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A three-day sub regional workshop on waste management and circular economy has opened in Accra, bringing together experts and stakeholders from across West Africa.
The event, being organised by the United Nations Office of Sustainable Development (UNOSD) in collaboration with the Ministry of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, has brought participants from 12 different countries across West Africa.
It is being held on the theme: “Bridging data gaps, enhancing technical capacity, and facilitating evidence-based policymaking to accelerate the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”.
The opening ceremony, held yesterday, was graced by the Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Ahmed Ibrahim; the Head of UNOSD, Chun Kyoo Park; the Korean Ambassador to Ghana, Kyongsig Park; the Executive Director of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of Liberia, Emmanuel K. Urey Yarkpawolo, and the UNDP Deputy Resident Representative of Ghana, Shaima Hussein.
The workshop is aimed at enhancing understanding of waste management and circular economy principles, and the importance of data systems to improve data collection, monitoring, and evidence-based policy making.
It is expected to also encourage the formation of national task forces and inter-ministerial coordination to ensure coherent data and policy design and implementation, among others.
The workshop underscored UNOSD’s effort to help the West African region to combat excessive waste generation as the World Bank had warned that the region could become the largest contributor to poorly managed plastic waste globally by 2060 without intervention.
The World Bank had also in other research identified 71 plastic waste generation hotspots across the West Africa region, with a concentration in Nigeria, especially related to sectors such as packaging and fisheries.
However, the region had also defined gaps and opportunities to accelerate a circular economy, as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is actively promoting circular economy principles for waste management in West Africa.
This includes a regional action plan on plastics management, encouraging harmonisation of regulations, and raising awareness on the need for circularity in plastics among others.
Addressing the participants, the Minister of Local Government emphasised that waste management was not just an environmental issue but also a question of public health, economic resilience, and climate action.
He indicated that the concept of the circular economy offered a promising solution, allowing countries to reduce waste, recover valuable materials, create green jobs, and cut greenhouse gas emissions.
Mr Ibrahim announced, that Ghana had been designated as the West Africa Regional Hub for policy support on waste management and resource circularity, a development that underscored the country's commitment to addressing waste management challenges.
“I am delighted that through the collaboration with UNOSD and other partners, Ghana has been designated as the West Africa Regional Hub for policy support on waste management and resource circularity.
“This places on us a responsibility to convene forums such as this, where knowledge can be shared, best practices exchanged, and regional cooperation strengthened.
I believe in the various countries gathered here, you have also undertaken a number of flagship activities within the circular economy space, which is worth sharing,” he said.
The Minister added that government was engaging with the Korean government, to discuss waste management initiative and sign a memorandum of understanding to have Korean experts to help the country build a sustainable waste management and the use of waste to generate energy.
The Head of UNOSD, Chun Kyoo Park, emphasised the urgency of transitioning to a circular economy, with just five years remaining to achieve the 2030 Agenda.
He averred that waste was no longer just a by-product of development but a resource, challenge, and opportunity.
He emphasised the need for reliable data to inform effective policy decisions, citing recent UN assessments that highlight data gaps in waste management as a major barrier.
Mr Park expressed gratitude to partners, including United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the Green Growth Knowledge Partnership (GGKP), the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) and Circular Bioeconomy Innovation Hub and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) for their collaboration and support for the programme.
