Plant 100 shea seedlings or we prosecute you – NGO to farmer who fell 80 shea trees

A farmer in the Larabanga community in the West Gonja municipality of the Savannah region has been ordered to plant 100 shea seedlings or be jailed for 100 years for destroying over 80 young shea trees on his farm.

The farm which is located a few meters away from the Mole National Park has both young and old Shea trees destroyed through the use of chemicals by the farmer whose name has been given as Fuseini.

Director of JackSally Development Organization, an NGO that has over the years fought the canker of tree cutting in the Savannah Region, Mr. Jeremiah Seidu who visited the farm to ascertain first-hand information and to know why the farmer decided to destroy 89 shea trees quickly told the farmer to replace the trees immediately by planting 100 trees else he would be prosecuted.

The farmer explained that he destroyed or killed the shea trees to pave way for him to plant cashew which Mr. Jeremiah Seidu in a sharp response told him that both cashew and shea trees can grow and fruit well on the same land.

He used the opportunity to call on agriculture officers in the Damongo Municipality to intensify sensitization to farmers to desist from felling shea trees in the name of planting cashew since both have economic values for the country and can bear fruit on the same farmland.

The JackSally Development Organization and partners are advocating for more shea trees/seedlings to be planted because of the value of shea fruits to women in the area and the country.

As part of efforts to get the farmer to replace the 89 shea trees destroyed, Mr. Seidu has linked the farmer to both the Bole Cocoa Research Center and A Rocha Ghana, to supply the farmer with free shea seedlings.

The farmer will first visit the Bole Cocoa Research Center for orientation on the importance of shea fruits, how to plant the seedlings and how to manage the seedlings till maturity and will be supervised by both institutions.

Shea network, JackSally Development Organization, and other partners are currently investigating other equally devastating fellings of shea trees for fuelwood or charcoal in the Bole area.

Mr. Seidu expressed gratitude to Shea Network for the support and USAID WABIC (West African Biodiversity and Climate Change) project for donating their truck to JackSally Development Organization.