He said it was imperative that Ghanaians owned the project, nur­ture it and ensure its sustainability.

“Let us go out, not only to plant trees, but grow them for a ‘Green Tomorrow’. This is a duty we owe not only to the current generation but to generations yet to come,” he emphasised.

• President Akufo-Addo (right) planting a tree during the Green Ghana Day. With him are Mr Samuel Abu Jinapor (left) and other dignitaries

President Akufo-Addo made the call on Friday when he led a tree planting exercise at the Burma Camp in Accra as part of this year’s ‘Green Ghana Day’ project.

With him were the Minister of Defence, Mr Dominic Nitiwul, the Minister of Lands and Natural Re­sources, Samuel Abu Jinapor, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Lieu­tenant General Oppong-Pepprah, and the Chief Executive Officer of the Forestry Commission, Mr John Allotey.

President Akufo-Addo planted the first tree (African Star Fruit Plant) followed by Dominic Niti­wul, General Oppong-Pepprah and Abu Jinapor.

The President described the GGP as a massive success, stress­ing that over 42 million trees had been planted over the last three years with the goal for 2024 being to add another 10 million.

This, he said, would bring the total trees planted for the last four years to 52 million.

“This ambitious target aligns with Ghana’s commitment to re­duce greenhouse gas emissions by 64 million tonnes of CO2 equiva­lent by 2030,” he said.

President Akufo-Addo said it was important for all to be con­cerned about the alarming impacts of climate change not just in Gha­na but Africa as a whole.

He said air pollution was respon­sible for approximately 6.7 million deaths annually, while biodiversity loss continued to endanger the ecosystem globally.

“The science tells us that forests play a crucial role in sustaining life on earth and tackling the triple planetary crises,” the President stated.

He pointed out that Agriculture, Forest, and Land Use (AFOLU) activities contributed significantly to Ghana’s greenhouse gas emis­sions, and maintaining forests was essential for carbon sequestration, biodiversity conservation, and pollution control.

He said there was an urgent need to combat climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss through a concerted programme of afforestation.

To this end, he further called on Ghanaians to embrace the theme of this year’s Green Ghana Day, “Growing for a Greener Tomor­row”, and participate in the nation­al tree planting exercise.

He also called on the private sec­tor to support this noble initiative since that would help reduce the burden on the public treasury.

He commended the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources for the One-Student One-Tree initia­tive, stressing that this would im­bue the youth with the importance of environmental stewardship.

Mr Jinapor, for his part, com­mended President Akufo-Addo for his unwavering support for the Green Ghana initiative.

He said the country had made significant strides in its global for­est management and climate action.

“This leadership has been rec­ognised globally, leading to Ghana’s co-chairing of the Forest and Cli­mate Leaders’ Partnership (FCLP) alongside the United States. This partnership aims to balance forest protection with food production and advance nature-based climate solutions,” he said.

The minister said Ghana was the second country in Africa and the third globally to receive results-based payments from the World Bank’s Carbon Fund for reducing emissions.

“The Green Ghana Day has become a cornerstone of these efforts, with the survival rate of planted trees increasing significant­ly each year, from 67 per cent in 2021 to 81 per cent in 2023.”

He added his voice to the call for all to support the initiative, adding that there were enough seedlings across the country for planting.