Bia National Park, National park and biosphere reserve in Western Region, Ghana

Bia National Park is a protected forest area in western Ghana, close to the border with Ivory Coast, covering both evergreen and semi-deciduous woodland. It also holds UNESCO biosphere reserve status, and its connected forest zones support a wide range of plant and animal life.

The area was first set aside as a protected zone in 1935 and was given national park status in 1974. A few years after that, in 1983, UNESCO added its recognition as a biosphere reserve.

The Bia River gives the park its name, and the Apaso cultural site, near two small pools inside the park, is held sacred: visitors leave offerings and gifts to the gods there. Around the reserve some 14,000 people lived in 1997, many farming cocoa, and snail picking is among the activities carried out in the reserve.

The park has several walking routes but is not equipped to receive tourists, so bring your own supplies and arrange a local guide. The nearest place to spend the night is Sefwi Wiawso, about 100 km away. Access from Kumasi runs through Bibiani and Sefwi Wiawso to Sefwi Asempanaye, or via Goaso and Sankore; from Sunyani through Berekum, Wanfi, Adabokrom and Debiso.

Over 60 mammal species live in this forest, including several primates found in very few other places in West Africa. Some of the tallest trees in the region grow here, giving visitors a direct sense of what an undisturbed West African rainforest actually looks like up close.