Mr Timothy Amang-bey, Upper East Regional Manager of World Vision International-Ghana (WVI), has called on chiefs to do more to protect natural resources in their jurisdictions to help bequeath a friendly environment to the next generation.
He said while chiefs are responsible for their subjects, Tindanas as custodians of land believe that their roles were bequeathed to them by their ancestors and needed to be vigilant in protecting the environment.
Mr Amang-bey made the call in an interview with the Ghana News Agency at Tongo in the Talensi District of the Upper East Region after a day’s forum with the chiefs and people of the District.
It was held to deepen understanding on the Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) project.
Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration is a low-cost, sustainable land restoration technique used to combat poverty and hunger among poor subsistence farmers in developing countries by increasing food production and raising wood for domestic purposes including fuel wood for fire.
The Manager condemned the wanton destruction of the environment and mentioned challenges such as bush burning, excessive tree felling for charcoal production as practices contributing to environmental degradation in the district.
He urged traditional authorities to be vigilant in guarding the environment entrusted to them and not shirk their roles.
On FMNR, he urged, the communities not to burn tree shrubs and help protect them to grow.
Mr Smauel Abasiba, Talensi Project Manager for the Farmer Managed Natural Resource project, said the project is aimed at improving household food security and resilience among the people in the district through improvement of environmental conditions, using the FMNR concept.
He said since the inception of the project, it has engaged schools, religious bodies, community leaders, farmers, CBOs on FMNR to address challenges confronting the environment.
He said 57 communities have embraced the concept since its inception in 2009 whilst 1,200 lead farmers have been trained under the project which is now in its third phase and sponsored by the Australian government.
Mr Abasiba said the project has restored 750 hectares of degraded lands, promoted 1,500 hectares FMNR on farmlands and trained 1,200 fire volunteers in fire prevention and control measures as part of its success story.