The effects of Lumbering on Socio-Economic Activities in Ghana: A Case Study of Kwabibirem District
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53555/nnssh.v4i3.130Keywords:
Lumbering, Revenue, Indiscriminate, Illegal, Scale, Socio-economic, Kwabibirem, District, Assembly, Descriptive, Triangulation, Narrative, Damming, Rehabilitation, EnforcementAbstract
Lumbering activities in Ghana is a great source of employment and revenue generation for the citizens and the country as a whole. The challenge has however been the indiscriminate felling of tress and illegal sale of the logs after they have been felled. This paper sought to examine the particular socio-economic benefits of engaging in activities of lumbering in Kwabibirem district in Ghana. The study uses the triangulation approach to gather data for analysis and discussion. The questionnaire and interview guide were used to sample respondents from five major communities in the district. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the quantitative data whiles the qualitative data were presented using the narrative method. The study revealed that 31% of the respondents benefitted from the lumbering through employment whiles the least set of respondents (7.5%) indicated that the lumbering activities help to improve their health. Among the challenges includes; damming of river bodies in the district by fallen trees, branch and leaves (25%), transmission of diseases (19%), loss of biodiversity (18%) and air pollution in a form of dust (13%) and noise (18%). The study therefore recommends the need for law enforcement on lumbering activities in the district. There is also a need for rehabilitation of the roads and railway lines used in transporting the logs from the forest to prevent pollution.
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