Two assemblies mainstream clean energy into their MTDPs

By Anthony Apubeo, GNA

Navrongo (U/E), July 3, GNA - The Kassena-Nankana Municipal Assembly and the Kassena-Nankana West District in the Upper East Region have mainstreamed clean energy for cooking into their Medium Term Development Plans (MTDPs).

This was made known at Navrongo in the Kassena-Nankana Municipality during an accountability workshop on Clean Cooking Initiative, organized by the Organization for Indigenous Initiatives and Sustainability (ORGIIS), an environment focused Non-Governmental Organization and sponsored by SNV, the Netherlands Development.

The programme attracted various stakeholders including District Planning Officers, assembly members, the Ghana Education Service, the Ghana Health Service, traditional rulers and the media among others from the two districts.

Additionally, the two assemblies have begun the process of gathering data from some selected communities and institutions in the two districts to develop strategic documents to enable them market the initiative for support from development partners.  

Mr Idrissu Andani, the Development Planning Officer of the Kassena-Nankana Municipal, commended the NGO and the funding agency for supporting the assemblies to mainstream the clean energy for cooking into their MTDPs adding that it is in line with the Climate Change and Vulnerability Programme all the assemblies in the country were expected to execute.

He said the programme also fits into the Greening Ghana Economy being implemented by government and gave the assurance that the assemblies would work hard to ensure that all the communities embraced the concept of clean energy for cooking.

Mr Tahiru Mohammed Salifu, the Development Planning Officer of the Kassena-Nankana West District, said the preliminary data gathered so far with the support from ORGIIS and SNV indicates that majority of the community members lacked knowledge about the existence of clean cooking stove providers in the area.

He said many women in the communities often travelled more than two kilometers from the community in search of fuel wood adding that some community members also relied on millet stocks and cow dung for cooking.

The community members contributing to the discussion called for a further reduction of the cost of LPG gas and cylinders and the provision of cooking stoves that use fewer fuel wood for cooking.

Mr Cifford Amoah Adagenera, the Programmes Manager of the NGO, cited the 2010 statistics available at the Renewable Energy Unit of the Ministry of Energy and said the three northern regions were the most affected in terms of fuel wood consumption.

He said the Northern Region is leading with 78 per cent, the Upper West Region 75 per cent and the Upper East Region 62 per cent respectively.

Mr Adagenera expressed optimism that with the mainstreaming and the prioritization of the cleaner energy for cooking into the assemblies, it would help address the challenges of environmental degradation in the regions.

Mr Julius Mr Awaregy, the Coordinator of the NGO, said smoke from the traditional methods of cooking contributed to a range of chronic illnesses and acute health conditions such as stroke, lung cancer and other respiratory illnesses with women and children being the most affected.

He said it is against this background that his outfit with funding support from SNV, the Netherlands Development Organization, was implementing the “Voice for Change Partnership Project”, which is aimed at implementing the cleaner energy components  including the use of LPG and other improved cooking stoves in the Kassena-Nankana Municipal and Kassena-Nankana West District  in the Upper East Region.

Mr Dramani Bukari, the Energy Advisor of SNV, who commended the two assemblies for taking the initiatives, appealed to the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development to ensure that all MMDAs in the country mainstreamed clean cooking into their MTDPs to help attain the Sustainable Development Goals.

GNA

Read Full Story