By Lydia Kukua Asamoah
Accra, Dec 6, GNA – Ghana has lunched its National Adaptation Plan (NAP), marking a significant milestone in the country’s climate resilience journey.
The Government of Ghana, through the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) under the auspices of the Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology developed the NAP at the national and subnational levels.
The NAP initiative received support from the Green Climate Fund (GCF), with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) as the delivery partner.
The NAP process launched in June 2020, with the entire journey starting from 2017, has since undergone various technical and governance review processes.
The launch of the NAP in Accra, attended by various stakeholders, including the private sector, civil society organisations (CSOs) and NGOs, youth groups, financial institutions and donor partners, provided an opportunity to introduce the NAP policy priorities, implementation pathways, and financing outlook while highlighting sector readiness and local adaptation integration.
Nana Dr Antwi Boasiako Amoah, Coordinator of the NAP, and the Director in-charge of Climate Vulnerability and Adaptation at the Climate Change Department, EPA, explained that the NAP provides a strategic framework to guide national and sectoral adaptation priorities, strengthen long-term planning, and advance coordinated action to address climate risks across communities, infrastructure, ecosystems, and livelihoods.
“It builds on Ghana’s national commitments, aligns with the Paris Agreement, and reflects extensive stakeholder engagement at national and subnational levels.”
Dr Amoah explained the preparation of the NAP document had come with the attainment and achievements of detailed Climate hazard, Risk and vulnerability analysis at national and subnational levels, Gender engagement strategies, Economic analysis of adaptation options, and Private sector engagement strategies.
Also, among other achievements attained and contained in the NAP, were the development of Youth engagement strategy, establishment of a Vulnerability portal, development of a Robust monitoring, evaluation and learning systems, identification of Financial mobilisation and innovative models, as well as a Policy coherence review for climate change adaptation mainstreaming.
He said the NAP contained sector and district specific adaptation plan of actions, coming along with various assessments that needed to be implemented to help Ghana in its climate adaptation measures.
“For us implementation is very key and even before this launch we have already started the implementation on a number of things…so one of the key things we have to do as a country through the EPA, is to mobilise funds, capital or support to do the things that we say we are going to do…”
Dr Amoah said over 20 billion dollars had been estimated as needed between 2025 to 2030 to address some of the NAP core issues… “which means we have to double up our efforts to be able mobilise support from in-country and also from different sources, foreign, bilateral, multilateral, and then also from philanthropy.”
He said in support of the implementation, there would be the need to create rigorous awareness on climate change adaptation, among Ghanaians, in customised language, for all stakeholders including traditional rulers, so they would know the risks and avoid actions that exacerbated the impact of climate change and improve the resilience of the people.
He said the solicited funds would be committed to core areas including agriculture, water infrastructure, climate change and health-related issues, ecosystems, disaster risks and cities.
He said while EPA would centrally seek funds for the implementation of the action plans, capacities of the sectors and district assemblies were being built so they would be able to also lunch their own resource mobilisation to run their actions.
Professor Nana Ama Browne Klutse, Executive Director of EPA, in an address read on her behalf, said the NAP was the outcome of a sustained collaboration among institutions, experts ad communities across the country and provided a national framework of building resilience in private sector, and in the districts while ensuring that adaptation remained inclusive and evidence based.
“The NAP represents a strategic and coordinated response to Ghana’s evolving climate risks…
“It is our commitment as a country to protect people and nature and to ensure that no Ghanaian is left behind in adapting to the devastating effect of climate change.”
Prof Klutse said since adaptation was a shared national responsibility, all stakeholders must come on board through the building of partnerships among government agencies, traditional and local authorities, development partners, CSOs, the private sector, media and communities to build a climate resilient Ghana that was equitable, sustainable and future-ready.
In an address read on behalf of the Acting Minister of Environment, Science and Technology by Madam Suweibatu Adam (ESQ), Chief Director of the Ministry, he said the NAP document represented Ghana’s most comprehensive documentation of actions and plans to effectively address the impact of climate change in the country.
He thanked the donors, Assemblies, scientists, communities and traditional leaders for involving in the NAP process and expressed the hope that they would also be involved in its implementation to secure and protect the country, its people, its nature and its future.
At the launching, partners were also engaged for possible collaboration, investments, and the next steps on the NAP implementation in Ghana.
GNA
Edited by Christabel Addo