Reforesting Ghana: FORM Ghana's Mission to Restore Forests and Benefit Communities

FormGarna is a forest plantation management company and that involves planting of trees in a degraded forest reserve. We want to restore the degraded forest reserves in Ghana and our mission is to plant 20,000 hectares. Our focus is to reforest degraded forest lands in Ghana by planting teak and also indigenous. I was part of the initial planting stage and then part of the trees that are planted, it is what is seen behind me. Yes, I take a lot of pleasure in seeing the fruit of my hard work. It is very important for companies to support projects like FormGarna because it is going to offer job opportunities for people. It is also going to bring about reduction in wildfires and enhance the biodiversity of the area. We prioritize the safety of our employees very, very well and we give equal opportunity to everyone. All that you need to do is to be willing to do it and once you are willing there isn't any form of discrimination. FormGarna has also assisted them by providing boreholes and polytanks for them with ablution facilities too. FormGarna has provided them employment, direct and indirect. Most of our employees are coming from the communities around. First off, as a policy at FormGarna, that is what we do. We first look around us to get the people. We only move out if we don't get the expertise that we want. Then we move out. Climate Impact Partners have a team that are dedicated, knowledgeable, experienced in carbon marketing and trade. So for us, it's coming in handy and such partnership is a welcoming idea. Never have I understood my role so much than being here on the ground. Without Carbon Finance, none of these trees would exist. This project wouldn't be able to sustain and also scale at the rate with which it's been able to. Carbon Finance enables the projects and funding to be channeled to where it's most needed in a real rigorous and transparent way and also to deliver the high quality carbon removal credits that we now have today.