CeSIS recommends amendment of Petroleum Revenue Management Act

The Centre for Social Impact Studies (CeSIS) has recommended an amendment of the Petroleum Revenue Management Act that outlines as many as 14 priority areas for petroleum revenue to be expended.

The policy advocacy group says revenues from the sector should rather be concentrated on not more than three priority sectors whilst other areas are catered for through regular budgeting process.

Petroleum revenues present government with an additional source of funding to execute different development agenda.

But CeSIS has expressed worry at findings in the Public Interest Accountability Committee (PIAC) reports on the quality of spending of petroleum revenues over the years.

According to the 2013 PIAC Report, an amount of 23 million Ghana cedis earmarked for capacity building from 2011 to 2013 went into the procurement of goods and services for the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources and National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) as well as an additional two million cedis to support the creative industry.

“While admittedly these expenditures are all towards national development, CeSIS is nevertheless worried about a creeping perception that petroleum revenues are "free monies" that should be allocated to any sector of the Ghanaian society,” said the group.

The PIAC report has recommended that government conducts an immediate evaluation of the effectiveness and impacts of all the projects and programmes that have been funded with revenues from the petroleum sector.

The report also says government should “focus its expenditure under the capacity building priority area on interventions that will directly enhance the capacity and capabilities of Ghanaians to play a bigger role in the emerging oil and gas industry as envisaged in the Local Content Policy and Regulation”.

A long-term National Development Plan (NDP) remains crucial to guide the utilization of oil revenue in order “to have a consistent application of the resources to planned projects”, says the African Center for Energy Policy (ACEP).

Executive Director of CeSIS, Richard Ellimah, says the spending on capacity building, for instance, should be restricted to three areas.

These include support to regulatory agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Petroleum Commission to undertake specialised training in oil and gas regulation; provision of equipment and modern machinery to the regulatory bodies to enable them regulate the sector; and training of a corps of young Ghanaians in oil and gas to be positioned to capture key managerial positions and skilled vocations in the oil and gas industry.

The PIAC was established under the Petroleum Revenue Management Act to provide a public oversight over Ghana's oil and gas industry.

But CeSIS is disappointed at the lack of support for the Committee.

Mr. Ellimah says in the face of mounting corruption allegations and concerns over misuse of petroleum revenue, it is imperative that PIAC is strengthened to perform its oversight role well.

“For purposes of transparency and accountability, government has a duty to empower this committee and ensure it builds the needed confidence in the public that their oil and gas resources are being utilised efficiently to support national development,” he said.

Executive Director of ACEP, Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam, has observed the integrity of Ghana’s oil and gas resources will be better protected when PIAC is given a strong legal status.

He believes such capacity is critical to enable the Committee undertake its own independent analysis and technical work on the use of the country’s oil revenues.

Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh 

PACJA releases handbook on INDCs for Climate Change practitioners

The Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA) has released its latest publication, “Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs): A Handbook for Practitioners”. This publication is vital as many countries are in the process of submitting or formulating their INDCs pledges.

An INDC is a government's proposed 'contribution' to the United Nations as to what it will do about climate change. The INDCs put forward by countries will form a key input to the negotiations leading towards the 2015 Paris climate agreement.

The INDCs handbook comes at a time when most countries missed the 31 March 2015 as encouraged by the Lima Call for Action – only 35 countries, including Gabon as the only African country, have formally submitted their INDCs to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Mexico, Norway, the Russian Federation, Switzerland and the United States are amongst countries that have already communicated their INDCs. A second implicit submission deadline has now been set for October 1, 2015, after which submissions are still allowed, but will not be included in the UNFCCC’s synthesis report, which will be made available to Parties in time for the 21st Conference of Parties in Paris, December 2015.

 

The Alliance's strategic role in influencing policy from the national to the regional and international level remains the driving force for its focus on INDCs.

With over 50 African countries expected to submit their INDCs to the Secretariat of UNFCCC and the 15th Ordinary Session of AMCEN's Decision in Cairo on INDCs, the role of African civil society in actively participating and contributing to the process from the national to the regional level cannot be over-emphasized.

“For African civil society, INDCs must be a total package that takes into account all the elements of adaptation, mitigation, finance, technology development and transfer, capacity building and means of implementation,” said a release from PACJA.

 

For the continent and other developing countries, INDCs should include the international support needed as well as their proposed domestic actions for both mitigation and adaptation and also for loss and damage, in a way that reinforces an equitable global deal, and reflects the demands and needs of people.

Green Climate Fund: governments requested to accelerate signing of contributions

The Green Climate Fund has signed US$4 billion equivalent in contributions as of 30 April 2015, representing 42 percent of the amount that was committed during the Fund's initial pledging conference in 2014.

The Fund is authorized to allocate resources once at least 50 percent of the total amount pledged at GCF's High-Level Pledging Conference in Berlin in November 2014 has been made available, which is at least US$ 4.7 billion equivalent.

Contributing governments agreed to this threshold and set the deadline in order to enable the Fund to begin the critical phase of allocating resources to low-emission and climate-resilient projects and programmes in developing countries before the 21st Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Paris.

"The Green Climate Fund is grateful to all governments who have been able to conclude their contribution agreements on time," said Héla Cheikhrouhou, Executive Director of the Fund. "We now call upon all other governments to urgently finalize their agreements to ensure the Fund can start allocating its resources as planned".

The contributions signed since GCF's Pledging Conference in Berlin, in part or full, are from the following countries: Austria, Belgium, Chile, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Iceland, Latvia, Lichtenstein, Luxemburg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Contributions per capita vary significantly among contributing countries, with Sweden providing the largest contribution to GCF per capita.

In 2010, countries agreed at COP 16 in Cancun, Mexico, that a Green Climate Fund would be established to scale up new and additional, predictable and adequate climate financing to developing countries. The Cancun Agreements specified that a significant share of new multilateral funding for climate action should flow through this Fund, in quantities considerably larger than the initial pledges made to GCF to date, which account to US$ 10.2 billion equivalent.

As the designated financial mechanism of UNFCCC, the Fund has a central role to play in mobilizing the financial resources required to enable a paradigm shift towards low-emission and climate-resilient pathways in developing countries, to achieve the goal of keeping a global temperature rise under 2 degrees Celsius.

"GCF is a key indicator for new climate finance resources, making them visible and possible to track," said Ms. Cheikhrouhou. "This is a test for governments to deliver on their vision to establish GCF as the primary global investment vehicle on climate finance under the UNFCCC," she explained.

"Climate finance and the Green Climate Fund are a decisive building block of the Paris universal climate agreement," emphasized Ms. Cheikhrouhou, adding that "the success of the Fund is an incentive for the outcome of the Paris agreement."

Susu collectors develop preposition for effective regulation of sector

The Ghana Cooperative Susu Collectors Association (GCSCA) has observed an improvement in the control of clients’ savings since the Bank of Ghana started implementing new regulations for operators.

Activities of individual susu collectors and enterprises fall under the tier four of the new licensing regime. 

General Secretary of the Association, Obed Yaw Asamany, says there are over 500 registered members, out of which 363 have been issued with the Bank of Ghana’s operating license.

According to him, the sector is surviving competition based on clients’ trust and flexibility service delivery.

“In the various districts and communities, they are scattered around and they provide the financial intermediary services to the public... the market women appreciate the work they do and it’s very convenient; they take banking to the doorstep of the non-banked in the population,” he stated.

Traditional susu collectors have in years past provided an informal means for Ghanaians to save and access credit, mostly serving low-income earners.

The industry has however been fraught with fraud and other illegalities as available statistics indicate about 69 percent of susu collectors are not registered.

 

The GCSCA has therefore intensified capacity building of members to deliver efficient and affordable financial services to the non-banked.

The Association is also receiving support from the Business Sector Advocacy Challenge (BUSAC) Fund to undertake a stakeholder’ consultative process to promote a broadened regulatory framework for the susu sector.

Project Consultant, Felix Quansah says the security of clients’ savings is of paramount interest in the process.

“GCSCA was able to secure the mandate of Bank of Ghana to do self-regulation; however this mandate did not extend compliance, enforcement and sanction, so the effectiveness of the self-regulation is constrained,” he observed.

The consultative process is therefore aimed to putting together a preposition for consideration by the Bank of Ghana for incorporation into the regulatory framework.

The first consultative engagement, involving the Bank of Ghana, the Ghana Revenue Authority, local assembly, the susu collectors and the savings public was held in Kumasi.

The Association is hopeful a final proposal to the Bank of Ghana will be ready before end of year.

Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh 

Farming with technologies to overcome an unfair climate

Rebecca Butenya is a 60 year old mother of five. For the past ten years, her family’s main source of livelihood has been her mango farm at Juapong in the Volta Region of Ghana.

“Our children are happy when all the fruits come out fine and we are also excited because we can sell enough to send them to school,” she says.

Until recently, she regarded her farming activities are lucrative. Her family’s plantation has been severely devastated by high fruit drop due to disease attack.

The business of farming is no longer easy, she lamented. “Fruit flies disturb us a lot; the fruits suffer and our income levels are heavily affected because we don’t harvest bountifully due to the diseases”.

Rebecca’s worry is exacerbated by the changing climate. “We also suffer when the rains don’t come as expected,” she said.

Pests, diseases and climate change remain the bane to Ghana’s citrus value chain, raising fears of potential job losses at as the country loses its competitive advantage in citrus exports to Europe.

VOMEGA’s intervention

The Volta Mango Growers Association (VOMEGA), a smallholder mango producers’ cooperative, has been exploring means to provide members with support to meet the export market requirements. This includes climate-smart production techniques and practices.

Ghana’s Volta region has a vast arable land suitable for mango cultivation, but climate change has affected the soil and groundwater retention.

According to Chairman of the Association, Moses Abledu, the challenge of fruit flies and other insects on farms is compounded by the severity of weather patterns.

“If the time comes for the fruits to flower, we don’t experience much flowering; farmers therefore lose their yield in the process,” he stated.

The concern of climate change runs through the process of production through to harvesting and marketing of produce.

“When it rains, it’s difficult to cart produce from the farmhouse to the market centres,” Moses noted. “We don’t get money to protect our farms against these flies and the few harvest too we lose to poor transportation and marketing”.

Application of ICTs

VOMAGA has the ultimate aim of exposing members to new technologies and innovations to address the constraints of pests, diseases and climate change, including the application of GPS and GIS technologies.

This will involve the use satellite and remote sensing data to assist member farmers in their agro-meteorological information service decision making through a mobile text messaging device.  

Solomon Elorm Allavi of Syecomp Ghana Ltd, an ICT firm, says the deployment of geospatial technologies to address production constraints is a key demand within the field of quality assurance, documentation, risk management, tracking and tracing in agriculture.

“The utilization of satellite and remote sensing data to assist farmers in making informed decisions in appropriate agri-input application, optimum water use for irrigation and field boundary delineation – farm mapping – is a game changer,” he said.

But accessing such technologies to enhance farm productivity comes at a cost, majority of the farmers cannot afford. For now, they are only exposed to training sessions in pruning, sanitation and other basic climate-smart farming practices.

Fifty-five year old father of four, Moses Klu, has been producing mangoes since 1999, long enough to take climate change into consideration in his entire production stages.

He regards the erratic rainfall pattern as a natural phenomenon, which he can’t do anything about.  “If you want to look at the weather, you rely on forecast for good predictability which is difficult to come by and accessing irrigation facilities on farms is also an expensive venture,” he lamented.

He is however excited the rains have been good for the mango farmers since the beginning of the year. “I anticipate good harvest this season,” Mr. Klu expressed.

Yet, even in seasons of abundant rainfall, the farmers need appropriate scientific knowledge on the weather, soil, water and crop-related conditions to successfully deal with climate variation.

The use of ICTs to mitigate the effects of the climate change therefore needs a boost in a form of technical and financial investments to the actors in the sector.

Countries have prioritized agriculture as a critical focus for climate change adaptation, in acknowledgement of the sector’s vulnerability to climatic impacts.

Developing countries, like Ghana, are most vulnerable and technologies are often highlighted as a crucial resource for ensuring effective adaptation in agriculture.

Technology priority under UNFCCC process

The role of technology has been emphasized in the Fifth Assessment Report of Working Group Two of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the agriculture sector has been prioritized by 84 per cent of Parties in their Technology Needs Assessments.

The Technology Executive Committee (TEC) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has recognized the need for appropriate policies to support countries in applying adaptation technologies to meet the objectives of the UNFCCC.

In the future, local farmers should be able to use technology tools to monitor plot-specific information from satellite measurements.

These concerns should engage the attention of the 21^st UNFCCC Conference of Parties (COP21) in Paris later this year.

“There is also the need for more awareness and training programmes on climatic change impact  on agriculture to be instituted to increase outreach to smallholder farmers in Ghana,” observed Solomon.

These interventions, the farmers noted, are critical to ensure livelihoods, employment opportunities and potential foreign exchange earnings are not eluding individual farmers, communities and the nation.

VOMEGA’s Moses Abledu is advocating a national drive by the government to support smallholder farmers in the adoption of ICT-based technologies to mitigate the impacts of climate change.

“How we send our children to school to reach the highest level is our priority and through this people will see that there are opportunities to earn good income from mango growing,” he said. “We can achieve this when the conditions under which we produce are conducive”.

And this, to the farmers, is a means to an end – they want to be to be able to meet the educational needs of their children.

“If we are getting some training on how to control the pests and also how to better manage our lands in these challenging climate times, I hope this would yield the necessary results so that our families can continue to survive on the farm,” said Rebecca.

Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh

Soya industry attracts attention of Venture Capital Trust Fund

The Venture Capital Trust Fund (VCTF) wants a substantial portion of its Agricultural Fund to go into soya value chain.

The Fund’s Board recently approved the Gh20million facility to promote agricultural financing.

According to Chief Executive Officer of the Trust Fund, Daniel Duku, there are potentials in the soya industry which requires adequate funding.

“That is why we will be convincing the Board to allocate a portion of the Agric Fund to the soya industry,” he said.

The VCTF established the Soya Value Chain Project with the objective of financing seed germination and production of soya beans for the poultry industry.

The initiative targets nucleus farmers, out-growers and farmer-based organizations to build partnerships with key institutions, especially incubators and centres of innovation, to promote entrepreneurship.

Oil miller, Kwasi Akomea Kyemanteng, has his company processing soya beans into soya cake and oil to mainly serve the local poultry industry.

He says there are dire constraints in the soya value chain, including access to soya beans as raw material for processing, power crisis and the preference of poultry farmers to source foreign feed.

“Ghana should put in place policies that will ensure the value chain in Ghana works,” he said.

It has been observed farmers prefer growing maize and cowpea due to the pricing advantage compared to the low prices of soya.

 

To promote soya production, the Crops Research Institute of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has a critical role to play in the entire value chain.

Increasing the linkage between research, farmers and extension remains critical to improve production levels, says Dr. Stephen Amoah, research scientist at the CRI.

His Institute has been developing improved crop varieties that are resistant to pests and diseases and others that are resistant or tolerant to shattering, which is a major production constraint.

Dr. Amoah says provision of adequate information to farmers and extension requires regular funding sources to sustain the service.

The Venture Capital Trust Fund is seeking an alliance with the Export Development and Agricultural Investment Fund (EDAIF) to grow the agriculture sector.

“There is the need for us to be able to work together. We have started this initiation with the Minister [of Agriculture] who is quite enthused and optimistic that this can grow. So all sectors of agric is going to be looked at with this alliance,” Mr. Duku stated.

Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh

When the State fails to compensate the workman…

In the line of duty, many a Ghanaian worker gets injured.

And while there is the Workmen’s Compensation Law which prescribes monetary relief to victims, government has for over ten years failed to honor its obligation to some victims.

Peter Boateng is one of such victims the retired civil servant is still waiting for his compensation since he was injured in 2008.

He suffered a complex fracture of the elbow whilst on a mobile blood donation session in Kumasi and was diagnosed to be 40 percent incapacitated.

“It was a horrible experience and it has been as at now,” he moans.

The Workman’s Compensation Law promotes occupational and industrial safety and health. The Law holds employers liable for personal injury a worker suffers by accident arising out of, and in the course of his or her employment.

The law stipulates the compensation should be paid within three months.

Enquiries by Luv News suggest private sector employers are duly complying, but for public sector employees there is never hope in sight to receive compensation.

 

Mr. Boateng, for instance, has had to wait in vain for seven years for his money, whose value continues to drop by the day.

“I have been paying visits to the national labour office since then, but till date, I don’t know when the compensation will be given me,” he said.

Information available to Luv News indicates there are several individuals suffering similar fate. Over 20 cases are currently pending at the Kumasi Labour Office alone, with claims ranging between 1,000 and 30,000 Ghana cedis.

Claimants include health, fire, police and military personnel.

According to officials at the National Labour Office, the necessary processes have been completed but government has yet to release funds for payment.

Peter Boateng appeals for expedited action from government to give him his due and also help instill confidence in people currently in employment to keep being committed to duty.

“Because it has been a long time and it has had great psychological effect on me and my family, likewise the rest who are also involved. It dampens morale of officers who are involved in working to uplift the economy of the country,” he observed.

Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh 

Ghana to get bio-repository facility to aid research in tropical diseases

Ghana is not out of the woods yet in terms of the country’s disease burden as recent data shows the impact of health problems is higher than estimated.

The Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research (KCCR) has therefore committed to develop a critical mass of research scientists to conduct research into tropical and related diseases that are of national and regional importance.

Current research activities at the KCCR include malaria, tuberculosis, onchocerciasis, buruli ulcer and elephantiasis.

“What we are seeking to do is to keep on finding some answers; so for example on buruli ulcer, how best can we improve on the treatment?” quizzed Dr. Ellis Owusu-Dabo, Scientific Director of the KCCR.

Together with its partners, the KCCR is putting up a cold house to create a bio-repository of human and biological samples for teaching and research. The project, to be completed before end of 2015, is funded by the VW Foundation at a cost of €250,000.

The building will house freezers and fridges with the state-of-the-art facilities to help track diseases and populations in answering important research questions.

According to Dr. Owusu-Dabo, the cold house will operate in accordance with standard rules and regulations which will be stipulated by the Ethics and Institutional Board Committees.

“It’s good to have a repository where samples are kept, research questions are raised and then the answers sought on the basis of the creation of the bio-repository,” he noted. “So when we do have for example sputum samples, is there a way that we can go back and look at community X and say that on the basis of the samples we do have, community X is likely to be prone to resistance strains of tuberculosis?”

The research works of the KCCR are largely aligned to the research agenda of Ghana – the Centre currently working with the Ghana Health Service to conduct the first-ever drug resistance study for pulmonary tuberculosis in the country.

The Centre hosts the African Research Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases and also serves as the research wing of the College of Health Sciences at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST).

Vice-Chancellor of the KNUST, Prof. Otoo Ellis is enthused at the establishment of the cold house facility at the KCCR.

“With time, you need to continuously upgrade your system; the cold house is one of the critical things that we need because you need to be able to store your samples, keep them in a state where you don’t have variations,” he said.

The University has the core business of teaching, research and service and entrepreneurship training.

Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh 

Over 500 new city actions featured on UN Climate ambition portal

To coincide with Earth Day, over 500 new city actions, showcasing a wealth of inspiring climate action, are being featured on a UN-hosted website, with the aim of building momentum for the upcoming global climate agreement in Paris.

Actions and targets, communicated by cities ranging from Amsterdam, Rio de Janeiro to Yokohama, range from increases in energy efficiency and deployment of renewables to green procurement and adaptation action.

The Non-State Actor Zone for Climate Action (NAZCA) portal <http://climateaction.unfccc.int/> was launched last year at the UN climate change conference in Lima by Manuel Pulgar Vidal, President of COP20.

It is demonstrating the sheer wealth of climate actions of key non-state actors including municipalities, regions and investors in order to inspire others to raise their ambition in support of the new universal climate agreement.

Cities produce around 70% of energy-related emissions and their activities to reduce these while building resilience are crucial for supporting governments as they publish and prepare their climate plans for the coming years and decades.

Many cities are also highly vulnerable to climate change, especially those on or in the vicinity of coastlines: while many have also seen the link between combating climate change and transforming the urban infrastructure and environment into a healthier and more economically dynamic place.

Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the the UN Climate Convention (UNFCCC), said:  “Nations will come together to sign a universal agreement on climate change at the UN Climate Conference in Paris in December. By demonstrating action on NAZCA, cities can support and catalyze ever higher ambition by governments while signaling their determination to be part of the transformation towards a healthier, safer and more secure world. We are grateful for the collaboration with CDP, the carbon Climate Registry, the Compact of Mayors and others, and we look forward to showcasing more climate action from cities in the future."

Cities Setting Science-Based Targets

Many of the cities who have submitted information to the portal are showing leadership by setting science-based targets to ensure that the world will stay below the internationally agreed limit of a maximum 2 degrees Celsius global average temperature rise.

According to the best available climate science, the world needs to peak global emissions in the next decade to successfully address climate change, triggering a deep de-carbonization of the global economy.

For example, Boston intends to reduce community-wide CO2 emissions by 80% by 2050 over 1990 levels through building retrofits, renewable energy sources, on-site renewable energy installations and better waste and industrial pollution management.

Jakarta intends to reduce CO2 emissions from government operations by 30% from 2005 to 2030 through sustainable building standards and retrofits, energy efficient lighting, solar-powered streetlights, and landfill gas capture and power generation.

The city data presented on the NAZCA portal was reported to CDP’s cities program <https://www.cdp.net/cities> – which forms part of CDP’s global environmental reporting system – and the carbonn Climate Registry <http://carbonn.org/>.

CDP and the carbonn Climate Registry are established, credible sources with a strong track record of reporting and tracking progress that the NAZCA portal draws data from. In particular, their regular reporting cycles will enable future progress on actions to be updated to NAZCA in the future.

The Presentation of City Data Part of Wider Showcasing of Climate Actions from Non-State Actors

The cities being featured are part of an ongoing process to showcase climate actions from non-state actors. In the run-up to the UN climate change conference (COP 21) in Paris, information on climate actions from cities, businesses, investors and subnational regions will be continuously
added to the NAZCA portal.

Many of these actions are happening in partnership with governments, organizations and international bodies, including the United Nations. Three such actions joining NAZCA today are the Compact of States and Regions, the Carbon Neutral Cities Alliance, and the Compact of Mayors.

Michael R. Bloomberg, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Cities and Climate Change said, "Cities are helping to lead the way in addressing climate change. I congratulate the cities making their pledges public and transparent through the Compact of Mayors and NAZCA. It's a crucial step
that will help show nations that setting and achieving ambitious climate goals really is possible."

The Portal is also showcasing several inspiring initiatives under the Lima-Paris Action Agenda. The agenda is designed to catalyze action on climate change by governments and non-state actors before 2020, when the new global agreement is to take effect, and after 2020.

Garages to be certified for seatbelt installation in commercial vehicles

A certification programme has been instituted for selected garages across the country whose personnel will be engaged in the installation of seat belts in commercial vehicles.

According to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA), this will involve inspection of workshops of the artisans under the Ghana Association of Garages, whilst some institutions, including the KNUST, will be involved in research and development of standards in fitting the belts.

“Once these are done, we are also sure that the vehicles whose belts have been fixed, are fitted with expertise so that at least when it comes to incidents such as crashes the benefits of the seatbelts will not be denied anybody,” says Rudolf Beckley, CEO of DVLA.

The project on mandatory seatbelt use started last year after the activation of the Road Traffic Regulation 2012, which has the goal to ensure Ghana is the safest destination for road safety.

Almost 165 artisans from various garages across the country have so far been training in the programme implementation.

Mr. Beckley says there should be adequate skill sets and knowledge in enforcing the seat belt installation from June 1, 2015.

“The DVLA has embarked on this process because we feel that time has come for us to also retain special skills amongst our artisans,” he stated. “Time has come for us to ensure that your operations are done per standards so that all your customers, especially vehicle owners, will be happy with your operations and performance”.

At a training workshop in Kumasi for identifiable members of the Garages in the Northern sector, some of the mechanics have employed the DVLA to ensure adequate availability of the mandated seat belts.

The DVLA says it has initiated a procurement process, in collaboration with the Garaged, to purchase the requisite seatbelts to be fitted in the over 500,000 commercial vehicles in the system.

Transport operators would be required to patronize the certified garages in fitting the seatbelts.

According to Mr. Beckley, the various transport unions are spearheading the public education process on the installation and use of the seatbelts.

The DVLA has ceased registering new vehicles without seat belts since 1^st September, 2014.

The Authority, together with the National Road Safety Commission (NRSC) is increasing public education for the enforcement of the use of seatbelts to commerce on 1^st December, 2015.

The police command has stated its resolve to leave no stone unturned in enforcing the installation of seat belts in commercial vehicles.

Ashanti Regional Police Commander, DCOP Kofi Boakye, says there will be no fear nor favour in the implementation of the law.

Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh 

Ghana to benefit more by taking gold royalties in kind

The local content law for Ghana’s mining sector has the intent of ensuring that beyond the accruing taxes, the country is able to integrate the sector into the larger economy.

This, in essence, opens greater opportunities for Ghanaians to participate in the extractives sector.

But Ghana’s failure to add value to gold locally has been described as a bane to deriving maximum benefit from the mining industry.

It has emerged that nothing by way of local content would change in the extractive industry if Ghana continues to take its mineral royalties in cash instead of raw gold.

“In the oil sector, royalties and other tax payments are computed and they give us crude oil and we decide what to do with our crude oil; in the mining sector, they [the mining firms] go and sell. Infact some of them go and sell in dollars and come and give us cedis…are we allergic to dollars?” quizzed Dr. Steve Manteaw, a member of the Ghana Extractives Industries Transparency Initiative (GHEITI).

 

He suggests a shift from the extreme focus on revenue to benefit maximization in natural resource management.

Revenue streams from the mining sector to the national budget include mineral right fees, ground rent, property rate, mineral royalty, dividends and corporate tax.

At a time the Ghanaian economic is challenged in stemming the tide of the cedi depreciation against the US dollar and other foreign currencies, Dr. Manteaw says the fiscal regime should not encourage foreign exchange flight.

“We need to make the necessary policy decisions to tighten up and make it difficult if not impossible for foreign exchange to leave this country,” he stated.

Gold accounts for around 90 percent of total mineral output in Ghana – production climbed to record 4.3million ounces in 2012. Though prices have slumped globally, the gold mining sector continues to rake in billions of dollars every year.

Gold is a commodity in demand – generally used for fabrication or investment. Fabricated gold has a variety of end-uses, including jewelry, electronics, dentistry, industrial and decorative uses.

Dr. Steve Manteaw says adding value to raw gold locally will create employment and increase revenue to the State.

“This country will be exporting jewelry and not gold bars for which we get pittance; you get more for jewelry and by doing that you’ll be creating tax opportunities, Ghanaians will be employed in the jewelry making industry, they will pay taxes and this can be used to finance our national development,” he noted.

Ghana is Africa’s second and world’s 10^th largest producer of gold.

Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh

African ministers unite in calling for strong universal climate agreement

Ministers from governments across Africa have renewed their call for a strong and universal climate change agreement with increased flows of funds, including through market and finance opportunities, sufficient to fulfill Africa’s development aspirations.

With countries set to approve a new climate change agreement under the UN in Paris in December, African ministers stressed the region’s readiness and requirement for accelerated private and public financing of low-carbon development. Africa, with its vulnerable populations and vast potential, has perhaps the most to lose from climate change and the most to gain from an effective climate change agreement.

“I agree with Ministers that the last 10 years in the implementation of the Clean Development Mechanism is a very valuable asset and that market mechanisms can play a significant role in raising the level of ambition, and supporting climate action,” said Ms. Hakima El Haite, Delegate Minister in charge of Environment of Morocco.

“In these last eight months before Paris, the focus must shift from restating negotiating positions to finding common ground solutions,” said UNFCCC Deputy Executive Secretary Richard Kinley at a day-long ministerial segment at the Africa Carbon Forum 2015 hosted by the Kingdom of Morocco.

“All countries have something to gain from the Paris agreement and it is in everyone’s interests to reach a strong conclusion as soon as possible this year. If Heads of State come to Paris, it must be to adopt an agreement that is robust and ready for them.”

Clean Energy to Unlock African Sustainable Development Potential

The African Carbon Forum 2015 focused on programmes to unleash private sector finance, such as through the Clean Development Mechanism, and scale up other forms of climate finance to strengthen the sustainable development of African countries.

According to the International Energy Agency Africa Energy Outlook 2014, 625 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa, about two-thirds of the population, are without secure access to electricity. Some 730 million people in the region still rely on cooking mostly with wood, harming health and destroying vital forest cover.

“The coming months provide African countries with a significant opportunity to align their contributions to the Paris climate agreement with their own long-term sustainable development priorities,” said Mr. Kinley.

Countries are busy detailing their Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs), which they will submit as their contribution to climate action under the Paris agreement. INDCs for 35 countries have been submitted to date. On April 1, Gabon became the first African country to submit an INDC.

Climate Finance and a Strong CDM Are Key to Success

Two clear messages emerged from participants at the African Carbon Forum. First, linking climate finance to results is essential to stimulate greater funding for both mitigation and adaptation to climate change. Second, developing countries, including Africa, need tools like the Clean Development Mechanism if they are to successfully shift to a low-carbon emitting development path. Paris provides the continent with a unique opportunity to anchor carbon markets in the long-term climate agenda in line with scaling up climate action and sustainable development based on their national priorities.

A consistent theme during the Forum was the need to preserve and improve the CDM beyond 2020 as a tool for providing continued climate finance and technology to developing countries, especially in Africa. This would capitalize on the capacity and infrastructure already built up by countries and stakeholders. It is widely expected that this will be one of the issues to be resolved in Paris.

Participants particularly highlighted the usefulness of the CDM’s established rules in measuring, reporting and verifying results and its possible role to help define and clarify the content of  INDCs. The workshop also concluded that African countries could look at how best to link and leverage finance through the Green Climate Fund at the same time as increasing use of the CDM.

The Forum noted that the INDCs provide Africa with an ideal vehicle through which public policy developments can be transparently displayed by countries to shift toward a low-carbon and sustainable development path.

“The African Carbon Forum 2015 has clearly demonstrated the engagement and commitment by countries in the region to contribute to a balanced and fair outcome at the COP in Paris. Countries are preparing their INDCs, and presentations at the Forum indicate that these will have both ambition and
at the same time send clear signals of the need to balance adaptation and mitigation aspects within a broader green economy development framework,” said John Christensen, Director, United Nations Environment Programme DTU Partnership

This year’s Africa Carbon Forum attracted over 600 participants of 53 countries, including 23 ministers or senior officials, policymakers, project developers and investors.

The Forum is organized under the umbrella of the Nairobi Framework by the UNFCCC, United Nations Environment Programme along with the UNEP-DTU Partnership, World Bank, African Development Bank and the International Emissions Trading Association.

The Nairobi Framework was launched in 2006 by then UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan to assist developing countries, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, to improve their level of participation in the Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanism.

UN Secretary-General calls for more sustainable energy investment

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called on business leaders to expand investment in low-carbon growth and opportunities to advance sustainable energy for all and tackle climate change.

This was contained in a statement to The Future of Energy Summit 2015, organized by Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

Noting that global investment in renewable power and fuels in 2014 spiked by more than 15 per cent over 2013, with investments in developing countries growing by more than a third, he pointed out that renewable energies still contribute less than 10 per cent of global electricity, but that incentives can shift this forward.

“Energy is a story of global progress,” the Secretary-General said. “Smart investors are opening new markets, facilitating new business models, and supporting entrepreneurs in developing countries.” 

He added, “I am here to urge you to take action for sustainable energy."

He pointed to a new UN-led Global Energy Efficiency Accelerator Platform with the potential to double efficiency by 2030, save more than a gigaton of carbon emissions each year and save tens of billions of dollars, as well as partnerships with banks and investment institutions that can mobilize another $120 billion a year in sustainable energy investments.

 

Ban Ki-moon told the business leaders, “These significant sums are just part of what is possible. I count on your help to realize the enormous potential out there.”

The private sector, at the Climate Summit last September, announced plans to mobilize over $200 billion in financial assets towards low-carbon and climate-resilient development.

Mr. Ban said the Paris Climate Conference in December would only succeed with a strong, credible climate finance package, and he urged the private sector to help move this process forward.

To put the global economy on a path to low-carbon growth, he called for carbon pricing, the phase-out of inefficient fossil fuel subsidies and stronger energy efficiency standards.

UN Sustainable Energy for All Forum to spur solutions

Mr. Ban also announced that the United Nations will convene the second annual UN Sustainable Energy for All Forum on 17-21 May in New York, working with the World Bank and other key partners.  The Forum will bring together over a thousand sustainable energy innovators to share solutions and spur action.

Currently one out of five people lives without access to electricity, and nearly 40 per cent of the world’s population rely on wood, coal, charcoal or animal waste to cook and heat their homes, leading to over four million deaths each year, mostly women and children, from the effects of indoor smoke.

Addressing this energy poverty while also reducing greenhouse gas emissions and tackling climate change is a crucial global challenge.

Kandeh Yumkella, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary–General and chief executive of the Sustainable Energy for All Initiative, called on the private sector to seize the opportunity by innovating and investing to help achieve the initiative’s objectives.

“The speed and scale of interventions we need to transform our current energy system and ensure shared prosperity lie in the private sector,” said Yumkella.