A 23-year-old journalist from Kumasi, Ghana, has broken the world record for the longest time to hug a tree.

Abdul Hakim Awal’s “tree-hug-a-thon”, which took place outside Kumasi Cultural Centre, lasted 24 hours 21 minutes.

The previous record of 16 hours was set by Ugandan environmental activist Faith Patricia Ariokot earlier this year.

Abdul took on this challenge to highlight the importance of nature conservation in Ghana.

He made a pledge to plant a new tree for every minute his record attempt lasted, finishing at a total of 1,461.

Abdul was not permitted any breaks during his record attempt – he had to remain standing and keep his arms wrapped around the tree throughout the entire duration.

Now that the record stands at 24 hours – the point at which record attempts are considered ‘marathons’ – the title has been modified to longest marathon hugging a tree. This means that future challengers will be permitted breaks (a total of two hours per day) in order to combat the harmful effects of sleep deprivation.

Abdul, who has witnessed the consequences of desertification on his family’s hometown of Garu, now hopes to establish a nationwide tree-planting initiative.

He said: “We know how trees, an essential resource which the entire human race depends on, are becoming scarce in Ghana.

“Though we have been taught about preservation of trees since the early years of our lives, the contribution from everyone is not as significant as it should be.

“This attempt for the longest time to hug a tree, to me, spells out an important task to preserve human life by preserving trees.”

Abdul is not the first Ghanaian to set a tree-hugging world record this year. He follows in the footsteps of forestry student Abubakar Tahiru, who set a record for the most trees hugged in one hour with a total of 1,123.

An individual tree, located in France, also earned a Guinness World Records title this year – standing at a height of 21 metres (68.9 ft), it is the world’s tallest cork oak tree.