| Important Bird Areas (IBAs)
are nationally and globally important areas for
birds, which also provide a practical index of the
diversity and condition of the environment on a
site-by site basis. Areas that are important for
birds are also important for the conservation of
other forms of biodiversity. Conserving and managing
IBAs will therefore result in wise use of some of
the most sensitive, fragile and ecologically rich
habitats in the world. In
Ghana, the Important Bird Area (IBA) programme
started in 1994 with preliminary field surveys
in forest reserves of all vegetation zones of
Ghana. A total of 70 Forest Reserves and National
Parks in Ghana have been surveyed for birds, 67
of these meet the BirdLife International criteria
to qualify as IBAs.
This project is particularly
important in view of the continuing rapid rates
of natural habitat degradation and destruction.
To some extent it is a race against time to document
areas in Ghana that are important for biodiversity
and initiate actions to conserve them.
For the Ghana Wildlife Society
(GWS) and other BirdLife International partners
implementing the project, the ultimate aim is
a positive influence on people through bird conservation.
CONSERVATION STATUS
& THREATS AT FOREST RESERVES / IBA SITES
 Ghana,
like many tropical countries, continue to lose
its remaining closed forests at an alarming rate.
The area of closed forest in Ghana has been reduced
to less than 25% of its original value and now
exists in fragmented patches that vary in area
from about 20 km. sq. - 524 km. sq. Most of these
patches have lost their pristine interior habitats
that are critical for the protection of vulnerable
species. In Ghana,
logging, mining and farming constitute the most
serious threats to closed forests and their biodiversity.
Several forest reserve IBAs
are within the logging concessions and they are
actively being logged. Deposits of gold and other
precious minerals have been discovered in and
around forest reserves and surface mining is being
carried out in others.
ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE IBA
PROGRAMME IN GHANA & PLANS FOR THE FUTURE
One significant
achievement of the project is the documentation
of the areas that are important for the conservation
of birds and biodiversity in general. Four bird
species have been added to the checklist of Ghana.
Data has been gathered on the species of global
conservation concern and these are being entered
into a national IBA database.
Site conservation action has
begun at the Mount Afadjato Community Forest IBA
with funding of US$2 million from the Dutch Government.
An additional US$1 million funding has also been
obtained for a coastal IBA at Amansuri.
The IBA programme in Ghana provides
training in bird identification and biodiversity
survey techniques. Students from the Institute
of Renewable Natural Resources at the University
of Science and Technology, Kumasi and the Zoology
Department of the University of Ghana on secondment
to the GWS Secretariat have been trained.
THE ROLE OF THE INDIVIDUAL
& COMMUNITIES IN ENSURING THE SUCCESS OF THE
PROJECT
The project aims to encourage
partnership and collaboration with local communities,
resource owners and users to harness the economic
and aesthetic values and the ecological services
of these important biodiversity sites in a sustainable
manner. Individuals and communities living in
and around IBAs and further have a role to play
to ensure the successful and effective conservation
of biodiversity in all habitats. You can support
the project through the Community Site Support
Groups in communities in and around priority IBA
sites. Members of the Site Support Groups voluntarily
carry out periodic biodiversity monitoring in
the priority IBA sites and also advocate for their
protection.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT:
The Project Manager - IBA
Ghana Wildlife Society
P.O. Box 13252, Accra, Ghana
Tel: ++233-21-663604, 663500,665197
Fax: ++233-21-670610
Email: wildsoc@ighmail.com
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The IBA programme is a
BirdLife International initiative through the
African NGO - Government Partnerships for Sustainable
Biodiversity Action Programme and funded by the
Global Environment Facility of the World Bank
through the United Nations Development Programme.
The Birdlife International Secretariat provides
a regional co-odination center for participating
NGOs, all of whom are BirdLife partners. The Royal
Society for the Protection of Birds financed the
initial preliminary project survey in Ghana.
Important Bird
Areas of Importance in Ghana
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