They call it the Dry Spell. It’s a period when the land, parched and cracked, yearns for the touch of rain. The once lush fields now lie barren, a testament to the relentless sun that blazes overhead day after day. Some local farmers in the Savannah Region share their experience.
In August, the BRACE project in Ghana launched a series of training sessions to disseminate knowledge and awareness to several stakeholders on natural resource governance and environmental rights protection in the extractives sector.
The trainings, conducted in the Eastern, Western, and Ashanti regions, attracted over 100 participants from approximately 63 target groups across more than 100 diverse mining communities. The main goal was to empower them to support sustainable practices and uphold accountability in the extractive industries.
Led by legal experts from Merton & Everette LLP, the workshops aimed to enhance target stakeholders’ knowledge in extractive sector local and international policy and legal frameworks, skills in evidence gathering, advocating for environmental rights, and ensuring accountability for environmental breaches.
During the training, a variety of topics were covered, including national and international legislation and mechanisms that protect environmental rights and other human rights such as the constitution of Ghana, UN Resolutions of Human Rights to a Healthy Environment, the right to Free Prior Informed Consent (FPIC), and methods for effective advocacy and negotiation.
While issues of licensing were addressed, trainers also took time to discuss people’s rights to compensation when lands and resources will be or have been damaged by mining.
They further took participants through the roles and responsibilities of Ghana’s duty bearers and regulatory agencies like the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ); Forestry Commission (FC); Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); Minerals Commission amongst others in upholding and defending human rights and in ensuring good environmental management and natural resource governance.
Attendees were schooled on organizing a peace protest, obtaining information, and requesting a town hall meeting. The training referred to these as Avenues for Collective Action.
Interactive sessions and role-playing exercises were incorporated to ensure the practical application of the theoretical knowledge gained. These activities helped participants develop confidence in their newfound skills and prepared them to face real-world challenges effectively.
Now equipped with knowledge, these community members understand the importance of their consent for any projects impacting their lands, resources, and livelihoods.
Participants were drawn from major target groups from the BRACE target regions and communities. They included members of the traditional council, youth leaders, women’s groups, the media, NGOs/CBOs amongst others.
Participants shared their experiences and insights, fostering a strong sense of solidarity and mutual support among the various communities represented. The workshop also provided a platform for networking and collaboration, encouraging the formation of alliances to strengthen collective efforts in environmental advocacy.
As the workshop concluded, there was a palpable sense of optimism and determination. Community leaders expressed their gratitude for the opportunity to learn and grow, vowing to return to their communities with renewed vigor and a clear action plan.
The success of the BRACE Project training was a testament to the power of knowledge empowerment and collective action in driving positive change.
The groundwork laid by this workshop has set the stage for a brighter future where environmental rights are respected, and local voices are heard and heeded.
Speaking on the sidelines of the training, Lead lawyer, Oliver Barker-Vormawo said his firm was privileged to be part of leading the fight against illegal mining through the training programme and encouraged others to join forces in tackling the issue.
Barker-Vormawo emphasized that while democracy may lead to differing opinions, unity is crucial when it comes to environmental issues. The visible impact of environmental depletion he said, requires collaboration across various sectors – including the media, legal professionals, community leaders, and chiefs – to combat this threat.
“Maybe with our efforts, we can secure the environment for generations to come and they would not have to go through what we are going through,” he added.
Coordinator for the BRACE project, Daryl Bosu highlighted the need for such intense training. According to him, the mining industry had seen such a boom that so many communities have been adversely affected leaving entire communities in dire situations.
“We are not against mining but we also recognize the widespread impact it has had on many communities nationwide. Mining activities have led to the devastation of water bodies and forest reserves, as well as significant human rights violations in affected areas,” Mr Bosu said.
He added, “The encroachment of miners on agricultural lands is evident. It is crucial for communities to be informed about the proper and legal practices that should govern mining operations, ensuring progress without causing harm.”
BRACE is a three-year project funded by the European Union and implemented by a consortium of not-for-profit organisations Wacam and Nature and Development Foundation and led by A Rocha Ghana.
The project aims to ensure adherence to human rights, transparency, and accountability in mineral governance by contributing to sustainable and equitable environmental management and good natural resource governance in Ghana.
The project aims to address the increasing effects of climate change on the agricultural sector in Northern Ghana by enhancing resilience and promoting sustainable development in the sector.
Overall, the REACH project is targeted at enabling a sustainable and inclusive improvement in the rural economy through enhanced implementation of gender-sensitive climate adaptation practices in the EUGAP targeted communities in Northern Ghana by 2025, with a particular focus on smallholder farmers.
The project is being implemented with the Savannah Fruits Company (SFC) to restore off-reserve savannah forests/woodlands, degraded shea parklands, and to create an integrated monitoring system for safeguards, forest monitoring and reporting systems in Community Resource Management Areas (CREMAs).
Funders: Green Climate Fund, UNDP, Forestry Commission, Global Shea Alliance (GSA)
The project outputs are focused on restoring and sustainably managing the shea parklands and strengthening value chains for shea processing with specificity on setting up of community nurseries, tree planting and parkland management training activities, warehouse construction, cooperative development and improvement in the capacities, technologies and
efficiency of women.
Mobilizing More for Climate (MoMo4C) is a five-year programme (2020-2024) funded by the Dutch Foreign Affairs Ministry in partnership with IUCN NL, WWF NL, and Tropenbos International which seek to Develop Innovative Finance for Climate Action Using a Landscape Approach. In Ghana, the program is being implemented by A Rocha Ghana and Tropenbos Ghana in the Mole and Juabeso-Bia Landscape respectively.
The programme aims to bring together entrepreneurs, corporates, policymakers, investors, and civil society organisations to make green business propositions. These should tackle the impacts and causes of climate change at a landscape level in developing countries, contribute to climate-resilience and (gender) inclusive, sustainable development in the landscapes where they are proposed, and attract investments to implement these initiatives.
Project Duration: 5 YEARS.
Funded by: Dutch Foreign Affairs Ministry in partnership with IUCN NL, WWF NL, and Tropenbos International
Implementing Partners: A Rocha Ghana, Tropenbos Ghana
Funded by the French Development Agency (AFD) through Noe, the ECONOBIO II projects has the goal of developing green value chains for the benefit of local populations living on the outskirts of biodiversity-rich areas, with the support of the private sector and civil society.
Project Duration: 4 YEARS.
Funded by: French Development Agency (AFD)
Project Implementing Lead: A Rocha Ghana
A Rocha Ghana, Wacam, and the Nature and Development Foundation are seeking expressions of interest from qualified web design firms or individuals to develop and host a website for the Building Resilient and Active Communities in Extractive Landscapes in Ghana (BRACE) project. This initiative is funded by the European Union and aims to empower communities affected by mining activities by enhancing their access to justice and information regarding their environmental and land rights.
Communities’ rights to their lands, a healthy environment and natural resources are severely threatened by mining activities, and this threat grows by the day as Ghana’s extractives sector takes precedent. Licences are granted without due diligence in socially and environmentally sensitive areas (farmlands, forests, and rivers1, despite a prospecting ban for forests and mining ban for rivers). The ‘UN Special Rapporteur on Toxics and Human Rights’ visited communities living near largescale mining operations in 2022 where he witnessed their living conditions and heard their testimonials of losing their lands, farms and livelihoods to large-scale mining companies; communities surrounded by mine tailings and stagnant water; contamination of farmlands and water sources by mercury, zinc and arsenic; sicknesses (coughing, rashes, nose bleeding, fatigue, respiratory problems, cancer); inadequate compensation; and very limited benefits returning to communities2. Affected communities are not able to access justice systems to seek redress due to the high costs3, and they also lack on information on their environment and land rights, and of the responsibilities of duty bearers in extractive sector development.
BRACE partners are looking for a web designer to design, create and host a website to support the project and its target groups. After creation, the partners will manage the website, so it should be relatively simple to update and maintain (e.g. WordPress or other appropriate host platforms).
Contribute to effectively addressing drivers of illegal logging and timber trafficking along the supply chain by implementing a robust third-party monitoring framework led by CSOs in Ghana; in partnership with communities and the Ghana’s VPA third-party monitor.
Upper East, Upper West, Bono, Western North Regions.
The project aims to establish a reliable third-party monitoring system that enables Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and communities to play a role in combating the issues associated with illegal logging and timber trafficking in Ghana. Here are the key points of the initiative:
Project Duration: 10 Months
Funded by: US Forest Service
Project Implementing Lead: A Rocha Ghana
Implementing Partners: ORGIIS Ghana, Community Partners For Development-Ghana (COMPAD-GH), The Resource Foundation
Technical Support: Timber Industry Development Division (TIDD) of Forestry Commission
A Rocha Ghana is a dedicated environmental conservation organisation in Ghana. A Rocha Ghana is a member of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). A Rocha Ghana recognises the inextricable link between modern man and the survival of the earth’s flora and fauna. We therefore work to inspire and empower people for natural resource management by providing practical conservation interventions aimed at contributing to the sustainable management of important ecological habitats and environmental spaces as well as initiating programmes aimed at facilitating target community’s abilities to adapt to the challenges posed by a changing climate and a world impacted by biodiversity loss and environmental pollution.
A Rocha Ghana works with an integrated landscape approach, with offices strategically located in the Eastern, Ashanti and Savanna Regions of Ghana. Our head office is located in Accra, with other non-residential interventions in the Central and Volta Regions of Ghana.
Our interventions and engagement with state and non-state actors in the all the landscapes include the following thematic areas:
Major Function
The Corporate Engagement Officer will primarily develop and manage all engagements with corporate actors, with significant dependencies and impact on our natural environment. The position serves to build transformational partnerships with the private sector in Ghana and abroad with a focus to changing business practices to more sustainably integrate and be nature conservation and investment minded through deliberate positive business interventions and actions for nature. The position will inherently be expected to drive creativity and innovation in engaging businesses and the private sector towards national and organizational conservation goals.
Click the button below for job description, and instructions on how to apply for the above position.
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4 Sabblah Link
North-Legon. Accra
Ghana
GE 215-5083
[email protected]
+233 3025 46172
4 Sabblah Link
North-Legon. Accra
Ghana
GE 215-5083
[email protected]
+233 3025 46172
