Stakeholders at the forest sector have called on government to promote cross-sector coordination in the implementation of policies to ensure sustainability of the country's forest reserves.
They also called for strong enforcement of laws to control the alarming rate of deforestation to ensure conservation and sustainable management of the country's forest and wildlife resources.
In a communiqué sent to the Ghana News Agency in Accra on Thursday after a "National Stakeholder Forum on the Implementation of the Non-Legally
Binding Instrument on All Types of Forests", the group said even though the forest sector had enormous potential to contribute to poverty reduction and environmental sustainability, current developments threatened its survival.
It mentioned over-exploitation, unsustainable agricultural practices, expansion in infrastructure and urban settlements as some of the challenges facing sustainable forest management in the country.
The forum was to assess Ghana's position in respect of the implementation of national policies and measures contained in the Instrument, a global framework which allowed countries to systematically
assess their strengths, weaknesses and gaps in the implementation of national forest programmes.
The communiqué said there should be development of effective financial strategies including the implementation of the national forest programmes as
well as integrate them into national development initiatives for sustainable forest management in the country.
It called for measures to address cross-cutting issues such as gender, education, science and technology to offer other means of livelihood to
people dependent on forest reserve.
It urged government, development partners and other stakeholders to mobilize the necessary resources and political will to address the
challenges to ensure progress towards sustainable forest management.