Sunyani: The United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) has rolled out the implementation of a $5.3 million project nationwide to advance Ghana's circular economy. The circular economy significantly supports the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly those focused on sustainable consumption and production, responsible resource management, and climate action.
According to Ghana News Agency, the Ghana Circular Economy Center (GCEC) Project of the UN agency is partnering with the Ministry of Environment Science, and Technology for the implementation of the five-year project, funded by the Canadian government. The project implementation targets youth and women in helping to reshape the nation's agriculture, textiles, and plastic sectors. Mr. Joseph Yeboah, the Strategic Partnership Engagements Lead of the GCEC Project, announced that the Ho Technical University was hosting the project implementation, with the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) spearheading the agric and agro-processing sector. The University of Cape Coast and the Or Foundation are leading the plastics and the textiles sectors respectively.
Mr. Yeboah provided an overview of the project during a validation workshop on the gender and youth strategies and action plans for the GCEC project implementation in Sunyani. The workshop was attended by farmers, mostly women and youth, heads of departments and agencies, as well as agro-processing and waste management and sanitation firms. Mr. Yeboah stated that the project, among other objectives, sought to enhance circular economy-based inclusive economic prosperity and environmental state, particularly for women and youth in the country.
The project aims to increase the use of financial and/or business and technology development services by small-scale entrepreneurs supported by the GCEC, particularly women and youth. It also seeks to advance the adoption of circular economy technologies and practices by the private and informal sectors, supported by a strengthened local ecosystem. Besides training 2,000 small-scale entrepreneurs, Mr. Yeboah said the project would further raise $10 million in private capital.
He noted that Ghana generated about 1.1 million tonnes of plastic waste annually, with a low recovery rate of about 12 percent, and most plastics unmanaged. He emphasized that the informal sector is sidelined, with virgin plastic imports remaining dominant. Mr. Yeboah also highlighted that the nation imported over 143,000 tonnes of secondhand clothing annually, with up to 23 percent unsellable, unrecoverable, and discarded.
Mr. Eric Gyenin, the Country Project Coordinator for UNIDO, emphasized the need for collective contribution and urged for a strong collaborative approach and support for the project to achieve desirable outcomes and for the nation to derive optimum benefits from her circular economy.
