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Stakeholders call for deeper consultation on Ghana’s national energy transition framework
Participants in renewable energy and efficiency have called for deeper consultation on Ghana’s national energy transition framework to avoid dire financial consequences on local economies.
For them, energy transition was important as the whole world was moving towards that and Ghana could not be left out, however, there were a lot of implications in the quest to move towards cleaner energy.
In a day’s youth participation in energy transition and domestic resources mobilisation workshop organised by the Strategic Youth Network Development (SYND), they indicated that the energy transition model used by developed countries could not be used for African countries that were still struggling to grow.
Dr Robert Bright Mawuko Sogbadji, leading expert in Nuclear physics and renewable energy explained that Ghana’s National Energy Framework seeks to minimise energy related indoor air pollution and its related illnesses but Ghana was reliant on the oil and gas industry and that if we say we were going to hastily transition, it meant that we were going to lose out on revenue.
For instance, he said Ghana raked in $1.6 billion from petroleum revenue in 2022 and, therefore, any rush in energy transition would create financial loss to the country.
He said it was important for all countries in Africa to strive to achieve energy access because failure to do so would affect sustainable development.
In doing so, he said efforts must be made to put in place improved infrastructure along the value chain from generation to distribution.
Dr Sogbadji also said that even as African countries strived for the right financing for sustainable energy transition, there must be the political will to push through policies that would help to achieve net zero.
“The various governments must also ensure that there is ease of doing business, aside from implementing policies that will attract private capital,” she added.
Denis Gyeyir, Senior Programmes of Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI) said the energy sector was one of the high emitting sectors which was key if Ghana was to achieve its net zero ambitions.
This, he said, would have a significant impact on women and children who are the main gatherers of firewood.
However, he said limitations such as challenging investment climate, uncertainty of available resources, limited technology capacity, insufficient experience in renewable energy development, human and socio-economic challenges and information gap were some barriers to renewable energy development in the country.
He called for an information labelling to display information to be available to customers to help encourage energy efficiency in the country.
BY BENEDICTA GYIMAAH FOLLEY
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UNODC partners GFA Foundation on Prison advocacy and mentorship programme
The GFA Foundation and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) have agreed to work together to advocate for anti-discrimination and the elimination of stigmatization for prisoners and prisons.
This partnership was agreed, in principle, during a meeting at the Home of Football (GFA Head Office) between the Director of the GFA Foundation and the UNODC Team led by Mr. Christoph Capelle, an Associate Expert in Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice and the Coordinator of the prison and penal reform project in Ghana.
Welcoming the Team to the Home of Football, the Director of the GFA Foundation, Mr. Malcolm Frazier Appeadu briefed the team about the GFA Foundation – Ghana Prisons Project which has covered 6 prisons across the country already.
He indicated that the Foundation is liaising with the Ghana Prisons Service to commence the second and third pillars of the project, which are the coaches and referees training programs as well as the advocacy and mentorship initiatives.
He said that the GFA Foundation will welcome partners for the execution of the second phase of the project which will include Ankaful Maximum Security Prison, Kumasi Central Prison, Sekondi Central Prison and three other prison facilities.
In his response, Mr. Christoph Capelle commended the GFA for the GFA Foundation – Ghana Prisons Project which seeks to use the power of football to promote the wellbeing, reformation, rehabilitation and reintegration of inmates of Ghana’s prisons into society.
Mr. Capelle said that UNODC is looking forward to a collaboration with the GFA Foundation on possible programs for both the medium and long term to support football and sports jobs and skills development in Ghana’s prisons.
He extended an invitation to the GFA Foundation to be part of an assessment of overall prison rehabilitation programmes including the use of sports by their international consultant at the Ankaful Maximum Security Prison.
There will be a football match and donation of footballs, sports items and equipment to the prison facility.
Present at the meeting were Mr. Kwame Koramoah, an officer at the GFA Foundation and Integrity Office, Helena Adobea Ofori, Associate Programme Officer, UNODC and Caleb Elorm Agodzo, Administrative Officer, UNODC.
It will be recalled that in 2020, The UNODC and FIFA signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to tackle corruption and crime in and through sports and pledged to consider ways in which football can be used as a vehicle to strengthen youth resilience to crime and substance use through the provision of life skills training.
The MOU was renewed last year by FIFA President Gianni Infantino and UNODC Executive Director Ghada Waly in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.
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Gomoa West: NPP, NDC supporters clash over commissioning of DRIP equipment
Supporters of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) on Monday morning clashed over the commissioning of machinery for the District Road Infrastructure Project in the Gomoa West District of the Central Region.
According to Citi News sources, the conflict began when NDC supporters questioned the decision to display images of Bismark Basie Nkum, the NPP’s Gomoa West parliamentary candidate on the DRIP machinery.
This disagreement quickly escalated, almost leading to a physical altercation between the two groups.
Baisie Nkum, who doubles as the District Chief Executive (DCE) for Gomoa West, further claimed that the Member of Parliament for the area, Richard Gyan Mensah, brandished a pistol and issued threats against the NPP’s local leadership.
A viral video circulating on social media captured the DCE accusing MP Richard Gyan Mensah of pulling out a gun and threatening NPP supporters during the heated incident.
Source: Citinewsroom.com
