The Minister of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Mahama Ayariga, has urged real estate companies to prioritise green construction in their business models to help make cities greener and resilient to climate impacts.
He said in an era when climate change was deepening vulnerabilities across the world, it was cities with robust and green real estate infrastructure that could stand the test of time.
Mr Ayariga stressed that rather than being overly focused on economic motives, real estate managers needed to look at adopting green technologies that helped to preserve the environment.
The minister stated this last Friday during a working visit to Regimanuel Gray Limited (RGL), a private real estate company that has been operating in the country for over three decades.
The purpose of the visit was to assess the environment and green programmes that RGL had incorporated into its business model and how it could be refined and replicated across the country.
Green environment
It was observed that RGL's residential developments were characterised by master-planned communities designed to offer security, community governance and structured amenities.
It came to light that the company had planted 17,000 trees as part of its greener environment programme.
The initiative fits into the government's policy to make Accra a greener city that can stand the test of time in an era of excruciating climate change impacts on cities.
Mr Ayariga said the innovation RGL had brought into green infrastructure could be leveraged for sustainable cities.
Green communities
The Group Head of Corporate Affairs and Investor Relations at RGL, Michael Owusu, said for over 30 years, the company had built homes in the country with the cardinal rule that “a house cannot stand alone.”
“If the community around it fails - floods, broken roads, poor air quality, with no one looking after the place - then the house has failed too,” he said.
The green communities at RGL are environmentally-friendly, with underground drainage systems and centralised sewage for energy farms - employing advanced anaerobic digestion technology.
It also has centralised power installations, mainly renewable energy sources that have the capacity to supply electricity and heating to more than 1,600 homes.
The RGL community also has climate-friendly and dedicated green spaces that cool the air, improve air quality and make the place pleasant to live in.
Mr Owusu explained that to ensure that the homes and environment were properly maintained, RGL set up a good estate management company “to make caring for the community a permanent, professional service rather than an afterthought.”
Big Push initiative
He said the green business model of RGL aligned with President John Mahama’s wider Big Push agenda and the Inner-city Big Push Initiative that proposed that private organisations should take responsibility for rebuilding, lighting, greening, draining and maintaining city streets.
