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The Ghana Institute of Planners (GIP) has called on the Parliament of Ghana to consider the impact and devastations of climate and as matter of urgency, enact laws to tackle human activities causing climate change and associated crises.
The GIP made the call on Tuesday at a maiden climate justice promotion capacity-building and knowledge-sharing event in Sunyani.
It was on the theme: “climate change, inequalities and building a local resilience: promoting climate justice through planning activism” organized by the Sunyani Zone of the GIP and sponsored by the G2 Foundation, a charitable Non-governmental organization for the welfare of the vulnerable, Original Asasae Aban Company Limited, Goil and Dominic Oppong, Sunyani Municipal Assembly Planning Officer.
The training was a “continuing professional development capacity building” for particularly young and student planners to adapt climate mitigation systems and strategies, as well as putting climate issues at the centre of their daily endeavours and policies for national development.
The event was attended by heads of departments, government officials, Chiefs, students, physical development planners from the Bono, Bono East and Ahafo regions and persons with disabilities.
Planner Dr. Michael Addaney, a lecturer at the department of land management of the University of Energy and Natural Resources (UENR) and research fellow, earth system governance project, Netherlands has said.
In a presentation, he stated, “polluters must bare the cost in addressing the pollution” to deter other perpetrators.
Earlier addressing the gathering, Madam Justina Owusu-Banahene, the Bono Regional Minister in a heartfelt mood stated chemical fishing and farming, indiscriminate dumping of rubbish and other environmental criminalities were “causing the system to bleed severely”.
She stated “Ghana’s capacity to stand the shocks of climate change is weak”, hence the critical need to collectively deal with factors causing the crises, saying, “let’s collectively say a big no to indiscriminate waste disposal and environmentally unfriendly activities”.
Mad. Owusu-Banahene added the environment should be solemnly respected and everybody should be mindful of their actions against society because “the effects are unbearable if we sit unconcern”.
In his welcome address, Planner Ata-Era A. James, the Sunyani Zonal Chairman of the GIP later in an interview with the media ask the Municipal and District Assemblies to strengthen their by-laws to prevent reckless environmental criminalities.
According to him, most causes of climate change and impact in Ghana were indiscriminate human activities including galamsey, throwing plastic and rubbers anyhow, illegal chainsawing and logging as well as excessive sand winning.
Ms Gifty Nyarko, the Sunyani West Municipal physical development planning Director and Sunyani Zonal Secretary of the GIP said climate change affects mostly the vulnerable people, thus, persons with disabilities, the aged, children and people in rural communities.
This has therefore necessitated a strong collaboration of all stakeholders and partners of development with the physical development planners to ensure professionalism and principles in their duties for Ghana to be a safer place for all and also help the realization of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly Goal 13.
