Report by: Magdalene Duncan
The Youth in Natural Resources and Environmental Governance (YOUTH-NREG) platform in Ghana has held it’s first annual general meeting in Accra over the weekend.
The event organized with the support of SYND, convener of YOUTH-NREG Platform gave an opportunity for various youth organizations and individuals across the country to deliberate on issues relating to the increase of natural resources and environment management owing to their inter-relatedness and cross-cutting nature as well as their inevitable impact on development.
It is a platform to easily identify what each youth organization is doing currently to tackle environmental issues and to group their collective efforts under thematic areas of climate change, Biodiversity, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), Forestry, Fisheries, Oil and Gas, Food security, Land Degradation as well as Renewable Energy.
YOUTH-NREG Holds First AGM 2022 In Accra
Established by the World Bank and UNDP – Ghana in May 2019 with the support of SYND, the YOUTH-NREG currently has a membership strength of about 150 accros the country.
In his presentation on the effect of climate change, Mr Maxwell Deladem, CEO of EbaPreneursol Gh called on all to see climate change first of all as a personal responsibility before collective responsibility.
He identified four main areas to fight climate change as the 4Rs( reduce, reuse, repair and recycle).
He stressed on the need to turn agricultural waste into clean energy as disposing off of waste food into the bin causes methane, a green house gas to be emitted into the atmosphere.
YOUTH-NREG Holds First AGM 2022 In Accra
He further revealed that ” post harvest waste is the main challenge of agriculture in Ghana stating that sum of 720 million dollars is lost every year to agricultural produce grown but gone to waste”.
He therefore suggested commitment to creation of solar dryers to help farmers to add value to their produce.
Also on the panel, Mr Frank Koomson was of the view that ” man is the problem and man is suppose to be the solution”.
“The current climate condition is evident that mankind is the cause of destruction due to development, hence the whole world must come together in the fight against climate change”, he asserted.
The event gave participants both online and onsite the opportunity to air their views and to ask relevant questions pertaining to the subject.
Key among the views was the need for adaptation; to take actions to manage the effect of climate change , and letigation; to take actions to prevent the impact of climate change.
Group picture of participants at the event
Such actions include switching of diet to more environmentally friendly proteins such as plant foods and the use of renewable source of energy.
In his closing remarks, Mr. Ezekiel Chibeze, founder of SYND Ghana, was very optimistic that “we are going to make more impact this year. That we’ll push this agenda. ”
He therefore urged young people to ” learn to ask the right questions especially where they are given the right platforms”.
“The youth must participate in the development process and that is why we need your support”, he concluded.
Source: www.thenewindependentonline.com
