana’s forest governance architecture has received a renewed boost with the launch of a major European Union–funded project designed to deepen transparency, civil society participation and accountability in the timber sector at a time when the country’s forests remain under intense pressure from illegal logging, agricultural expansion and mining.
The European Forest Institute (EFI) has officially launched a new project to support Ghana’s efforts in sustainable forest management and governance. The initiative, implemented by five consortium partners and titled “Support Forest Institute to FLEGT-related Multistakeholder Platforms and Non-State Actor Participation in Tree Tenure Reform in Ghana,” will run from November 2025 to June 2027.
The project aims to strengthen civil society, community, and private sector participation in forest decision-making platforms—an area long considered central to Ghana’s commitments under its Voluntary Partnership Agreement with the European Union.
Building on Ghana’s FLEGT Milestone
The new intervention builds on Ghana’s Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) with the European Union. Ghana signed the VPA in 2009, committing to verify the legality of timber exports to Europe through a Timber Legality Assurance System (TLAS).
In 2025, Ghana achieved a historic milestone by issuing its first FLEGT licence, becoming the first country in Africa and the second globally—after Indonesia—to do so.
At the project launch, Mr Joseph Osiakwam, Technical Director for Forestry at the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, underscored the significance of that achievement.
He noted that the Ministry acknowledged “the significant milestone of issuing Ghana’s FLEGT license in 2025, making it the first in Africa and second globally after Indonesia.”
But he cautioned that the real test lies ahead.
> “The critical phase is the implementation of the VPA… it’s of heightened importance and requires a strong and inclusive partnership with all the multi-stakeholder groups,” he said.
According to him, over 400 licenses have already been issued under the FLEGT scheme—evidence, he said, that serious implementation work has begun.
Why This Project Matters Now
Despite policy advances, Ghana continues to grapple with forest loss. Data from the Forestry Commission and international monitoring platforms show that Ghana remains among the countries with the highest rates of primary forest loss in West Africa, driven largely by cocoa expansion, illegal logging, and artisanal and small-scale mining—commonly referred to as galamsey.
While the new EFI-supported project does not directly target illegal mining, EU representatives were clear that it forms part of broader efforts to strengthen forest governance systems.
Mr Clement Beckers, a representative of the EU, clarified that while the project did not directly tackle illegal mining, it supported Ghana’s efforts to address tree loss more broadly.
> “We support sustainable forest management to ensure forests benefit Ghanaians,” he said.
He further emphasized that the EU’s interest goes beyond trade compliance.
> “We want a timber trade that benefits communities, not just a few companies,” he added.
His remarks echo longstanding concerns raised by civil society groups that without meaningful community participation and benefit-sharing, legality verification alone may not deliver equitable forest governance.
The Consortium and Their Roles
The project brings together five Ghanaian organizations under a coordinated consortium model.
The TaylorCrabbe Initiative is leading the consortium. ECOCare Ghana will handle the sensitization of annual reports and support monitoring components in collaboration with the Forestry Commission. The Rights and Advocacy Initiative Network (Rain) will champion gender, social inclusion and mentorship efforts. The Nature and Development Foundation is in charge of stakeholder engagements and business forums with private sector groups. Tropenbos Ghana will provide technical assistance and conduct field visits, particularly with farmers and forest-dependent communities.
One innovative component of the project is the training of community champions in mapping and data collection—areas that have historically presented challenges due to limited technical capacity at the local level.
Accurate mapping and documentation of forest resources and tenure rights are central to Ghana’s ongoing tree tenure reforms, which aim to clarify ownership and benefit rights over naturally occurring trees on farms—an issue that has long discouraged farmers from protecting timber species on cocoa lands.
Focus Areas: Forest Frontlines
The primary focus areas for the project are Offinso in the Ashanti Region, Goaso in the Ahafo Region, and Sefwi Wiaso in the Western North Region—districts located within major forest belts and cocoa-growing zones.
These areas represent the frontline of competing land-use pressures: commercial timber extraction, cocoa farming, and in some cases, mining activities. Strengthening multi-stakeholder dialogue platforms in these districts is seen as essential to addressing conflicts between farmers, timber companies and regulators.
In a virtual address, Madam Caroline Haywood, Contract Manager of EFI, expressed confidence in the consortium’s capacity.
> “We are extremely lucky to have a wealth of experience in legal and policy expertise, stakeholder engagement, social inclusion, and sustainable forest management,” she said.
She added that EFI was honored to continue collaborating with stakeholders in the sector.
The European Forest Institute, headquartered in Finland, has been a longstanding technical partner in FLEGT processes across Africa, providing research, policy guidance and capacity-building support.
Civil Society and Inclusion at the Center
Mr Clement Akapame, representing TaylorCrabbe, said the project would consolidate Ghana’s forest governance gains by ensuring non-state actors remain central to decision-making processes.
Mrs. Doreen Asuman Yeboah, a representative of Rain, noted that Ghana’s participatory forest governance model had been celebrated globally—but warned that challenges remained.
Gender disparities, limited access to information, and resource constraints continue to affect women’s effective participation in forest governance platforms, particularly at district and community levels. By championing gender and social inclusion, Rain aims to address these structural gaps.
Experts say inclusive governance is not merely a social objective but a legal requirement under the VPA framework, which mandates stakeholder engagement and transparency as core principles.
Tree Tenure Reform: A Critical Puzzle
A central pillar of the new project is support for non-state actor participation in tree tenure reform—a long-debated issue in Ghana’s forestry sector.
Historically, ownership of naturally occurring timber trees has rested with the state, even when those trees grow on private or customary lands. This has discouraged farmers from nurturing timber species, as compensation mechanisms have often been viewed as inadequate or delayed.
Recent policy reforms have sought to strengthen farmers’ rights and incentivize on-farm tree cultivation. However, implementation remains complex and requires robust dialogue between government agencies, traditional authorities, farmers and private sector actors.
By strengthening FLEGT-related multi-stakeholder platforms, the EFI-supported project aims to ensure these reforms are not only enacted on paper but operationalized on the ground.
Transparency and Timber Trade
The EU remains Ghana’s key export destination for processed timber products. Under the FLEGT licensing system, only timber verified as legal under Ghana’s TLAS can enter the EU market without additional due diligence requirements.
Mr Beckers stressed that legality verification must translate into tangible national benefits.
> “We want a timber trade that benefits communities, not just a few companies,” he said.
Analysts note that maintaining the credibility of Ghana’s licensing system will require continuous monitoring, independent audits and public access to information—areas where civil society participation is indispensable.
A Long Road Ahead
The launch of the EFI-backed project signals both progress and recognition that Ghana’s forest governance journey is far from complete.
While the issuance of over 400 FLEGT licenses marks a turning point, forest degradation pressures persist. Illegal chainsaw milling, weak enforcement capacity, land tenure ambiguities and climate-related vulnerabilities continue to threaten the sustainability of forest resources.
Mr Osiakwam thanked partners, including civil society organizations, the private sector and the EU, for their contributions to Ghana’s forestry reform agenda. Yet his remarks also underscored the scale of the task ahead.
> “The critical phase is the implementation of the VPA… it’s of heightened importance and requires a strong and inclusive partnership with all the multi-stakeholder groups,” he reiterated.
For communities in Offinso, Goaso and Sefwi Wiaso, the real measure of success will not be policy statements in Accra or Brussels, but whether forest governance reforms translate into secure tree rights, fair compensation, sustainable livelihoods and restored forest landscapes.
As Ghana positions itself as Africa’s pioneer in FLEGT licensing, the world will be watching—not only whether timber exports meet legality standards, but whether forest governance genuinely serves the people who depend on the forests most.