| Summary: | Ghana is projected to become hotter and drier in the future (in projections with a 50-year horizon), and the country will continue to experience temperature increases, extreme events like droughts and floods and the increase in frequency and duration of heat waves (World Bank, 2021). The Ghanaian economy is heavily dependent on climate-sensitive sectors such as agriculture, forestry, and hydroelectric energy. In rural areas 71 percent of people are employed in agriculture, forestry, and fishing and the sector is a primary source of employment for the 300,000-350,000 new workers who enter the labor force each year (World Bank, 2016) (World Bank, 2018). Agriculture supplies over 70 percent of national food demand, an estimated two-thirds of Ghanaian non-oil raw material needs for manufacturing and contributes nearly 20 percent of national Gross domestic product (GDP). Water scarcity and drought conditions are expected to increase risks of food insecurity and may exacerbate conflict situations over scarce resources and population movements. Additionally, sea level rise may impact much of the country's coastline. Integrated land and water use management will be critical for addressing the competing needs for food production, rural and urban livelihood, and provision of ecosystem services in forests. To respond to the effects of climate change and a growing population, and the competing uses of water and land, Ghana will need to scale up landscape management approach that optimizes production and protection. Such an approach allows for an increase in food production to feed a growing population while at the same time conserving its remaining forests and coastal zones to ensure they can continue to provide their critical ecosystem services. The remainder of this note lays out some of the priority actions identified for Ghana related to the resilience of agriculture, forestry, and landscapes
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