Deal #3404

In 2017 the company obtained a lease for 4,428ha in the Awuru ad Chirimfa forest reserves. The land areas not planted by the Company currently hold a canopy cover of less than 5% and show a dominance of secondary growth species such as elephant grass, characteristic of the transition zone, and is ideally suitable for growing both indigenous and commercial timber species. The company is looking to expand the area in operation (2021 annual report). "Our plantations in both Ghana and Sierra Leone are large, now covering almost 10,000ha each" (annual report 2021).

The Company mixes commercial plantation forestry with protection and regeneration of indigenous tree species and the promotion of bio-diversity and environmentally sustainable land-use management. Miro has signed a commission agreement with South Pole, one of the largest traders in carbon credits, to certify Miro’s plantations to the voluntary carbon standard (VCS) and then sell the resulting credits. As a result, Miro expects to sell approximately 700,000+ credits in the next 6-12 months followed by over 150,000 per year hereafter.

Carbon offset project.

Increase in land area since 2009. In 2012 the company obtained a second concession in the same forest reserve

First trees planted in 2010 From JRC: ": VHR from 2012 and 2014 are showing a small timber plantation of about 100 ha. It seems the plantation started a bit before 2012 (trees are low). From the analysis of Sentinel-2 time series between 2016 and 2019, it seems that the area covered by trees increased each year." Still in operation in 2021.

In early 2019, Miro signed agreements with IDH (the Sustainable Trade Initiative) and FMO (a development bank) for match grant funding for a three-year smallholder project in both Ghana and Sierra Leone. The focus in 2019 was to build the foundations of the project by understanding the key considerations in developing a smallholder project particularly around social and cultural environments and the land rights situation. Local civil society and land tenure experts were engaged to provide guidance as the models were developed. The aim is to have demand driven project piloting a variety of smallholder models with 40hectares planted in each country in 2020 (subject to Covid-19 restrictions).