The Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG) has embarked on a public awareness campaign to educate farmers in the Upper East and North East Regions about bushfires and how to prevent them. In the Upper East region, the communities included Gblembisi, Uwasi and Tuedema in the Builsa South District. Also, in the North East Region of Ghana, the beneficiary communities included Soo, Yagaba and Namong.

The exercise focused on equipping farmers with the necessary strategies and procedure on how to prevent bushfires. As a result, assisting farmers to enhance their agricultural productivity and sustain the environment. PFAG organized the sensitization exercise in partnership with the with Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) and Department of Agriculture in the various regions. Among other things, the organization seeks to promote sustainable agricultural practices that preserve the environment and mitigate climate change.

Speaking in an interview, Mr Benjamin Sarfo, PFAG’s Project Officer, explained the importance of the exercise. He stated that it became important as a result of the widespread bushfires that devastated farms and disrupted livelihoods. He explained that the training aimed to teach farmers how to build fire belts and put out fires in the event of an outbreak.

According to Mr Charles Nyaaba, a member of PFAG, bushfire is one of many threats that small-scale farmers face. He lamented how farmers toiled all year only to lose their farm produce to bushfires. He intimated that it harmed not only crops but also livestock and diminished farmers’ economic fortunes.

Call for collaborative efforts to curb indiscriminate bush burning

Mr Nyaaba intimated that indiscriminate bush burning could be reduced if not eliminated with the combined efforts of stakeholders. He reminded the public that indiscriminate bush burning had damaged the forest vegetation and had contributed to the erratic rainfall pattern.

Mr Nyaaba therefore called on community members, especially farmers, hunters and herdsmen to desist from indiscriminate bush burning to help save the environment, life and property. He also appealed to the government to allocate a budget component to help mitigate bushfires. He added that if bushfires and other associated threats were properly handled, the agricultural sector would have attracted investors.

Moreover, he charged opinion leaders and traditional authorities to use their platforms to campaign against bush burning to preserve the environment.

On his part, the Assistant Station Officer of GNFS at Fumbisi, Mr Eric Inkoom pointed out causes of the rampant bushfires in the communities. He said lack of knowledge on how to control fire, the communication gap and the distant nature of some communities accounted for numerous bushfires in the Builsa South District. Consequently, he said the Service instituted anti-bush burning volunteers and ambassadors to help salvage the situation in the communities. However, financial constraints hindered its successful operation, he added.

Relatedly, the GNFS Upper East Regional Command urged its staff to work with dignity and commitment in order to reduce fire cases in the area. Mr Jerry Harding-Bruce, the Regional Commander, said that firefighting is critical to the protection of life and property.