EU satisfied with progress of projects in Ghana

Norbert Neuser, the Head of European Union Parliamentary Delegation, has expressed satisfaction about the progress of the Union’s sponsored projects in the country.

“So far we are impressed with the level of progress on some of the funded EU projects in Ghana and we hope to expand to other areas to help fight poverty in the country and across the continent”, he said.

Mr Neuser said this on Thursday in Accra at a press briefing, after visiting some of the EU projects in Kumasi and Accra.

The seven-member team of European Parliamentarians visited Accra Agblogbloshie e-Waste Management Site, ECOWAS Multinational Coordination Centre, Cocoa Plantation in Bekwai, Logs and Lumber Processing Company in Kumasi.

The German government in partnership with Ghana's Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI) in 2019 commissioned three projects at Old Fadama located in the Agbogbloshie enclave in Accra to strengthen the capacity of scrap dealers.

The project which includes a technical training centre to equip scrap dealers with the knowledge and the skills to dismantle electronic waste in an environmentally friendly manner, health post and a football pitch is the first phase of a comprehensive electronic waste management project.

Touching on the project, Mr Neuser was impressed with the level of work at the site and commended authorities for ensuring a swift execution of the facility to strengthen small scale recyclers through capacity building on an individual and institutional level.

He said under the project, scrap dealers would be taught how to dismantle e-waste materials without burning, separate plastics from cables without burning adding that, the second phase of the project would see the construction of an e-waste holding centre.

He said the aim of the project was to reduce the risks associated with the business by implementing best practices for collection and dismantling.

Touching on the ECOWAS Multinational Coordination Centre, Mr Neuser said, the newly refurbished facility would provide Maritime Law enforcement officials, cross-border staff and commercial maritime actors with the skills to monitor, gather information and enhance profile of vessels of interest.

The Centre is situated in Osu and serve as ‘ZONE F’ countries including Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire, Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Senegal and Togo.

However, a similar infrastructure exists in Cotonou, Benin Republic, to respond to Security threats and other maritime issues along the territorial waters of ‘ZONE E’ countries which includes Niger, Benin and Nigeria on the Gulf of Guinea.

He commended Logs and Lumber Processing Company for leading the way in exporting only legal timber products to the European markets.

He applauded the management of the company for utilizing the timber to the fullest, where even the waste products are turned into various products for exports.

Ghana has signed the Voluntary Partnership Agreement with the European Union to ensure that only legal timber with some required specifications were exported to the European market.

He the EU support to the country’s cocoa plantation in Bekwai in the Ashanti Region has encouraged more youth especially women to venture in cocoa farming to earn a living, adding that their outfit would continue to support interventions to curb poverty in the country and beyond.