Forests Sourcebook - HCV Resource Network

Box 6.16
The Forests Component in the Ghana CEA
The Ghana CEA specifically recognized the challenges
facing the forest and wildlife sector. Building on an earlier
study that focused on costs of degradation from the
forest sector, the CEA undertook an analysis of the policy,
legal, and regulatory framework; institutions
(mandate, capacity, incentives); and a public expenditure
review.
The analysis found that Ghana’s natural resources
are overexploited and continue to decline in both
quantity and quality. Cocoa farming, gold mining, and
the wood industry are threatening high altitude forests.
Ongoing soil erosion undermines food and agricultural
production, human activities are degrading wetlands,
and silt accumulation and alien species threaten
goods and services provided by Lake Volta. Indeed, it is
estimated that the degradation of agricultural soils,
forests, coastal fisheries, wildlife resources, and Lake
Volta’s environment accounts for losses of at least
US$520 million annually (around 4.9 percent of
Ghana’s annual GDP).
The analysis also found the general policy and legislative
framework to be adequate, and that significant
progress had been made in recent years, but that
severe challenges remained relating to the implementation
and enforcement of policies and laws on forests,
wildlife, protected areas, and habitat management.
The CEA therefore stressed the need for (i) urgent
attention to resolving the causes of forest degradation
and habitat loss, and (ii) addressing underlying governance
and institutional problems and insecure financial
arrangements.
The CEA’s principal recommendations were that
(i) high priority should be given to an agreed on financial
arrangement that provides secure and sustainable
financing for the operations of all divisions of the
Forestry Commission, including provisions for the
costs of strengthened wildlife protected area management;
(ii) government should demonstrate its support
and commitment to improved log and wood tracking
systems; (iii) contracts and benefit-sharing arrangements
for all recently established plantations—however
established—should be concluded and perfected;
(iv) government should continue its policy commitments
to competitive bidding and a better investment
climate for private sector investment (whether in plantations,
timber processing, or ecotourism), but it
should be matched by improved transparency of allocation,
a level playing field for all, conversion of timber
leases into Timber Utilization Contracts, and a credible
enforcement regime for payments of fees, including
Timber Rights Fees, stumpage, and performance bonds;
and (v) an extended policy dialogue on scenarios for
industry reform should be reinvigorated and include
the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning.
Source: Ahmed, Loayza, and Mani 2006.
Strategic Environmental Assessment
Since the 1970s, environmental impact assessment (EIA) has
been used to address environmental aspects of forest projects
and activities. Strategic environmental assessment extends
the application of environmental assessment from projects
to plans, policies, and programs (PPPs). Policies influence
social behavior and changes in behavior may result in significant
indirect environmental effects. Programs leading to the
implementation of several projects in a particular region or
forest may have cumulative environmental impacts that are
not accounted for in the individual EIA of each project.
Unlike projects, PPPs, particularly policies, may be heavily
influenced by political considerations. For these reasons,
SEA has been developed as a specific approach different
from, although related to, EIA (box 6.17).
SEA uses diverse tools and approaches. SEA can
include a wide range of approaches and make use of a
variety of different tools. Some SEAs can be stand-alone
processes running parallel to core planning processes, while
others can be integrated into the planning and policy- and
Box 6.17
Strategic Environmental Assessment describes analytical
and participatory approaches to integrate
environmental considerations into policies, plans,
and programs (PPP) and evaluates the interlinkages
with economic and social considerations.
Source: OECD 2006.
SEA Definition
240 CHAPTER 6: MAINSTREAMING FORESTS INTO DEVELOPMENT POLICY AND PLANNING