The Enhancing Access to Benefits while Lowering Emissions (EnABLE) project, funded by the World Bank, is supporting community members in adapting to and embracing mitigation measures to strengthen their climate resilience. This support is being delivered via climate-smart cocoa production training and agroforestry, as well as tree-planting activities and community-led forest restoration initiatives.
As a result of these efforts, smallholder farmers are increasingly integrating trees into cocoa farms, planting new seedlings and protecting naturally regenerating trees to improve soil conditions and create more stable growing environments for young cocoa plants.
Additionally, farmers have adapted their planting schedules to align with changing rainfall patterns, employing simple water-conserving techniques and improved practices.
During a recent joint mission by the World Bank’s EnABLE Secretariat to Ghana’s Central Region, the team observed firsthand how communities are transforming land management, restoring forests and strengthening inclusive participation in land-use decisions.
Communities Leading Forest Restoration
In Assin Wurakese, forest restoration has evolved from a project-driven activity into a lasting community commitment, anchored by the chief’s direct involvement. Earlier efforts at forest restoration often ended when external support was withdrawn, but now, community members are taking stronger ownership of their forests, identifying restoration sites, planting trees and managing maintenance themselves.
Nana Dankwa Ameyaw, the Chief of Assin Wurakese, emphasized that local agency is the only way to ensure longevity: “Communities must take ownership of their land by demarcating areas and planting trees. As chief, I have taken a lead role in ensuring we all protect the forests. This is how we ensure that forests are restored and managed in the long term.”
Paving the way for the Next Generation and Closing the Gender Gap
This sense of responsibility is also taking root among the youth in Assin Homaho. With project support, the local youth association (Assin Homaho Youth Association – AHOYA) has formed a task force trained in forest monitoring and sustainable land‑use practices.
The forest is our lifeline. By equipping young people with the skills to manage it, we are helping ensure our community can continue to depend on these resources.
Mubarak Adam, a member of the Assin homaho youth association
Gladys Addae, a local farmer, described changes on her own land: “Climate change now makes it difficult for cocoa to thrive without shade. I have improved the conditions for my seedlings by planting trees and protecting naturally regenerated ones. Now my cocoa seedlings are no longer dying; they are growing more reliably.”
Asyl Undeland, a member of the World Bank mission team, said, “This is what effective, locally led, and inclusive climate action looks like in practice. We commend the implementing partners and expect even more women and young people to benefit as these efforts deepen and scale.”
The project has also strengthened women’s understanding of Ghana’s Land Act (2020), helping address barriers that have historically limited women’s access to land. As a result, women who were traditionally sidelined in land decisions are increasingly able to speak directly with traditional authorities and request land for their own farms.
In the Abodweses community, for example, more than 10 women have acquired farmland in their own names, without going through their husbands or other male relatives.
The project has also taken deliberate steps to ensure that persons with disabilities are not left behind by providing targeted support to help them access land rights and participate meaningfully in decisions about community land and resources.
The EnABLE Project (2024–2027), implemented by Solidaridad West Africa and Tropenbos International, directly engages 20,000 cocoa farmers across 100 communities in six Hotspot Intervention Areas. To date, over 25,994 participants have benefited from EnABLE’s capacity-building and knowledge events. The project has trained more than 4,500 stakeholders on land rights and the gender provisions of Ghana’s Land Act.
Looking Ahead
The EnABLE Project is charting a path toward resilient, inclusive and sustainable cocoa landscapes in Ghana. Through climate-smart agriculture, strengthened land governance, forest restoration and inclusive participation, the project will continue to build more resilient cocoa landscapes while improving livelihoods and protecting Ghana’s forests.