HIGHLIGHTS
Planning and coordination for REDD+ readiness in Ghana is progressing well.
Progress has been made in the areas of monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) and audit for REDD+ readiness.
Benefit sharing, financing, as well as demonstrations and pilots for REDD+ readiness are well advanced.
Challenges still prevail in the area of policy, laws, and institutions, as well as implementation of an emission reduction program for REDD+ readiness and implementation. Therefore, some specific recommendations for advancing REDD+ readiness and implementation in Ghana are presented.
It is hoped that policy makers who are driving the REDD+ readiness and implementation process in Ghana will be able to integrate the findings of this study into initiatives that have been established in order to advance REDD+ implementation in the country.
SUMMARY
Ghana has participated in REDD+ negotiations since its inception and has been engaged in activities geared at implementing REDD+ in the country. In this paper, we examine initiatives that have been undertaken by relevant stakeholders to advance REDD+ readiness and implementation in Ghana. Results revealed that several aspects of planning and coordination were ranked high and some progress has been made in the arena of Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) and audit; benefit sharing; financing; as well as demonstrations and pilots. That said, some challenges still prevail in the area of policy, laws, and institutions; as well as implementation of an emission reduction program. Therefore, some specific recommendations for advancing REDD+ readiness and implementation in Ghana can be considered going forward including the development of strong institutions for REDD+ implementation; clarification of carbon and tenure rights; capacity building for data collection; and institutional collaboration. Implementing these recommendations are a fundamental prerequisite for an effective and efficient implementation of REDD+ in Ghana.
