A correctly identified Triplochiton scleroxylon, photographed at a forest reserve in Cameroon rather than Ghana — a Ghana-sourced photograph is still to come.
Akan
Wawa
Obeche · African Whitewood
Triplochiton scleroxylon
Where It Grows
High-forest belt, Ashanti & Western regions
Wawase — More than one town in Ghana carries this name — the same pattern as Odumase and Oframase, a settlement founded at a stand of Wawa.
Approximate — anchored to the nearest known place name.
Explore full map →Why It's Protected
Ghana's single most heavily exported timber species for much of the 20th century — decades of logging pressure have made mature, wild-grown Wawa increasingly scarce outside plantations and protected reserve stock.
Uses & Benefits
- —Pale, lightweight timber for plywood, veneer and furniture-making
- —One of West Africa's principal hardwood exports
- —Fast-growing pioneer species used in reforestation plots
If you would not let a human being die, why would you let a forest burn? Every material is alive — the tree is not a metaphor. The tree is ancestor.
See the Nipa Dua Foundation's environmental work →