Floods. Drought. Tidal waves. Homelessness. Deaths. All of these have one thing common – climate change! The Earth suffers from the effects of human activities as well as from the effects of natural phenomenon. Land degradation, loss of biodiversity, air, land and water pollution; and the results of climate change account for the major challenges confronting the Earth.
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) issues the Global Environment Outlook (GEO) periodically to update the world on environmental issues. GEO #6 which was issued in 2019 challenged decision makers to take bold and decisive action to address pressing issues affecting the environment. Ghana’s Green Ghana Initiative introduced in 2021 as a national afforestation or reforestation programme is thus laudable and must be sustained.
The need to address challenges affecting the environment is connected to the broader aspiration of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS) of the United Nations. The 17 SDGS represent the UN’s commitment to protecting the earth and its people while ensuring prosperity and peace for all. Titled “Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” the document contains 17 action-packed goals.
The thirteenth SDG provides for “urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts”. In specific terms, SDG #13 has four targets which are as follows:
13.1 Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries
13.2 Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies and planning
13.3 Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning
13.a Implement the commitment undertaken by developed-country parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to a goal of mobilizing jointly $100 billion annually by 2020 from all sources to address the needs of developing countries in the context of meaningful mitigation actions and transparency on implementation and fully operationalize the Green Climate Fund through its capitalization as soon as possible.
13.b Promote mechanisms for raising capacity for effective climate change-related planning and management in least developed countries and small island developing States, including focusing on women, youth and local and marginalized communities.
The Green Climate Fund is a global fund established by 194 countries in 2010 to boost Climate Change mitigation measures and to help vulnerable societies to adapt to the unavoidable impacts of climate change. It also supports developing countries to limit or reduce their greenhouse gases and also to adapt to climate change. The fund is headquartered in Songdo, Incheon City in the Republic of Korea.
Floods continue to cause havoc to people and properties across the globe. Ghana is not spared the devastation resulting from the movement of water across unprepared territories. The combined effect of the spillage of the Bagre Dam in Burkina Faso and the Weija Dam here in Ghana is a source of concern to us here in Ghana. Spilling both dams, displacing people and destroying properties has effectively become annual phenomenon. This is why the value of the Green Climate Fund cannot be overstated.
The Green Climate Fund (GFC) provides countries with direct access to the fund and supports readiness and preparatory activities to enhance country ownership and access to the Fund. The Readiness Programme provides resources for strengthening institutional capacities of countries. The Government of Ghana receives support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the Adaptation Fund as well as other multilateral and bilateral agencies. The GCF is definitely one of the useful resources in Ghana’s fight against the biting effects of climate change. Citizens are encouraged to support government’s efforts in protecting the environment through judicious use of material support from the fund.