President of Ghana affirms commitment to tackle climate crisis

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President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has affirmed Ghana’s commitment to joining global efforts to tackle the climate crisis and promote a greener planet.

“For Ghana, climate change is a real and immediate, affecting our farmers, coastlines, and communities,” he emphasised, calling on nations to collaborate in limiting the global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Speaking at the 29th Conference of the Parties (COP 29) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Baku, Azerbaijan, he cautioned that no nation was exempt from the effects of climate change.

Ghana became a party to the UNFCCC in September 1995.

President Akufo-Addo said that, in alignment with the country’s environmental goals, his administration had overseen the planting of 50 million trees under the Green Ghana Project since 2017.

He also mentioned the introduction of the National Electric Vehicle Policy, which aims to accelerate Ghana’s transition to cleaner energy.

The government envisions that by 2045, the sale or importation of new petrol or diesel vehicles will be banned.

Additionally, in accordance with Article Four of the Paris Agreement and UNFCCC decisions, Ghana has updated its nationally determined contributions (NDCs) for the period 2020-2030.

This update includes 19 policy areas, and 47 adaptation and mitigation programmes designed to build the resilience of more than 38 million people,

reduce greenhouse gas emissions, create over one million jobs, and improve air quality.

President Akufo-Addo warned that if swift action were not taken to tackle climate change and its adverse effects, the future costs would be overwhelming and undermine the socio-economic progress achieved today.

“As a father and a grandfather, I question what we will leave behind. What world will we leave behind? Our children’s future hinges on our decisions.

“Let COP 29 here in Azerbaijan mark a pivotal shift from dialogue to decisive action,” he advised.

The President urged global partners to honor their commitments by ensuring that concessional financing for sustainable development in Africa was accessible and free from the burden of debt.

Countries that have ratified the UNFCCC, a multilateral treaty adopted in 1992, gather annually to assess progress, and negotiate collective actions to combat climate change.

Since the Convention’s adoption in 1994, it has served as the foundation for international climate negotiations, leading to key agreements such as the Paris Agreement (2015).

This agreement aims to limit global warming to well below two degrees Celsius by the century’s end and strives to keep it within a safer threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius.

The ongoing COP 29 (November 11-22) has brought together world leaders, negotiators from UNFCCC member states, business leaders, youth, climate scientists, indigenous groups, and civil society to share insights and best practices for enhancing global, collective, and inclusive climate action.

Key priorities of the meeting include securing a new climate finance goal, ensuring all countries have the resources to take stronger climate action, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and building resilient communities.

The conference will also focus on the next round of national climate plans, which countries are currently developing ahead of next year’s deadline.

The aim is to ensure these plans are bolder, fully implementable, and investable, with a focus on transitioning away from fossil fuels and keeping global warming on track to stay within 1.5 degrees Celsius.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) states that fossil fuels—coal, oil, and gas—are the primary drivers of global climate change, responsible for over 75 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions and nearly 90 per cent of all carbon dioxide emissions.

Experts explain that greenhouse gases trap heat from the sun, leading to global warming and climate change.

In its Global Climate 2021 Report, the WMO emphasized that the world was now warming at the fastest rate in recorded history, altering weather patterns and disrupting the natural balance, which posed significant risks to human life and all other forms of life on Earth.

“Record atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations and associated accumulated heat have propelled the planet into uncharted territory, with far-reaching repercussions for current and future generations,” the report indicated.

By Stephen Asante

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