The Role of CDM ForestryProjects in Poverty Alleviation

Dr. David F. KarnoskyMichigan Technological University

Workshop on CleanDevelopment Mechanisms (CDM)Accra, Ghana, October 1-4, 2006

My co-authors:

Dr. Joe CobbinahFORIG

Dr. EmanuelOpuni-Frimpong

FORIG

Mr Yaw OforiLartey

Samartex

Foundations and Organizations Interested in Combined CDM Forestry andPoverty Alleviation:

� World Bank

- Carbon Finance Unit (www.carbonfinance.org.)

� International Emissions Trading Association (IETA)http://www.ieta.org/ieta/www/pages/index.php

� USAID- TIST (www.tist.org) The International Small Group and Tree Planting Program

� Environtrade- www.environtrade.co.uk

� Plan Vivo- www.planvivo.org

� Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Management- www.eccm.uk.com

� FACE Foundation- www.facefoundation.nl

7/24/2006 Iowa Farm Bureau, West Des Moines, IA 1

Carbon Offset Prices2004 - 2005

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$P

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2005 XSO

10361190Niger

7650390Togo

9857220Sierra Leone

8750650Senegal

7570310Nigeria

7925380Mauritania

10170270Mali

?80450Liberia

9370160Guinea-Bissaw

7140430Guinea

6245390Ghana

8859340Gamba

8411790Cote d’lvoire

45301200Cape Verde

10245240Burkina Faso

9555380Benin

Human Poverty Index(Rank of 103 Developing

Countries)

Population belowpoverty ($1/day)

( % )GNP (US $ per capita)

Regional Average: 424 51.1 84

Data: World Bank (1991); Wikipedia (2006), Fact Monster (2006); CIA World Factbook (2006); White et al. 2001. African Povertyat the Millennium: Causes, Complexities, and Challenges; Human Development Report 2005 (UNDP); ClickAfrique.com (2006).

Western Africa Poverty Indices

Why Does CDM Reforestation andPoverty Alleviation Make Sense inWestern Africa?

� The financial need of the rural people

- High unemployment

- People drain to cities

- Poverty is more pervasive in the ruralareas where about 75% of populationbelow poverty line live

- Poor people dependence on forests resources is immediate

� Poverty and forests

- Forests provide life supporting goods (food, fuel, fodder, medicines,construction materials, etc.)

- Provides income and employment

56.437.5

93.8

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40

60

80

100

120

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160

1989 2001

Vo

lM

3x

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000

Mature Potential

� Only 20% of high forestcurrently remains.

� Productive areas of forestreserves declined from1.76m ha in 1970 to0.72m ha in 2001.

Ghana Forest Inventory

� Forests have beenlargely harvestedwithout regard tosustainability.

• Many species (e.g. Pericopsis, Makore and Odum) harvested to thebrink of commercial extinction

• Needs for reforestation

• Current reforestation initiatives in Ghana

– National Plantation Development Programme (HIPC Plantations)– Modified Taungya Programme (FSD)– Community Forest Management Programme (ADB)– Participative Forest Reserve Management Programme (JICA)– Forest Resources Utilization and Management Programme (GTZ)– Forest Plantation Development Fund Management Programme

Opportunities for CDM/Forest Productivity/Agroforestry/Poverty Alleviation� Reforestation with rapid-growing (high C sequestration)plus high value end products (i.e. teak, mahogany)

� Co-culture with other agricultural or horticultural crops(i.e. cassava, beans, pepper, oil palm, bananas, cocoa,etc.)

� Carbon Sequestration and the Kyoto Protocol.The Kyoto Protocol allows developing countries like Ghana tosell carbon sequestered to developed countries

For Successful CDM Forestry in Western Africa

• Conditions to be met:

– Sustainability– Fix additional carbon– Carbon sequestered must be certified– Permanence - i.e. the carbon should be conserved in the system (25

years)– Leakage – i.e. the project should not lead to releases outside the project

area.

• Challenges:

– Transaction cost high?– Uncertainty large?

• Opportunities:

– Upfront capital possible– Funds for maintenance over the first few years (1-5 years)– Additional income

•Kumsi

Accra

Gulf of Guinea

TogoCoted’Ivoire

•FORIG

1

2

Location of FORIG and Community Reforestation programs:

1. Kranka, mahogany mixed with food crops

2. Samartex, Oda Community Agroforestry Project

Forest Reserves

Savanna Woodland

Dry Semi-deciduous

Moist Semi-deciduous

Mist evergreen

Wet evergreen

Community Case Studies in Ghana

I. Kranka Village

II. Samartex CommunityAgroforestry Project

Kranka Village Community Project

� Established July, 2005

� 1.0 ha

� 500 mahogany trees

The Plantation Establishment

Hole and Peg Preparation

Planting

Clearing

One-year-oldmahoganyseedlings

The Economics

1,260,00084 daysCosts for Year 1: (Totals)

45,0003 daysWatering (1x per year)

630,00042 daysWeeding (3x per year)

90,0006 daysPlanting

45,0003 daysHole and peg preparation

450,00030 daysClearing:

Cost/ha (cedis)# people-days/ha

US$/year = $125.00 (year 1)= $75.00/yr (years 2-5)

Note: These rates of pay and work amounts were negotiated at the beginningof the project with the Chief of the Kranka Village and our FORIG technicians.

Partners: - Samartex (Forest Products Industry)

- Oda-Kotomso (Village)

Goals: Long-term agroforestry project to supply wood for Samartex,annual income (from agro) and long-term income from stumpage salefor villagers and village.

- German Development Services (DED) – provides technicalsupport

- Ghana Min. Food & Agriculture (MOFA)

- Ghana Forest Services Division (FSD)

Samartex Project� 450 ha

� over 200 people involved from the village

� main tree crops (from 19 species):

- Cedrela (South American Mahogany)

- Cieba

- Khaya (African Mahogany)

� main agro crops:

- oil palm

- pepper

- banana

- cocoa

- cassava (12 million cedis/monthprocessing cassava into gari)

- Wawa

Samartex Project (People)

Agro

� 104 farmers practicing agroforestry

� 150 young people involved in plantationdevelopment (about $100/ha/year)

� processing of cassava

� snail farming

� cocoa production

� citrus production

� vegetable production

� beekeeping (200 farmers)

Forestry

� carving center to train people to usethinned wood and branch wood

- In total estimated to be valued at $50-$150/ha/year

Samartex Project

Cedrela (9 years) Oil Palm

Samartex Project

Cieba (9 years) Pepper (under Khaya canopy)

Arrangement: Samartex/chiefs/farmers

� Entry fee of 50,000 Cedis is paid to chiefs by farmers/1 acre

� 3 phases for the 1 acre (implement all 3 phases)

(1) long-term crops (timber with rotation ages from 15-40 years)

(2) medium-term crops (citrus, cola palm, black pepper)

(3) short-term crops (cassava, plantain, cocoa yam, etc.)

� Sharing system

(1) long-term (2/3 value to farmer, 1/3 to chiefs)

(2) medium-term (2/3 value to farmer, 1/3 to chiefs)

(3) short-term (100% to the farmer)

(4) Samartex has the right to purchase the timber at maturity atprevailing market price

� Nurseries

- 3 run in collaboration (Samartex, Village) with seedlings given away.

Lessons Learned (Samartex Project)

� Pure plantations are not necessarily the answer for rehabitation ofdegraded forest lands

� Community involvement is a key to good land management (decreasedslash and burn agriculture and clean cultivation means trees are “free-to-grow”)

� Having a share in the final product is an incentive for farmers to plantand maintain trees

� Private ownership (by the farmers) is important

� Over 1000 individuals have benefited with employment from thisproject (farmers, youth, beekeepers, cassava processors)

ITTO-sponsored Project on Mahogany Silviculture onSamartex Land

FORIG Plantation

1-year-old Cedrela (3-4 m)

Plus Tree Selection

Seed Source Evaluation

Mass Propagation ofSuperior Genotypes

Our ITTO-Mahogany Project

Field Trials (silvicultural tests)

Our Goal:

To develop silviculturalsystems to restore nativeAfrican Mahogany inWestern Africa

30-year-old plantation-grown Khaya anthotheca

The Challenge

The pest Hypsipylarobusta

Close-up ofshoot damage

The result is largelyunmarketable stems

Supported principally by ITTO

Summary

� Model systems are already in place to showcase CDM/lumberproduction/agrogroforestry for poverty alleviation in Ghana.

� Joint ownership and shared profits are keys for successfulprograms.

� Successful farmers, supportive chiefs and elders, and goodnursery and afforestation techniques, are critically important tothese integrated programs.

� These models could be used in CDM/lumberproduction/agroforestry for poverty alleviation in other parts ofwestern Africa.

The Future (our plan)

Short-term Goal:

1) Develop another 4-5 500 ha sustainable CDM/lumber production/agroforestry sites in Ghana

2) Involve 500-1000 low-income villagers per site

Financial Needs: Approximately $150,000/yr for 5 years plus $100,000startup capital or about $850,000

Long-term Goal: 1) Transfer the Ghana system to other regions inwestern Africa

Needs: Variable depending on the size of the projects initiated

Thank You!