1. Making Knowledge Work for Forests and People K.S. Nketiah Tropenbos International Ghana Promoting good governance through participation and consensus building

2. Outline Forestry situation in Ghana Forestry sector governance challenges The domestic market situation in Ghana The VPA in Ghana The MSD Process How and why it has been set up Achievements so far Next Steps Challenges ahead Lessons learnt from MSD Process

3. Forests in Ghana Located on the West Coast of Africa Total land area of 238,537 km 2 34% of land area ‘forests’ 20% of forest area gazetted as forest reserves Population: 24 million Estimated rate of deforestation: 3%

4. Current Forest Condition Less than 2% of the current system of 216 HFZ forest reserves have escaped human disturbance

5. Forestry sector governance challenges Formal timber sector concentrates on exports Problematic domestic timber sub-sector Sporadic enforcement of ban on chainsaw milling Prevalence of conflict Poor general governance regime Eventual collapse of the forestry sector

6. The domestic market situation in Ghana High incidence of illegal CSM; supplying over 84% of local lumber with an estimated volume of 497,000m³ (equiv. to 2.5 million m³ of harvest) Direct employment (about 97,000 people) and indirect livelihood opportunities (over 650,000 people) Loss of revenue to the state - about €13 million stumpage revenue annually, useful man hours by Forestry Commission & law enforcement agencies High level of conflict associated with illegal CSM Strong support of local communities for illegal CSM

7. The Ghana VPA Decision of Ghana to include the domestic market Final ratification took place in November, 2009 Progress of implementation so far

8. Potential impacts of strict enforcement with VPA Increasing conflict Decrease in timber supply to the domestic market Loss of jobs and loss of livelihood support Collapse of forest-based enterprises e.g. carpentry shops, wood villages/markets and charcoal production Increase in poverty levels especially in rural areas

9. Benefits of VPA process The VPA has really put the spotlight on domestic timber market issues. VPA is also a driver of change. The VPA has brought the precarious state of the timber resources into sharp focus. Up-scaled the space for multi- stakeholder participation in policy processes

10. Potential impacts of the VPA incl. policy reforms The VPA offers an opportunity to address governance issues in a comprehensive way Addressing the domestic market Fiscal discipline FPIC etc However, the VPA by itself cannot ensure SFM

11. The MSD and good governance MSD is a good way to address complex issues with a range of competing claims and expectations It helps bridge differences in perceptions of diverse stakeholders It helps consensus building The role of MSD in the VPA process Status of MSD vis-a-vis the VPA How outcomes influence VPA decisions

12. Objectives of MSD as per TBI Gh. The MSD Platform was established to provide a mechanism for stakeholders to interact, participate in and influence national policy processes and outcomes examine issues based on information in a structured dialogue that mitigates existing levels of conflict between stakeholders provide a more effective pathway for sharing perspectives of issues and solutions of CSM discuss alternatives to illegal CSM

13. Establishing the MSD Capacity for Facilitation Capacity for MSD participants Monitoring and evaluation Nomination of MSD- SC Modalities and set up of MSD Criteria for selection of MSD stakeholder 22 stakeholders categorised into 5 stakeholder groupings 10 project district meetings held About 60 community meetings conducted Community and institutional Sensitization Stakeholder Analysis Capacity Building Focus Group Discussions and Preparatory Meetings

14. The Multi-stakeholder Dialogue

15. Process Managed by an MSD Steering Committee representing stakeholder groups

16. Building Linkages MSD VPA Process NFF

17. Actions from MSD Alternative livelihoods Policy reform Transition to artisanal milling

18. Achievements: Policy options Three policy options based on a case study, the regional meeting and the technical committee discussions : a.Sawmills alone to supply the local market with legal timber b.Sawmills and artisanal millers to supply the local with legal timber c.Artisanal millers alone to supply the local market with legal timber

19. Other achievements and further actions Necessary conditions/implications of each option analysed and discussed by the MSD Option 2 has been agreed upon by 'consensus‘ and jointly with the TIDD process A cost-benefit analysis carried out to further inform stakeholders of implications of certain choices Policy for supplying legal lumber to domestic market as well as public procurement policy now in place Elaboration of actions for operationalising the policy strategies in progress

20. Success factors for the MSD True representation of stakeholders Information (about the problems, drivers, impacts and alternatives etc.): understanding the intensity of the problem. All-inclusive stakeholder participation. Good facilitation skills (capacity) Capacity of stakeholders to participate effectively in the dialogue. Scope for institutional embedding and linkages Adoption of adaptive management principles

21. Success factors cont’d Strong feedback mechanism The alignment with the VPA implementation processes and the active participation of the FC in the project gives the process a lot of leverage in Ghana. Support by the EU

22. Challenges in MSD How to deal with vested interests and unwilling elements Getting on-board powerful stakeholders whose interests may be affected Securing a win-win situation for all stakeholders Securing the necessary political will Dynamics of national politics Power imbalances between stakeholders Keeping pace with national processes

23. Lessons learnt A successful dialogue depends on trust Equitable participation demands time, resources and good facilitation skills The design of the MSD process takes time ensuring fair representation of stakeholders sufficient feedback mechanisms opportunities for the “voiceless” to contribute to the discussion Collaboration with other forest policy development initiatives is necessary for impact

24. Concluding Remarks Significance of what has happened Is the Ghana experience unique or transplantable? Any lessons for other countries (esp. DRC) from this experience?

25. THANKS FOR YOUR ATTENTION