Minister for Lands and Natural Resources Samuel Abu Jinapor has disclosed that Ghana has recorded an emission reduction of 972,465 tonnes of carbon dioxide (tCO2e) for the first accounting period between June and December 2019, which has been verified and validated.
This, he said, is due to the continued implementation of the various initiatives aimed at halting climate change, including the Ghana REDD+ Strategy.
He disclosed that Ghana earned of US$4.9 million in results-based payment, which the state has begun receiving and makes Ghana the second country in Africa, and the third in the world, to receive result-based payments from the Carbon Fund.
Mr. Abu Jinapor disclosed these on Tuesday, February 28, 2023, when he took his turn at the Minister’s Press Briefing to speak about the policies and programmes being implemented in support of the vision of President Nana Akufo-Addo to bring the much-needed development.
According to him, in recognition of her climate change policies Ghana has been made the co-Chair of the Forest and Climate Leaders’ Partnership (FCLP), a new political forum that brings governments and other partners together to implement solutions that help reduce forest loss and land degradation while supporting sustainable development.
He revealed reconnaissance, prospecting and/or exploration activities in forest reserves continue to be suspended, except in exceptional circumstances and the harvesting, salvaging, trading, exporting, and importing of Rosewood, as well as the issuance of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) permits for the export of Rosewood continue to be banned to protect Ghana’s forest resources.
Speaking on mining, the Minister indicated the sector continues to be one of the main pillars of the economy and retained its position as the leading source of export revenue with receipts in 2022 from gold alone being US$6.6 billion.
He disclosed that following significant investments in exploration, four new large-scale mining operations will start production within the next two and half years.
“There are, also, significant investments in the redevelopment and expansion of existing mines. After reviving the Obuasi mine in 2019, the Bibiani mine, which had been dormant for seven (7) years, has also been revived, and production started in October last year. These investments will result in a significant increase in our mineral production and Government revenue.”
Mr. Jinapor indicated that in the small-scale subsector, Government has reduced withholding tax on unprocessed gold by small-scale miners from 3% to 1.5% resulting in a massive increment in gold exports from small-scale mining from 3,429.91kg in 2021 to 22,158.25kg in 2022, about 600% increment.
The Ministry, he said, continues to implement its two-pronged approach of law enforcement and reformation to deal with illegal mining and also implementing the Minerals and Mining (Mineral Operations – Tracking of Earthmoving and Mining Equipment) Regulations, 2020 (L.I. 2404).
This, he said, is expected to track some 4,000 excavators and other earth-moving equipment.
On forestry, the Minister stated that the government continued with its aggressive afforestation and reforestation programme, including the flagship Green Ghana Project.
“Last year, on the Green Ghana Day, a total of 26,563,607 seedlings were distributed, out of which 24,552,925 seedlings were verified to have been planted. This year, the President has decided that we lower the target to ten million trees. This is to enable us to devote much attention to nurturing the over thirty million trees already planted to ensure that all they reach maturity.”
According to him, in addition to the Green Ghana Project, the Ministry is in partnership with the Departments of Parks and Gardens and Urban Roads, implementing a Green Street Project, under which trees are being planted in the medians of streets and avenues of major roads in cities to beautify the cities while contributing to the fight against climate change.
The project, he said, is currently being implemented in Accra from the Tetteh Quashie interchange, through Shiashie and Okponglo, to Legon PRESEC and be scaled up to cover all major roads in Accra and all 16 regional capitals of our country.
Mr. Abu Jinapor noted that government acknowledges the resources entrusted to it are a fiduciary duty that requires it to responsibly and intelligently ensure Ghanaians benefit from all these resources.
He assured Government, under the distinguished and outstanding leadership of President Akufo-Addo, will continue to adopt and implement policies necessary for the adequate protection, preservation, management, and utilization of the lands and natural resources of the country.