Ghana needs freshwater ecosystem

The population growth in Ghana in 2023 was 34,121,985, a 1.93% increase from 2022. The population of Ghana in 2022 was 33,475,870, a 1.96% increase from 2021.

The population of Ghana in 2021 was 32,833,031, a 2.03% increase from 2020. A year – is indirectly driving all kinds of environmental degradation. There is an incessant demand for more space for people to live in and use.

One of the consequences is the destruction of forests. Forests that are close to water, known as riparian forests, tend to be the most vulnerable.

Access to a watercourse has often informed the choice of human settlement or activity. Needing a year-long supply of water for their crops, farmers often convert riparian forests to agricultural lands. In many cases, especially in the dry season, such farmlands encroach almost into the waterways.

Other kinds of business also need a source of water. In Ghana, car wash centres are often situated along rivers and streams where forests once existed. Block-making operations, too, are often situated close to waterways.

The rapid decline in freshwater biodiversity has been attributed to deforestation of riparian corridors and human activities where there were once forests.