Effects Of Redd+ Political Economy On Agrarian Land Access In The Offinso Forest District Of Ghana
Date
2022-12
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University Of Ghana
Abstract
Climate change mitigation, security of agricultural livelihoods, and possible carbon financial
benefits to forest fringe communities are among the list of benchmarks (known as “safeguards”)
based on which the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+)
action would be assessed after implementation in REDD+ countries. However, evidence after
decades of the REDD+ implementation in the global south reveal that forest dependent people
are being displaced from the forest commons by powerful timber plantation developers who
although are beneficiaries of a REDD+ funding window, have competing policy interests,
thereby reinforcing the idea of political economy in climate change processes. Meanwhile, some
researchers propose that in order to properly diagnose the claim of community forestland
struggles due to the REDD+, there is the need to situate the phenomenon within the proper
context of political economy, due to the large variety of formal and informal interest groups and
actors involved. However, little empirical studies have been conducted in that regard. This study
is therefore carried out mainly to ascertain the presence and effect of the REDD+ political
economy on agrarian land access within the off-reserve forests. Principal Component Analysis is
employed together with multivariate Linear Regression to assess the linkage between REDD+
Political Economy and Agrarian Land Access by farmers. The finding reveals that REDD+
political economy is not responsible for displacing farmers from the off-reserve forestlands in the
Offinso forest district of the Ashanti Region of Ghana. On the contrary, three socio-economic
factors (namely, cost of land, total annual household income and squatting on forestlands)
statistically determine a farmer’s chances of access to land within the off-reserve. Access to
credit was also found to be the most pressing constraint facing farmers within the district.
Finally, even though many of the respondents (81%) have never heard of Ghana’s REDD+
action, about 100% of the farmers have a very good understanding and appreciation of the need
for reducing deforestation and forest degradation, and conservation, sustainable management of
forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks which overlaps entirely with the UNFCCC
REDD+ mission and vision. It is therefore the recommendation of this study that apart from
Government of Ghana incentivizing Rural and Micro Finance Institutions (RMFIs) to patronize
rural financing especially in cocoa growing landscapes, the key outcome of COP26 climate
summit in Glasgow, UK in 2021 to honor the 2009 pledge to invest US$100billion in Climate
Change mitigation in less wealthy nations such as Ghana be effectuated to help provide financial
impetus for securing agricultural livelihoods.
Description
MPhil. Agricultural Economics
Keywords
Political Economy, Offinso Forest District, Ghana, Redd+, Effects