EFFECTS OF COMMERCIAL FARMING ON THE INHABITANTS AND WOODY SPECIES OF THE MION DISTRICT

Abstract

Agricultural modernisation is a crucial component and the surest pathway to global food security. In Ghana, agriculture contributes around 20 percent to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and employs 42 percent of the working population. Commercial farming is a panacea to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals; SDG 1 and SDG 2. However, commercial farming have negative social and environmental consequences which can undermine the local and regional achievement of the sustainable development goals; SDG 13 and 15. The transformation of Savannah woodlands to agricultural lands especially in the Mion district necessitated the need for this study. This study examined the effects of commercial farming on woody species diversity and livelihood of the inhabitants of the Mion District. The study employed the use of both structured questionnaire, Remote Sensing and GIS methods, as well as vegetation survey techniques The result indicate that commercial farming may have contributed to the limited available land space for small-scale farming. Howerver, further results indicate that commercial farming had offered employment and community support in areas it occurs. The farmland trajectory indicate that a lot of close woodland areas (14.9 %) have been transformed to farmlands. The result further indicated that farmlands now cover nearly half of the district landmass (44.9%), a double of what was present (21.5%) in 2015, leading to an estimated loss of 19117837 individual trees, shrubs and saplings of woody species in the 12,084.6 ha of commercial farms surveyed. The study concludes that despite the contribution of commercial farming to attaining food security and reducing unemployment, it also causes deforestation and reduction of available fertile land for small-scale farmers. Therefore, stakeholders are entreated to formulate policies to help moderate the amount of farming land leased out to large-scale farmers and that available for the small-scale farmers to avoid future friction between land users and further develop measures to ensure sustainable agriculture whiles safeguarding woody species.