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Good practice Imported

Newmont Akyem Mine Biodiversity Offset — Forest Reserve Reforestation (Ghana)

Ghana · New Abirem · See the Ghana profile

Evidence: Descriptive / self-reported Top 64% 40/100 · Ask Evidence Copilot about this practice

Under a Forestry Commission MoU, Newmont's Akyem gold mine is revegetating three times the 101 ha of forest it impacted — 317 ha reforested to date across two reserves — with IUCN independently reviewing biodiversity outcomes since 2018.

101 hectares
Forest reserve land taken by the mine
303 hectares
Offset obligation (3x impacted area)
60,000+ seedlings
Seedlings planted (since 2014)
~30 species
Indigenous species used in reforestation
317 hectares
Hectares reforested to date (by 2023)
60 hectares
First handover phase to Forestry Commission (August 2023)
257 hectares
Second phase scheduled for transfer (by 2027)
Newmont Akyem Mine Biodiversity Offset — Forest Reserve Reforestation (Ghana)

Details

Maturity
Established
Promoter
Newmont Golden Ridge Limited / Ghana Forestry Commission, with IUCN
Period
2014–present (IUCN collaboration since 2018)
Keywords
gold mining, biodiversity offset, forest reforestation, IUCN biodiversity net gain review

Context

Newmont Golden Ridge Limited's Akyem gold mine took 101 ha of Ajenjua Bepo Forest Reserve land in Ghana. Under a Memorandum of Understanding with Ghana's Forestry Commission, Newmont committed to revegetate and maintain, for at least 10 years, three times that area (303 ha), split across the Ajenjua Bepo and Mamang Production Forest Reserves.

Objectives

To meet the 3:1 reforestation offset obligation and pursue no net biodiversity loss with net gains where possible, including formal handover of cultivated forest to the Forestry Commission.

Activities

Reforestation began in 2014 using roughly 30 indigenous species plus Cedrela, grown from more than 60,000 seedlings. Since 2018, Newmont and IUCN have run a joint biodiversity programme applying the IUCN Biodiversity Net Gain Review Protocol; a review team of IUCN member-organisation representatives and outside experts visited the Akyem site in 2022 and published a summary report with recommendations in 2023.

Results

By 2023 the company reported 317 ha reforested, exceeding the 303 ha commitment. A first 60 ha phase of fully cultivated forest at Ajenjua Bepo was formally handed over to the Forestry Commission in August 2023, and a second 257 ha phase at the Kweikaro Production Forest Reserve is scheduled for transfer by 2027.

Conclusions

Publicly disclosed evidence centres on hectares reforested rather than audited species-recovery counts. Local NGOs (e.g. Earthworks) have separately reported community opposition linked to the mine's land take and resettlement — a reminder that the reforestation programme's success does not resolve every local grievance.

Implementation
Indicative cost
Medium (€50k–€500k) — No budget figures are published; classified medium given a multi-year, 300+ hectare corporate reforestation obligation with seedling production and phased land handover — this is an inference, not a stated figure.
Time to results
Long (> 3 years) — Reforestation began in 2014, with a minimum 10-year maintenance commitment and a final phase transfer scheduled by 2027 (13+ year span); classified long.
Staffing & skills
Newmont Golden Ridge Limited (project proponent), Ghana Forestry Commission (regulator / MoU counterparty), IUCN (independent biodiversity review since 2018)

Conditions for success

  • A formal MoU with a fixed 3:1 offset ratio and a minimum 10-year maintenance commitment
  • Independent third-party review via the IUCN Biodiversity Net Gain Review Protocol
  • Phased handover of cultivated land to the government Forestry Commission

Common failure modes

  • Publicly disclosed evidence is limited to hectares reforested rather than audited species-recovery counts
  • Local NGOs (e.g. Earthworks) have reported community opposition linked to the mine's land take and resettlement, indicating unresolved social impacts alongside the reforestation programme

Where it fits

Governance type
corporate offset under regulator MoU with independent NGO review
Scale
site/regional (two forest reserves)
Income level
lower-middle-income (Ghana)

Commonly funded by

Own resources / municipal budget

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Data sources

Where this practice's information was retrieved from, and when.

Attachments

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