TIMBER FIRM IN MASSIVE TREE-PLANTING EXERCISE (Back Page)

Story: Akwasi Ampratwum-Mensah, Adabokrom

A MEMBER of the Council of State, General E.K. Sam, has commended the management and staff of Ayum Forest Products (Mim) Limited, a private timber company operating in the Goaso municipality in the Brong Ahafo Region, for embarking on a massive tree planting programme in all its catchment areas.
Since 2002, when the company started its reforestation programme at Atronie, near Sunyani, a large number of tree species have been planted.
At the Amama Forest Reserve in the area, the company has planted Cedrella, Ofram, Ceiba, Mohagany, Edinam, Wawa, Makore, Utile, Kyenkyen, Koto, Kokrodua, Mansonia, Asanfina and Akosa.
General Sam gave the commendation in a speech read on his behalf at the handing-over of a ¢550 million (GH¢55,000) palace for the chief and people of Adabokrom in the Bia District of the Western Region where the company also operates.
The successful completion of the palace project, which comprises bedrooms, an open courtyard, offices, store and other facilities, formed part of the company’s social responsibility programme.
According to the Member of the Council of State, the decision by the company to carry out the reforestation project was in the right direction, since trees are the foundation of a successful and fruitful future for the timber industry.
General Sam said the company recognised that unless it put back what it had taken out of the forest, the industry would have no future, adding that future generations deserved a better deal for a guaranteed livelihood in the preservation of whatever their ancestors bequeathed to them.
He also expressed satisfaction that the management of the company was planning a major replication of the tree planting programme at Dormaa Ahenkro, Bomaa, Ayonso and its environs, all in the Brong Ahafo Region and Asankragwa in the Western Region where the company also operates.
The Council of State member again observed that since its inception over six years ago, Ayum had undergone significant changes from logging and sawmilling to wood processing, and that the company had become a net exporter of processed lumber to Europe and neighbouring countries.
“Indeed, Ayum has won national awards in this category for the past two years and is convinced that logs are the basic raw materials for its operations. It has embarked on three planting in all its catchment areas,” he emphasised.
The District Chief Executive (DCE) for Bia, Mr Benjamin Armah, suggested that the company institute a scholarship scheme for schoolchildren in the area to enable them to access quality education, which would eventually make them contribute their quota to the development of the area in particular, and the country as a whole.
He commended the people for having lived in peace, unity and love over the years and urged them to continue in that spirit of togetherness.
The DCE appealed to the people to draw a programme to regularly maintain the building, which he described as a laudable legacy so as to prolong its lifespan.
Nana Kwadwo Adowa IV, the chief of Adabokrom, and the Managing Director of the Company, Mr Ziady Naji, jointly unveiled a plaque to inaugurate the palace.
Nana Adowa expressed his deepest gratitude and appreciation to the management of the company for responding quickly to the request he made on behalf of the people for the construction of the palace.