Forestry Commission Wildlife Division bans hunting

The Forestry Commission Wildlife Division has announced a ban on hunting, capturing and destroying of wild animals with effect from August 1, to December 1.

Dubbed: “The Close Season,” the annual ban is enshrined in the Wildlife Conservation Regulations.

A press release to the GNA signed by the Executive Director, Nana Kofi Adu-Nsiah, said the only animal that could be hunted during the close season is grasscutter but this must be done with a valid license issued by the Chief Wildlife Officer, now Executive Director or his representative.

It said any person who contravenes any provisions of these regulations shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine or both.

The Wildlife Division would like to appeal to the public particularly hunters, be they professional, trophy, leisure and dealers in the wildlife enterprise to temporarily stop their activities during the close season and also be circumspect during the open season.

“In the national interest and within the means available to us, the challenge facing us today is no longer deciding whether conservation is a good idea but rather how it can be implemented,” the statement said.

It said the Wildlife Division of the Forestry Commission owed Ghanaians living today and the future generation a duty to preserve wildlife within all ecological zones.

The Wildlife Division appealed to Ghanaians especially, the police to support in enforcing the “Close Season” ban.