Digital innovation enhancing park management in Ghana – Wildlife Division
The Wildlife Division, Forestry Commission (WD-FC), says the adoption of digital innovations in the management of its seven national parks has enhanced its operations.
It said digital innovations had made research, communication, surveillance, ecological monitoring, and many other aspects of wildlife conservation easier, more efficient and accurate in the parks.
Madam Enerstina Adumaen Anie, the Public Relations Manager,WD-FC, told the Ghana News Agency on the eve of the United Nations World Wildlife Day (WWD) that drones for instance, were helping officials at Mole National Park to monitor wildlife activities of hard-to-reach areas, especially during flooding.
The WWD is celebrated every year on 3rd March to recognize the unique roles and contributions of wildlife to humanity and the planet.
This year’s celebration is on the theme, “Connecting People and Planet: Exploring Digital Innovation in Wildlife Conservation.”
Madam Anie said the setting of camera traps had enabled officials to take visuals of new wildlife species and deal with poaching, which their regular monitoring exercise had not observed.
She noted that smart phones were assisting park officials to gather data while the Spatial Monitoring and Reporting Tool and EarthRanger system were being used to store, analyze the data into visual maps for decision making.
“Mole has a land size of 4840 square kilometres and the human resource alone cannot monitor its many and various 742 plant species, over 90 mammal species, including five primate species, 334 bird species, 33 reptiles, nine amphibian species, and 120 butterfly species,” she said.
Madam Anie said technology was also facilitating awareness creation of wildlife conservation and connecting species closer to humans, especially in situations where humans cannot readily have access to them.
She stated that efforts to conserve 16 Wildlife-Protected Areas (PAs), five coastal Ramsar Sites and the two Zoos had been ongoing for centuries, with traditional practices such as taboos against wanton destruction and adoption of totemic symbols, playing a role.
She said the emergence of technology despite its negative effects had helped its operation by identifying potential threats and taking proactive measures to protect wildlife.
Source: GNA
