Sekondi: The Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly (STMA) has announced a significant initiative aimed at addressing the pressing waste management challenges in the metropolis through the development of an integrated bio digestion and recycling plant. Mr. Fredrick Faustinus Faidoo, the Chief Executive Officer of STMA, emphasized the need for this transformative solution in a meeting with a delegation from the C40 Climate Finance Facility.
According to Ghana News Agency, the initiative is aligned with Ghana's national climate goals and the global efforts under the Paris Agreement, aimed at steering the country towards sustainable, low-carbon urban development. Mr. Faidoo highlighted the critical bottlenecks at the community level, including inadequate infrastructure for waste collection, which leads to irregular pickups and health risks for residents due to indiscriminate dumping.
The rapid urbanization of Sekondi-Takoradi has overwhelmed the existing waste management systems, resulting in frequent breakdowns of low-efficiency waste trucks and limited community participation due to financial constraints and socio-cultural factors. This situation has contributed to air pollution, waste-borne diseases like cholera, and environmental degradation, with marginalized communities being disproportionately affected.
Organic waste, particularly food remains and sweepings, dominates household waste generation, exacerbating the problem when left uncollected. The Sofokrom landfill site is a case in point, operating without a landfill gas collection system, leading to uncontrolled greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The estimated emissions from decomposing waste could reach 225,000 metric tons CO2 equivalent by 2024.
Ghana, having ratified the Paris Agreement in 2016, is committed to reducing emissions by 15% unconditionally and up to 45% conditionally by 2030 from business-as-usual levels. Recent legislation, such as the Environmental Protection Act 2025, supports these commitments by integrating climate frameworks into local actions, including emission reductions in urban waste management.
The proposed waste management plant is envisioned as a holistic solution, utilizing anaerobic bio digestion for organic waste to produce biogas and compost while recycling plastics, metals, and other materials. This approach aims to improve efficiency in waste collection, reduce dumping through door-to-door services, and promote community education for better waste segregation.
At the Sofokrom site, the plant will divert waste from the landfill, thereby eliminating uncontrolled GHG emissions and potentially reducing emissions to an estimated 90,000 metric tons CO2 equivalent. This will enhance public health, promote sustainable agriculture through composting, empower communities, and create job opportunities.
Mr. Faidoo expressed the importance of C40's support in scaling up interventions and setting a model for other Ghanaian cities. The partnership with the C40 Climate Finance Facility aims to fund and implement this project, advancing Ghana's commitments under the Paris Agreement.
Mr. Yasar Cohen-Shah, Knowledge Officer at C40 Cities Finance Facility, expressed enthusiasm for the project, citing C40's decade-long efforts to support climate-smart infrastructure in southern hemisphere cities. He highlighted the facility's role in assisting cities like Sekondi-Takoradi in advancing projects towards financial readiness and implementation, with a focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions through innovative waste management solutions.
C40's previous experience in Accra's waste projects provides a hopeful precedent, with the aspiration that Sekondi-Takoradi could emerge as a regional leader in waste management, fostering knowledge exchange and scalability.
