Forest Policy, Governance and Livelihoods
Forest policies, resource governance regimes and their impact on people are interlinked. This programme researches to understand this nexus. The programme attempts to understand how global and national policy instruments impact forest resources and the people who depend on it. The programme also seeks to understand the governance of forest resources, focusing on institutional efficiency and effectiveness, participation and democratic representation, transparency, accountability and equitable distribution of benefits. Another area of interest is forest and ecosystem accounting, particularly understanding in monetary terms, the contribution of forest to the economy in general. Priority areas include:
- Forests and livelihoods
- Policy and governance
- Forest and land tenure
- Gender and forestry
- Forest conflict resolution
- Participatory Forest Management (PFM)
- Forest extension
Dr. Elizabeth Obeng Asantewaa
Principal Research Scientist
Head of Division- Forest Policy, Governance and Livelihoods (FPGLD)
SENIOR MEMBERS
| Name | Position | Field of Expertise |
| Dr. Elizabeth A. Obeng | Principal Research Scientist |
Environmental and Natural Resource Economics, Socio-economics, Agricultural economics |
| Dr. Kwame Oduro Antwi | Principal Research Scientist | Forest governance and policy, Management of forest resources in agricultural landscapes, Forest resource development, Natural resources management |
| Dr. Jewel Andoh | Research Scientist | Forestry, Agroforestry, Forest Landscape Restoration, Climate Change, Forest Resource Governance, Sustainable Forest Management |
| Dr. William Dumenu | Research Scientist | Forest policy and economics, management and utilisation of NTFPs, forest-based bioeconomy, climate change mitigation |
| Mr. Adu Gyamfi Asamoah | Assistant Research Scientist | Climate change mitigation, Agroforestry, Silviculture and forest management |
SENIOR STAFF
| Name | Position |
| Mr. Emmanuel Asiedu-Poku | Chief Technical Officer |
Divisional Research Activities / Features
DOCUMENTING IMPACTS OF ARTISANAL MINING AND LAND CLEARING ON COCOA CULTIVATION IN GHANA
This project seeks to (1) investigate the impacts of land degradation due to illegal mining and monoculture cocoa cultivation within a first-order watershed, and (2) evaluate the perception of farmers on the awareness of multiple threats facing the cocoa industry, and rural livelihoods in general.
RESEARCH ON GENDER EQUALITY AND CLIMATE RESILIENCE OF COCOA-DEPENDENT HOUSEHOLDS IN WEST AFRICA
This research seeks to assess whether improvements in gender equality conditions support enhanced climate resilience of cocoa farming-dependent households.
CLIMATE OFF-FARM RIPPLED IMPACTS ON WELLBEING AND BEHAVIORAL RESILIENCE: COCOA VALUE-ADDED CHAINS IN WEST AFRICA
This Project will (1) Assess rippled off-farm impacts of drought on individuals along local value-added chains whose wellbeing is highly dependent on cocoa harvests; (2) Identify behavioral adaptations to buffer the impacts of past and expected future drought by actors along value chains; (3) Determine socially-acceptable interventions that can enhance off-farm climate resiliency.