Research Team : J. O. Amponsah, Dr. Joseph Asomaning, Dr. Prosper Mensah, Ms Sandra Owusu. Mr. Jonathan Dabo

Donor: Millennium Seed Bank, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew United Kingdom

Collaborating Institution(s): Millennium Seed Bank Partnership (MSBP)

Status: On-going

Objectives:

The Global Tree Seed Bank Programme  is currently being implemented to secure some of the world’s most threatened, rare and useful tree species. Funded by the Garfield Weston Foundation  and coordinated by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (RGB, Kew) , the programme aims to collect and  conserve seeds of more than 5,000 of the world's tree species of the hardest to reach and rarest tree species on earth and develop world leading techniques for conserving trees on the brink of extinction.

Amongst the key objectives of the GTSB project include to;

• Improve capacity and seed conservation outcomes at partner organisations applying recognised MSBP standards, 
• Further develop capacity for the conservation and use of native tree seed in Ghana, Guinea and Sierra Leone
• Improve global forest restoration outcomes through extending the supply of native seeds and improving the knowledge base informing their collection and use.

The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research-Forestry Research Institute of Ghana (CSIR-FORIG) is the main project implementing partner in Ghana. CSIR-FORIG has a long-standing partnership agreement with RBG, Millennium Seed Bank Partnership in the UK. The National Tree Centre (NTSC) which operates under the CSIR-FORIG is the main section running the project.

Key Outputs:

• Field collection of seeds and herbarium voucher specimen for 45 species.
• Processing and testing of focal seeds species at the NTSC.
• Acquiring Phytosanitary Certificates for all collections.
• Dispatching of 12 out of the 21 seeds species to the Millennium Seed bank in the UK via courier.
• Restoration plot establishment in degraded areas within the Pranum and South Formanso Forest Reserves in Ghana.