Ghana Landscape Restoration and Small-Scale Mining Project

The CEO of the Environmental Protection Authority, Professor Nana Ama Browne Klutse and some officials of the Ghana Landscape Restoration and Small-Scale Mining Project on April 25, 2025, paid a working visit to the Mole National Park and Yipala community in the Savannah Region.
The visit highlighted major successes:
1. Real time biodiversity monitoring at Mole with new Earth Ranger System Software.
2. Stronger community engagement through Protected Area Management Advisory Units (PAMAU’s)
3. New income opportunities for cashew farmers like Dennis in Yipala.
The project, funded by , (Global Environment Facility) and , is restoring Ghana’s landscapes and promoting sustainable small-scale mining.
Together, we are restoring, conserving, and empowering!
Read the full story here: https://www.epa.gov.gh/new/epa-ceo-officials-pay-familiarisation-visit-to-glrssmp-sites/

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Land Use and Spatial Authority (LUSPA) in the past few weeks have been on a mission to shape Ghana's next 20 years.
The two institutions through the Ghana Landscape Restoration and Small-Scale Mining Project visited 11 key districts to review scenarios of a Spatial Development Framework of the selected districts.
From cocoa forests to savannah zones, this plan will change how we use our land and resources. It's all about smart growth, sustainability, and boosting quality of life.
Stakeholders from all walks of life were present to contribute to this visionary blueprint.

COCOBOD training farmers on Hand Pollination at some Cocoa Growing Areas

As part of efforts to determine the baseline carbon as bench mark for assessing the impact of sustainable land management technologies being practiced under the project.
The Forest and Soil Research Institutes of Ghana together with the Safeguards officer of the project payed a field visit to beneficiary communities in the Northern Savannah and Cocoa Forest Landscapes to take soil samples to assess soil carbon in districts enrolled in the project.
The objective of the visit was to undertake baseline soil carbon assessment for selected fields and to further undertake laboratory analysis of collected samples.

Environmental & Social Risks Management and Grievance Redress Mechanism(GRM) trainer of trainers.
As follow-up to the E&S and GRM training for National, Regional and District level stakeholders and project staff. The EPA regional and district officers together with the schedule officers from MOFA did a step-down training of structures at the district and community levels. These were the Community Watershed Management Teams (CWMTs), Community Resource Management Committee & Crema Executive Committees (CRMC&CECs) and the Protected Area Management Advisory Units (PAMAUs).
The objective of the training was to ensure that project beneficiaries of the community become conversant with E&S issues and GRM.

EPA together with other stakeholders, particularly the Ghana National Fire Service and the Forestry Services Division has identified, formed, trained, and resourced some community members within the Cocoa Forest Landscape and the Northern Savannah Zone with some firefighting equipments to serve as volunteers against fire. The volunteer group is to protect project investments such as riparian and woodlots establishment and other plantations that may be susceptible to fire. The activity was to create awareness among community members concerning fire management and the need to be proactive rather than active on bush and wildfires. The training centred on basic fire management techniques such as the creation of fire belts, rides, and other local based fire suppression methods.
As part of the training, inputs from community members were solicited to help create a comprehensive fire management campaign plan for the project.

As part of ensuring efficiency and effectiveness in project implementation, the World Bank organized a capacity-building session for the MLNR-PCU on April 30, 2024. The sessions covered include Procurement and Contract Management, Financial Management, and Environmental and Social Management.

A training workshop on conducive work environment, labour and working conditions as well as child labour was organised for the MLNR-PCU. The training took place from April 2–5, 2024, at the Plus Royal Hotel, Oyarifa. The training was focused on enlightening the PCU on the labour laws of Ghana, rights and responsibilities of workers, Grievance Redress Mechanism, Occupational Health and Safety, Child Labour Elimination and many more.

The Project Coordinating Unit in collaboration with the Directorate of Crop Services of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture organized a refresher training for selected members of the District Watershed Planning Teams in the Northern Savannah Zone. The workshop was held at the Extee Crystal Hotel in Bolgatanga from 16th – 20th October, 2023. The objectives of the workshop were to refresh and build the capacity of participants to understand the content of the manual portions which have been amended and to discuss appropriate methods for questionnaire administration to obtain maximum participation and the required outputs. The participants of the workshop included staff of the Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Agriculture, Department of Social Welfare and Community Development, Forestry Commission, Department of Planning, and the Directorate of Crop Services. The workshop provided a platform for the exchange of best practices to employ during watershed planning exercises.

Earlier today, the Project Coordinating Units together with the World Bank team held a technical session with EPA Mining Dept., Forestry Commission, Minerals Commission, Water Resource Commission, Lands Commission and the GGSA on Rehabilitation of Mined-out sites.

IMPLEMENTATION SUPPORT MISSION
On Tuesday, 7th November, 2023, the last Implementation Support Mission for 2023 was set off with a Kick-off meeting. At the meeting, Hon. George Mireku Duker, the Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, expressed gratitude to the World Bank for their support and emphasized the need to strengthen partnerships and ignite positive change in Ghana's mining and landscape sectors. Madhavi M. Pillai from the World Bank stressed the importance of progress in both small-scale mining and landscape restoration, emphasizing constant communication among all stakeholders involved. Various parties, including GLRSSMP, MESTI, EPA, Cocobod, Minerals Commission, and the Forestry Commission, participated in the Kick-off Meeting.

Full story: https://glrssmp.mlnr.gov.gh/collaboration-partnership-pivotal-to-glrssmp-success-implementation-support-mission/

ROAD TO IMPLEMENTATION SUPPORT MISSION

The MLNR PCU and the World Bank team in a technical meeting with the Minerals Commission and the EPA Mining Department on Regulatory Strengthening & Formalization today, as part of the Pre-Mission sessions.