Bush Fires Account for Two Per Cent Loss of GDP- Akrofi

Ghana loses two per cent of its Gross Domestic Products (GDP) annually through bushfires, an official of the Forestry Commission said on Friday.

Mr. Sam Akrofi, Public Relations Manager of the Forestry Commission, told the Ghana News Agency in Accra that Ghana's forests vanish at an annual rate of 75,000 hectares with bush fires being the leading factor.

"Large hectares of cocoa timber, rice, millet and oil palm are burnt yearly through bush fires, depriving the nation of its export products," he said and stressed the need to stop bush burning during the dry season.

He said the desert is creeping in from the Upper West Region because of wildfires.

"It must be emphasised that the conversion of forests to farmlands, pasture for animals and unmanaged or also account for deforestation," he said.