KNUST partners Finland’s Aalto University to green Kumasi Project proposal presented to Otumfuo

Aalto University in Finland, and the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) have presented a comprehensive proposal to re-green Kumasi to the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.

The project has been crafted to coincide with the Silver Jubilee of Otumfuo next year.
A joint delegation from the two institutions was at the Manhyia Palace on Friday, October 27, 2023 to present the proposal to the Asantehene.
The proposal, which was borne out of an urban survey supported by the Asanteman Stool Lands secretariat to restore Kumasi to its former status as the garden city, forms part of a five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two universities dubbed, ‘Kumasi Trees -The Project of the Heart’.

Green Kumasi
A Professor of Practice in Humanitarian Architecture at the Department of Architecture at Aalto University, Professor Saija Hollmen, informed Otumfuo that a survey conducted ahead of the drafting of the proposal revealed that city dwellers were yearning to see Kumasi back to its greens.
“We know Queen Elizabeth II herself named Kumasi as the Garden City of West Africa a long time ago. That, it used to be a wonderful sight of luxurious gardens, and wonderful trees provide shade for its people. Now that the image of the garden city has disappeared, people still seem to cherish it in their hearts. They have the garden in the hearts, their minds and memory and they are missing the trees,” she said.
Otumfuo/government efforts
Prof. Hollmen noted the efforts of the King and the government to restore the city’s lost greenery but indicated that, the challenge was a long-term maintenance strategy.
With the proposal, Prof. Hollmen said, Otumfuo’s vision for Green Kumasi will be realised and leave a long-term legacy to his name.

Strategy
Prof. Hollmen said the project, aimed at celebrating the exceptional reign of the King, is destined to create tree ownership by connecting to the cultural identities of the people in Kumasi.
She said the strategy will create a sense of identity and responsibility toward the trees.
“Our proposal is a strategy to celebrate His Majesty’s 25-year reign. We suggest, if he will bless, that he choose 25 designated communities be that individuals, families or companies who have been his partners throughout his reign and then he will choose 25 areas for these designated communities.
“The 25 will collaborate with KNUST where resides technical expertise, and in collaboration with other universities and the Department of Forestry and Horticulture, the technical departments of the city, the Palace and all stakeholders,” she said.
She said the proposal if admitted, will be implemented next year while the initial planning phase will commence with the Faculties of the KNUST after the blessings of the King.
She highlighted that initial designs and implementation for the maintenance will be exhibited in April 2023.
Laudable Project
Responding, Otumfuo described the project as laudable.
“The whole idea is to educate people that ‘if the last tree dies, the last man dies’, else we will plant them and people will cut them for other purposes,” the King said.
With Prof Holman at the Manhyia Palace were Project Expert and Senior Lecturer, Architect Taru Niskanen from Aalto University; Prof. Esmeralda Manful, Vice Dean of the International Programmes Office, KNUST; Dr. Ing. Alexander Boakye Marful, Department of Architecture (Project Lead), and Prof. Francis Appiah from the Department of Horticulture (Project Expert) all of KNUST.