The roadmap, which seeks to radically reduce plastic pollution in Ghana, was developed with data and insights from consultation with 150 leading national experts, and informed by scenario analyses based on tools from the ‘Breaking the Plastic Wave’ report by the Pew Charitable Trusts.

Strict adherence to the recommendations laid out in the National Action Roadmap can help the country reduce plastic leakage into oceans and waterways by 84% under the realistic system change scenario, while zero plastic leakage can be achieved under the ambitious system change scenario by 2040.

The Chief Director at MESTI, Mrs. Cynthia Asare Bediako emphasized the importance of the National Action Roadmap stating that it identifies and maps multiple actors across the plastic value-chain to specific recommendations as drivers of those actions, while highlighting the need for collaboration across the value chain to enable a system change necessary to establish a circular economy.

“Indeed, to a large extent, NPAP has succeeded in delivering on its mandate due to the active participation, buy-in, ownership, and support of the global and national stakeholders. The launch today of the NPAP Action Roadmap is a key milestone in the execution of NPAP’s mandate”, she added.

Kristin Hughes, Director of the Global Plastic Action Partnership (GPAP), on her part, said, “GPAP is thrilled to be part of the journey with Ghana’s public and private sector and civil society partners, to pave the way for Ghana’s journey towards circularity and eradicating plastic pollution in the marine environment and other water bodies by 2040.

The National Action Roadmap approach addresses existing inequalities in the plastics value chain and directly benefits the individuals and communities involved through multi-stakeholder and inclusive steps.”

Ghana’s economic growth has coincided with a significant increase in the consumption of plastic products, especially single-use plastics, and consequently an increase in plastic waste.

The launch of the National Action Roadmap affirms the commitment of stakeholders in the Ghanaian plastics value chain to collaborate in setting a regional model for sustainably managing plastics and transitioning to a circular economy.

About Ghana NPAP

The Ghana National Plastic Action Partnership (NPAP) was established in October 2019 as a multi-stakeholder platform that enables collaboration between government and other local and international partners to turn plastic waste and pollution commitments into action. ‘

Since 2019, the 120 plus member national partnership has convened a platform for stakeholders from multiple sectors – public, private (formal and informal), development partners, civil society, and academia.

Its priorities include: incentivizing changes in material use; building capacity in waste management and recycling; enabling innovation and technology transfer; raising awareness and changing behaviours to reduce the consumption of single-use plastics; promoting gender equality and meaningful work; and ensuring transparent governance and accountability in the transition to a circular plastics economy.

The Ghana NPAP creates tangible impact in three key ways: convening and curating stakeholder communities, generating new insights (action and financing roadmaps, and catalyzing high-potential solutions with financial resources.