Ho, Aug 10, GNA - Osagyefuo Oseadeyuo Agyenan Badu II, Chairman of the Forest Plantation Development Fund Board, Tuesday appealed to landowners in the Volta region to apply for loans and grants from the Board to develop forest plantations in the region.

Osagyefuo Agyeman Badu, the Dormaahene, made the call when he paid a courtesy call on the Deputy Volta Regional Minister Colonel Cyril Necku (rtd) to begin an inspection of forest plantations in the region and sensitize chiefs and landowners about the Fund. He said the Volta Region was not taking advantage of the opportunities offered by the Fund even though it had a great potential to develop forest plantations and improve incomes from doing so. Osagyefuo Oseadeyuo Agyeman Badu said out of 100 million Ghana cedis loan so far granted to landowners in the country, Volta Region was able to access only 100,000 Ghana cedis when the minimum it could have benefitted from was 150,000 Ghana cedis.

He said to access the loan and grants applicants must have a minimum of four hectares (10 acres) of land each and demonstrate that they have marching funds. Oseadeyou Agyeman Badu said considerations were also being given to scaling down the size of land that an applicant should have to qualify for the loan which has a 10-year moratorium to repay. He said the Fund was not limited to financing any specific timber species but the most common one being planted was teak even though some beneficiaries were also planting species with longer gestation periods. Oseadeyou Agyeman Badu said the aim of the Board for now was to alert landowners in the country to the existence of the facility so they could take advantage of it while long term plans were developed. He said apart from the low patronage by Volta Region, the Upper-East, Upper West and Greater Accra regions have not got involved at all. Colonel Necku thanked Oseadeyuo Agyeman Badu for embarking on the trip to get the Volta Region to get its fair share of the facility. He said the Municipal and District Assemblies in the region would be mandated to educate landowners to take advantage of the scheme which is crucial to addressing the problem of deforestation while raising income levels in rural areas.