The Ghana Federation of Forest and Farm Producers (GhaFFaP) has said it acknowledges the central role of the forest in ensuring sustainable biodiversity for all forms of life on the planet.

The Federation notes that the threats to biodiversity due to deforestation, forest degradation, climate change and most importantly the human factor are real and create the biggest threat to biodiversity.

“The threat to biodiversity has also very serious consequences for primary resource-dependent households, local communities, vulnerable groups and more importantly women,” the Federation said in a statement issued to mark this year’s International Day of the Forest on March 21.

GhaFFaP said in the statement that it aims to support the global drive to reverse the threat to biodiversity by embarking on interventions that promote climate-resilient landscapes and forest landscape restoration using the potency of its strength in numbers.

“Livelihoods of GhaFFaP members, that are mainly smallholder farm families, is rooted in sustainable land use practices, building climate resilience landscapes and engaging in forest landscape restoration towards improving biodiversity.

“Biodiversity offers smallholder farm families’ sustainable and diversified livelihoods. Thus the threat to biodiversity is a threat to the existence of resource-dependent communities,” the Federation said.

Read the full statement below.