The government has secured a $7 million Green Climate Fund grant to strengthen the resilience of smallholder farmers and communities in Northern Ghana, the Minister for Environment, Science and Technology, Dr Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings, has said.

The seven-year project, to be implemented across eight districts, will focus on climate-resilient agriculture, improved early warning systems and increased access to climate finance for vulnerable communities.

The Minister, whose statement was read on her behalf by Ruth Dzokoto, Deputy Director of Administration at the Office of the Minister of State for Climate Change and Sustainability, said the initiative was designed to respond to challenges identified during the Ministry’s engagement with communities.

“Climate change is consistently identified not simply as an environmental issue but as a development and livelihood issue affecting agriculture, water resources, infrastructure, livelihoods and local economic growth,” she said.

She said local authorities had a clear understanding of the climate-related challenges facing their communities but often lacked the technical capacity, institutional support and predictable financing needed to develop practical solutions.

“We also heard very clearly that our local authorities understand the challenges confronting their communities but often require stronger technical capacity, institutional support and access to predictable climate finance to turn their knowledge into practical and bankable solutions,” she said.

According to the Minister, the project, secured by the government through the Environmental Protection Agency, will strengthen district-level capacity for climate adaptation planning and budgeting.

It will also improve access to climate information and early warning systems, while supporting climate-resilient agriculture and ecosystem-based adaptation.

The initiative will further facilitate access to finance and strengthen community knowledge and participation in climate adaptation efforts.

Dr Agyeman-Rawlings called for stronger collaboration among government institutions, local authorities, development partners and communities to ensure that climate interventions translated into practical improvements in livelihoods.

She said coordinated action was critical to addressing the growing impact of climate change on vulnerable communities and building more resilient local economies.

Source: Citinews