By Jesse Ampah Owusu, GNA
Accra, July 27, GNA – Mr Eric Kwame Akomanyi, National Project Officer of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) Ghana, has urged city authorities to integrate migration and climate change into local planning.
He said the approach would enable cities to develop accurate migrant databases and improve planning for migrant integration amid increasing urban migration and climate-related challenges.
Mr Akomanyi made the recommendation at the end of an IOM project titled “Strengthening the Capacities of the City of Accra to Manage Human Mobility in the Context of Climate Change.”
The 24-month project, implemented by IOM Ghana in collaboration with the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), was designed to strengthen city-level understanding, planning and action at the intersection of climate change, human mobility and inclusive urban resilience.
A major component of the project was a participatory, gender-sensitive pilot initiative in Old Fadama, Accra, which combined flood risk reduction with waste-to-livelihood solutions.
The initiative included the rehabilitation of a 408-metre drain, establishment of a plastic shredding and waste hub, and training in entrepreneurship and financial literacy for selected participants.
Mr Akomanyi said many local authorities did not account for migrants in their planning processes despite migrants living and working within their jurisdictions.
“There are migrants that are coming into the city with limited options in terms of accessing information in the city. They need to identify and recognise them if there are issues around legitimacy and legal identity,” he said.
Mr Akomanyi said the project had established a Migration Desk at the AMA to enable migrants to access information on opportunities and services available in the city.
Mr Victor Kottey, Deputy Head of Waste Management at the AMA, said the project had supported the training of women, including some migrants, in recycling and waste polymerisation.
He said a recycling hub and waste polymerisation facility had been established to train more migrants to engage in waste management as a business enterprise.
Mr Kottey said the initiatives provided basic entry points for migrants who found themselves stranded because of the low capital required to undertake such activities.
GNA
Edited by Kenneth Sackey
Reporter: Jesse Ampah Owusu
Email: [email protected]