Editorial by Ghanaian Times: Prove Ghana GrEEn project beneficial undertaking

It is reported that more than GH¢5 million grant has been awarded to 99 micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in the country under the SNV Ghana GrEEn project.

This is a project introduced in May 2020 under the patronage of the country’s Ministry of Local Government and Rural Develop­ment as a 4-year undertaking.

It is aimed at creating green jobs and promoting a green and circular economy in the country.

To achieve these objectives, the project will improve skills and increase access to finance for the youth, MSMEs, women, and returning migrants.

The United Nations Envi­ronment Programme (UNEP) defines a green economy as “one that results in improved human well-being and social equity, while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities.”

Experts say the concept is based on a low-carbon economic model that targets low energy consumption and efficiency, and reduction in pollution and emissions.

With this as a brief background, we can say that eco­nomic activities that support the concept can be described as green jobs or businesses.

Thus, agriculture, horticul­ture, and jobs in nuclear and solar energy fall under the green economy.

Unfortunately, the four-year Ghana GrEEn project is being implemented in only two of the country’s 16 regions, namely Ashanti and Western.

That notwithstanding, we cannot overlook the benefits the project is bringing into the country, as we can see its impact on the country at large.

We believe it is the same concept driving the Green Ghana Day, for example, which was introduced in 2021 by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Ad­do as part of a national afforesta­tion and restoration program to restore the country’s lost forest cover and to contribute to the global efforts to mitigate climate change.

We think the project is gradual­ly achieving its aim of creating green jobs and promoting the green and circular economy in the country.

Take, for instance, the fact that under its skills development component, over 6,500 people had acquired basic life, business, and technical skills through train­ing and internships, with 4,900 receiving placement to increase their skills in energy, agri-food, and water systems.

We believe the GH¢5-mil­lion given the 99 MSMEs will increase the number of jobs and thereby bring relief to some hith­erto unemployed persons.

We know these are private enterprises that aim at expanding to employ more persons and improve their products and services, but most often find it difficult to access finance from the conventional financial space, which is dominated by the banks.

The demands of banks to offer credit are such that most of these MSMEs do not qualify to apply.

We, therefore, hope these ben­eficiary MSMEs would leverage the opportunity offered to them to let the whole world know that the SNV Ghana GrEEn project is not a wasted effort.

When this happens, individuals and organisations involved, including the European Union, would love to support similar future projects.

On our part, we pray that after the appraisal of the current four-year project, there will be the opportunity and desire to extend the GrEEn Ghana project to other regions of the country to help boost their economies.