Ghana, Indonesia to benefit from plastic waste mgt initiative
Ghana and Indonesia are to receive funding to tackle plastic waste in their respective countries under a Global Plastic Action Partnership (GPAP).
The GPAP is an initiative by the World Economic Forum (WEF) which rallies international and local resources to help countries implement national action plans and strategies to tackle the menace of plastic waste.
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Under the partnership, public, private and civil society actors will be brought together to holistically manage plastic waste, in line with a comprehensive master plan.
The Special Advisor to the Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI), Mr Oliver Boachie, made this known at a press briefing in Accra yesterday.
He said President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo would launch the GPAP on October 1, 2019, during which he would outline a road map to effectively manage plastics in the country.
Financial commitments
Mr Boachie explained that some international organisations, countries and scientists had made financial commitments to roll out programmes under the GPAP.
For instance, he said, the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) would come on board with a $10-million project to check the indiscriminate disposal of plastics for a five-year period.
Additionally, he said, the United Kingdom (UK), through the Commonwealth Clean Ocean Alliance, had also committed €10 million to support the fight against plastics, while the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) had also committed funds to set up a digital platform to rally stakeholders and share relevant information on plastic management.
On Ghana’s own efforts in the partnership, he said the Ministry of Finance was to release money that had accrued from the Plastic Levy that was implemented in 2013 but which had not been put to use.
Digital platform
Mr Boachie said the digital infrastructure to be set up by the UNDP would be a one-stop shop solution waste recovery platform that connected stakeholders along the waste management value chain.
He said the platform would provide access to open data and an innovative technology to promote waste recovery and management.
He added that the platform would support businesses and entrepreneurs to find innovative business opportunities in the plastic value chain.
National Plastic Policy
Mr Boachie further stated that the country’s plastic management policy that would form the master framework for the implementation of the GPAP had been tailored to make plastic waste a resource for job creation.
“Plastic is a resource to which value will be added to get bio-fuel, pavement blocks and other products and this will ensure that what was seen as a nuisance will now create jobs for people,” he said.
He said the National Plastic Management Policy had a communication strategy that would help change attitudes towards plastic use and disposal.
He added that a business module would also be introduced as part of the comprehensive strategy to properly manage waste.
Mr Boachie hinted that President Akufo-Addo would announce a ban on certain types of plastics in the country during the launch of the GPAP.
