This text provides a case study into the complexity of tropical high forest in Ghana. It documents the fact that national forest inventories for a long time yielded results that were either over-optimistic about the annual allowable cut or of little use at policy level. Yet, the most important reasons for deforestation and forest degradation stem from market and legislative failures. This has resulted in major government and export revenues foregone, and the capacity of the timber industry has become far higher than the annual allowable cut from forest reserves. Trees outside forest reserves...