Amidst the enormous agriculture and natural resource potential of Northern Ghana, food security remains a perennial issue, more recently compounded by the recurring Volta River flooding of low-lying areas threatening livelihoods, causing damages to farmlands, properties, loss of lives and socio-economic dislocation. In an attempt to strengthen rural poor communities to take control of their lives and build resilience against such threats, many community-driven initiatives employing various participatory planning and decision making tools have been pursued over the past decade in Ghana. Most of these participatory tools also explored how collaboration among external stakeholders, local institutions and beneficiary communities could be enhanced and sustained. Currently active participation and effective collaboration have not risen to an effective level. In this regards, Participatory 3-Dimensional Modelling (P3DM) is presented as a tool for active participation and effective collaboration among development agencies and beneficiary communities in Ghana. The P3DM captures the vast complex landscape resources into an incredibly concise solid contour model easily understandable to the learned and the unlearned.  Using the 3D map for Northern Ghana, regional stakeholders were facilitated to identify and evaluate their areas of interest on the ground in terms of their relationship to the biophysical and socio-economic attributes of the landscape. The clarity of landscape information overlaid in the 3D enhanced discussion among stakeholders and forged collaboration for greater impact, including identification of gaps in promising areas. The use of 3D in community and regional level planning for agriculture and natural resource management presents a new and more promising opportunity for more community participation and institutional collaboration towards sustainable development of Ghana.

3-Dimensional Modelling, Food Security, Flooding, Collaboration, Participation

Presentation: oral