A total ban has been placed on the harvesting and exporting of rosewood by the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources.
The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources has directed the Forestry Commission to suspend the processing of permits for the exportation of rosewood.
The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources as at August 2017, had permitted 25 companies to salvage rosewood from the Brong-Ahafo, Upper East, Upper West, and Northern Regions.
In 2014, a ban was first placed on the harvesting, transportation, export, sale or processing of rosewood in the country.
China is noted as a major destination of felled rosewood where it is highly valued and used for antique-style furniture.
Currently, some companies are said to be exporting the rosewood using expired licenses, while some others have no form of permit.
The Lands and Natural Resources Minister, Kwaku Asomah-Cheremeh, says the ban is important for ridding the industry of all illegal activities endangering the ecology of northern Ghana, where rosewood felling is rampant.
“Note that salvage permits were issued only for the evacuation of lying logs. Any fresh harvesting of rosewood trees is illegal and must be reported for the immediate arrest of the culprit,” Mr. Asomah-Cheremeh said.
He also added that the issues surrounding rosewood had become “a national security threat”.
The Minister appealed to the public to “support the ministry in our efforts to regulate the exploitation of natural resources in this country.”
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