Some women in the Kassena-Nankana West District of the Upper East Region have expressed excitement over the benefits they have derived from economic trees in the area after the successful completion of a three-year project.
The three-year project dubbed ‘Grow Hope Project’ was implemented by TREE Aid Ghana and its local partner, Organisation for Indigenous Initiatives and Sustainability (ORGIIS) Ghana with funding from Jerssey Overseas Aid.
The project aims at tackling poverty and the effects of the climate crisis by growing trees and improving people’s incomes as well as restoring and protecting land.
According to beneficiary women who spoke to A1 News at the end of the project workshop at Paga in the Kassena-Nankana West District of the Upper East Region, the project has reduced poverty level drastically in their various homes as well as improving their livelihood.
Lardy Alantia said being the firstborn of her parents, the project has helped her to take care of her two brothers up to the university level because when they buy the Shea nut they pay them premium which is very helpful for them.
She mentioned that the project included some capacity building where they received some training in proper farm management such as how to take good care of the land, how to plant trees, and stop bush fires among others.
Regina Togiyiya a beneficiary said, as poor women in their communities the only idea they had on how to cater for themselves was cutting of firewood but since ORGIIS and TREE Aid introduced the ‘Hope Grow Project’ in their community which they readily accepted, it has impacted on their lives positively thus they do not go into the bush to cut firewood again before they can provide food for the family.
The beneficiary women added that they never knew economic trees like Shea and baobab trees are economically important to positively change their lives and make them rich, but ORGIIS Ghana together with TREE Aid Ghana had helped them to know the benefits of these trees.
The Director of ORGIIS Ghana, Julius Awaregya says, his organization will continue to support women in all that they do with the economic trees, in order for them to continue benefiting from it.
He said they are working to create the needed market for the women to sell their produce so that they can drive maximum benefits from the trees.
Source: A1Radioonline.Com|101.1MHZ|David Azure |Ghana
