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This is the third in a series of articles focusing on the manifestos of political parties and candidates competing in the 2020 presidential election in Ghana.
My focus in these articles has been to review and provide feedback on the environmental and sanitation manifesto promises and programs.
These articles are deliberately non-prescriptive. Here, I provide an overview of the entire NDC manifesto and then list the key policies and programs offered by the party on the environment and sanitation.
I then provide feedback on the promises and highlight some potential challenges that are likely to arise during their implementation.
NDC 2020 Manifesto Summary
The Democratic National Congress (NDC) released its long-awaited manifesto for the 2020 elections on 7th September 2020.
Since then, the 143-page document has been the subject of discussion on various political platforms. The NDC states that the manifesto contains the aspirations and wishes of the people of Ghana expressed in various forums organized by the party to solicit input into the drafting of the document.
The manifesto has been dubbed The Peoples Manifesto to reflect this claim.
The pages of the manifesto are filled with promises and promises of what an NDC government will do between 2021 and 2025, ranging from a $ 10 billion investment in infrastructure to the provision of free sanitary products for girls under the age of 20.
NDC policies and programs have been grouped into six thematic areas, namely ‘Fix the economy and unite against poverty’, ‘Promote human development’, ‘Provide infrastructure for accelerated growth’, ‘Create sustainable jobs and decent ‘”Edwuma Pa”,’ Good governance, fight against corruption and accountability ‘and’ Deepening international relations and foreign relations’.
Environment and sanitation policies and programs
Environmental and sanitation issues have been included in three (3) of the subject areas listed above. Environmental and sanitation programs are numerous, so I will focus on a few of the main ones in this article. The specific promises are listed below.
Ambient
- equip and motivate the Ghana Meteorological Agency for climate adaptation and mitigation and sustainable development
- NDC is committed to renewable energy as a clean, climate-friendly electricity solution for homes, remote communities, and light industries. The next NDC government will bring a golden age of renewable energy.
- Guarantee the incorporation of the gender perspective in environmental issues and develop specific solutions for their implementation.
- reintroduce ZOIL to involve youth in coconut planting for coastal protection against climate change and job creation.
- Reduce the rate of deforestation and forest degradation.
- create and maintain healthy and resilient forests to support wildlife habitat, carbon sequestration and the opportunity for outdoor recreation
- create a Youth Program on Climate Change and Forestry (YiCCAP) in partnership with the private sector for forestry and job creation.
- Ensuring the sustainability of water sources by stopping reckless projects like the proposed mining of the Atewa forest that is rapidly depleting our natural water reserves through evapo-transpiration.
Sanitation
- Establish a Waste Management Fund by amending the Customs and Special Taxes (Duties and Other Taxes) (Amendment) Law, 2013 (Law 863), to gather the necessary resources to address waste management and create green jobs as part of our response to global climate change.
- Establish the Plastic Waste Recycling Fund provided for in already approved laws.
- Formulate a National Sanitation Policy and strengthen the role of the MMDA in sanitation as enshrined in the Local Governance Law of 2016 (Law 936).
- improve liquid waste management by working with indigenous companies to build wastewater treatment and recycling plants, first for public institutions that have common sewage systems and then for major industrial establishments, farms, and settlement areas
- transform waste into value to ensure a clean Ghana and create jobs by converting waste into energy
- empower sanitation courts and enforce sanitation laws.
Comments on the promises and programs of the NDC manifesto on environment and sanitation
Obviously, the NDC has taken the time to consider various environmental and sanitation problems and has developed policies and programs that will help alleviate, if not fully solve them.
The environmental and sanitation policies in the manifesto are presented in easy-to-understand language and cover most of the key issues afflicting the country in this sector. The manifesto recognizes the global ecological and climate challenges that have arisen as a result of humanity’s disregard for the environment.
The writers of the manifesto are correct in saying that “We are heating up the climate. We are destroying forests. We are mining deep into the earth. We are melting the polar ice caps. We pollute oceans ”.
Some of the promises in the manifesto stand out to me. For example, the promise of achieving a golden age of renewables is refreshing because various countries and corporations are turning to renewables as a means of reducing their carbon footprint and mitigating dangerous climate change.
As part of efforts to achieve this goal, the NDC also promises to ensure that all new government buildings incorporate solar systems into their designs, costs, and implementation, while modernizing existing government buildings with solar systems.
Ghana has an advantage in the area of solar power generation due to its location near the equator. There is approximately 11 hours of sunlight in almost all parts of Ghana, which means that there is the possibility of generating large amounts of solar energy anywhere in the country.
Another promise that I find interesting is the decision to stop bauxite mining in the Atewa forest as part of efforts to ensure the sustainability of the water sources.
The Atewa Forest contains the headwaters of three major rivers, the Densu, Birim and Ayensu rivers, which provide water to more than 5 million Ghanaians, including those living in the capital city, Accra. It is also home to hundreds of species of butterflies and several species of endangered wildlife.
These are the reasons why campaign groups like the Ghana Youth Environment Movement and individuals like Leonardo DiCaprio have been calling on the Ghanaian government to stop mining activities in this particular forest. The NDC manifesto is silent on what will happen to the bauxite / alumna supply to the Chinese as part of the $ 2 billion loan deal after mining stops at Atewa.
As someone who has worked with the Ghana Meteorological Agency for several years and who appreciates the challenges the organization faces, it is heartwarming to see that the NDC plans to reshape the agency to play its rightful role in national climate change policy.
However, I read this promise with some degree of skepticism because successive governments promised to restructure the agency and ended up doing very little when it mattered most. Again, this commitment lacks specific details on what exactly equipping and motivating the agency entails.
Converting waste to energy has the potential to provide access to a cheaper energy source, while at the same time solving two of the biggest problems Ghana’s governments have faced; unemployment and dirt.
When one of the parties promises to convert waste to value as the NDC has done, it is good news. However, the manifesto does not provide details on whether it will be a publicly funded company, a public-private partnership or a private company. The mode of financing of such a policy could determine its success or not.
In fact, the most obvious problem with the promises of the NDC’s manifesto on the environment is the lack of funding sources and costs with which these projects will be financed. The lack of costs makes it difficult to assess the viability or otherwise of these promises.
The party appears to be pinning its hopes on the private sector providing the necessary investments to address the sanitation problems facing the country.
Successive governments have failed in their attempts to regularize or rationalize galamsey’s activities. Such efforts often end with galamsey operators returning to continue their destructive activities in our bodies of water and forests.
Therefore, the NDC’s promise to allow galamsey operators to return to their mining activities, albeit in a simplified way, will likely face a similar fate.
This policy appears to be at odds with the party’s promises on environmental protection and sustainability and appears to contradict the commitment of “Establish a National Mining and Forestry Initiative to help combat illegal logging and illegal mining (Galamsey).” Does addressing illegal mining here mean regularization, and if so how will things be done differently to ensure that the destruction associated with galamsey is avoided? Answers to these questions are missing from the manifesto.
Some of the policies are vague, while others appear to be an attempt to duplicate existing programs. Although the promise of “reduce the rate of deforestation and forest degradation ” it is very important to achieve the promises of the countries under the Paris Climate Agreement, it lacks clarity that allows independent observers to follow its progress.
What will be the rate of reduction in deforestation in the next four years? What specific measure will be implemented to stop or reduce the rate of deforestation? Answers to these questions are missing from the manifesto, but they are crucial to assessing the progress of this promise.
The Ghana Forestry Commission already has an afforestation program that is restoring degraded forests and planting new ones.
Most of the people hired by the forestry commission in this program are young people. Creating a new organization,Youth Program on Climate Change and Forestry (YiCCAP),tackling climate change and afforestation will be a duplication of functions. conclusion
When reading the manifesto, it is obvious that the NDC thought carefully about the challenges in the environment and sanitation sector when writing this document.
Through the Peoples’ Manifesto, the NDC has made clear what they intend to do about these challenges if they form Ghana’s next government.
The proposed solutions are feasible, but the lack of costs makes it difficult to comment on the feasibility or otherwise of these programs and policies. NDC plans to create a Plastic Waste Management and Recycling Fund to provide funding for its sanitation-related programs.
However, considering the enormity of the sanitation challenge in Ghana, the proposed funds are unlikely to be adequate. Additional resources will be needed to make these commitments a reality. Overall, the Peoples’ Manifesto proposes bold initiatives that could go a long way towards improving environmental and sanitation conditions in Ghana.
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By: Frederick Otu-Larbi, PhD Researcher, Lancaster University, UK │ E-mail: [email protected]
Twitter: @larbi_fred
