Proforest supports forest protection in Ghana’s Ahafo Region with 22 motorbikes for frontline patrols

Proforest has presented 22 motorbikes to the Ahafo Regional Forestry Commission to strengthen forest protection, improve access to remote forest areas and support restoration work in one of Ghana’s important cocoa-producing landscapes.

The motorbikes were handed over through the Support for Forest Protection and Rehabilitation in the Asunafo-Asutifi Landscape project, implemented as part of the Ghana Cocoa Forest REDD+ Programme with support from Mondelēz International, Barry Callebaut and Sainsbury’s Supermarket.

The project is working to rehabilitate approximately 450 hectares of severely degraded forest reserve areas, with a particular focus on the Asutifi North Sub-Hotspot Intervention Area. By improving mobility for field officers, the support will help teams reach difficult terrain, respond more quickly to illegal activities and monitor restoration sites more consistently.

Across Ghana’s cocoa landscapes, forest reserves continue to face pressure from degradation, encroachment and limited resources for frontline protection. Practical investments like these motorbikes are essential to turning forest conservation commitments into action on the ground.

“This support will enhance the Forestry Commission’s ability to protect forest reserves and monitor restoration activities across the landscape,” said Abraham Baffoe, Global and Africa Director, Proforest. “By improving mobility for frontline officers, we are helping to strengthen day-to-day forest protection, safeguard restoration investments and advance practical action toward climate-resilient, deforestation-free cocoa landscapes.”

Rev. Edward Opoku Antwi, Ahafo Regional Manager of the Forestry Commission, welcomed the donation, noting that the motorbikes would make a direct difference to field operations. 

These motorbikes come at a critical time for forest protection in the region; they will help our officers reach remote areas more quickly, improve surveillance of the reserves and support the restoration work taking place in the Asunafo-Asutifi landscape.”

The initiative shows how targeted support can strengthen public-sector capacity, protect critical forest reserves and deliver tangible conservation outcomes for communities, climate and sustainable cocoa systems.