Rotary Club Adopts Accra Zoo

The Accra South division of the Rotary Club has adopted the playground and refreshment areas of the Accra Zoo as its first community service project since it was chartered in February last year.

Speaking to The Accra Daily Mail at the zoo at the weekend the President of the Club, Mr. Tony Lithur said the project which is to be completed by June this year would cost about ?20m.

He said work on the playing ground has already begun, and it would have the state-of-the-art equipment including swings so that children who visit the zoo would not only visit animals but enjoy themselves as well.

The Community Service Director, Gizella Tetteh said the whole playground would be grassed with open thatch hut put up on it. She said the sculptors among them would decorate the dead trees to attract children.

She bemoaned the deplorable state of the zoo and called on corporate bodies and the government to help.

She added that the zoo is educative and should not be neglected. The Rotary Club is also refurbishing the access road to the zoo in conjunction with the Accra Metro-Roads Unit of the AMA.

A brief tour by The Accra Daily Mail at the zoo brought to light the depressing situation of the zoo. It has ramshackle cages which where built in the early 60s and has inadequate logistics at the Education and Research Centre.

Meanwhile, the government is considering relocating the Accra Zoo to a larger location since the present one is too small by international standards.

Speaking to The Accra Daily Mail a Member of the Forestry Commission, Dr. Emmanuel Y. Djokoto said, "we are very much aware that the zoo is a learning ground for school children, on the other hand we think the space here is limited and maybe we can consider relocating the zoo and linking it up with other programmes and activities such as golf."

Dr. Djokoto said this after the 8th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Friends of the National Zoo (FONZ) at the weekend. He said the issues are currently going through the debating stages that is why the commission "has not decided whether to expand it or perhaps just leave it as a small place were a few animals could be kept for the benefit of school children."

On possible places to relocate to, he said, there are lots of places such as the Achimota forest and Shai Hills among others. He said the zoo is of much importance to the country because it could serve as a tourist attraction to both locals and foreigners, which could bring foreign exchange for national development.

Earlier at the function he told members of FONZ that zoos are ideal places for relaxation of minds and body as well as a place for education and research. Without places like the zoo, many generations of our people in Ghana and indeed Africa will pass through life without being able to have a glimpse of most of our rich fauna, he added.

The Executive Secretary of FONZ, Ms. Gytha Nunoo said the mandate of FONZ is to support the efforts of government to enhance the conditions in the zoo both for the animals and the visitors.

Ms. Nunoo also a member of the Forestry Commission appealed to government to maintain the zoo at its present location for education purposes, adding that a better zoological park could be developed elsewhere to support the present one.

Ms. Nunoo said we need to be each others keeper by desisting from destroying animals or trees just for pleasure.

Three members were awarded for excelling in an art and essay competition which was held last year. They are James Sowah, first position, Richmond Nyarko and Samuel Tachi second and third respectively.