Press release: Sekondi-Takoradi Reinforces Climate Leadership with the Support of the European Union and the German Cooperation

Today, the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly (STMA), the regional capital of the Western Region of Ghana, strengthened its commitment to bolster resilience, amplify mitigation and adaptation measures, and promote climate-smart infrastructure. This step forward was taken by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Covenant of Mayors in Sub-Saharan Africa (CoM SSA), which is financed by the European Union and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) in Ghana.

 

The collaboration between STMA and CoM SSA offers technical support and advice through three actions: (1) Development of a Sustainable Energy Access and Climate Action Plan (SEACAP), which integrates strategies for sustainable low-emission development into existing STMA development plans. (2) Implementing Urban Smart Energy (USE) to install decentralized energy systems and improve energy efficiency in municipal sites like city halls, markets, schools, and healthcare centres. Moreover, (3) active involvement in workshops, training programs, international events, and unlocking access to valuable resources and intercity collaborations through the CoM SSA network.

 

From its original commitment as a signatory city in May 2018, the Honourable Abdul-Mumin Issah, alongside the STMA team, underscored their commitment to CoM SSA in August 2023. “STMA plans to implement programmes to boost resilience, increase mitigation and adaptation measures and ensure the provision of low-emission and climate-smart infrastructure,” said the Metro Chief Executive, Honourable Abdul-Mumin Issah. “It is without a doubt that the CoM SSA programme has come at the right time and will significantly contribute to achieving a greater impact”.

 

Ms Paulina Różycka, the Head of the Infrastructure and Sustainable Development at the Delegation of the European Union to Ghana, said: “The signature of this Memorandum of Understanding is a big step for Sekondi - Takoradi. It demonstrates the willingness of the Metropolitan Assembly to work toward Greenhouse Gases Emissions reductions and to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. The European Union will, of course, support Sekondi-Takoradi in its efforts. The Covenant of Mayors, supported by Team Europe across Sub-Saharan Africa, has demonstrated evidence of their ability in that matter by championing and collaborating with more than 350 cities. We do no doubt that together they will achieve great improvement toward a greener city.”

 

With this fortified partnership, the Assembly is set to benefit from many services and support via the CoM SSA network, notably the CoM SSA Technical Helpdesk, Secretariat, and its co-implementing partner, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH in Ghana. “CoM SSA is pleased to see the strong initiative from STMA to take bold climate action,” said Shea O'Neil, GIZ CoM SSA Ghana Project Manager. “We look forward to this partnership where we will work to make Sekondi-Takoradi and its residents more resilient to the impacts of climate change”.

STMA and CoM SSA anticipate a fruitful collaboration that will significantly contribute to the global fight against climate change and the journey towards a more sustainable future.

 

CoM SSA is the regional chapter of the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy (GCoM), the largest global initiative of cities addressing climate and energy challenges. This bottom-up initiative encourages cities to voluntarily set and achieve ambitious yet realistic climate and energy targets. As of 2023, the network includes over 350 cities in Sub-Saharan Africa.

 

Since January 2019, the initiative is co-funded by the European Union, the German Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), and the Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo (AECID) with a total funding amount of €35.7 M, providing in-depth support to cities in 14 countries, including Ghana. It is jointly implemented by four European Member State Organizations namely GIZ, AECID, AFD and Expertise France.

This publication was produced with the financial support of the European Union and the German Federal Ministry. Its contents are the sole responsibility of the German Federal Ministry and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or the other co-funders.

 

 

CoM SSA Communication Officer                                             Metropolitan Coordinating Director

Contact email: frida.baldeon @giz.de                                     Email: innocent.haligah@stma.gov.gh

                                                                                                       Telephone: 0244365823

 

European Union Press and Information Officer                     Metro. Dev’t Planning Officer (CoM SSA Focal Person)

Contact email : Abdul-Kudus.HUSEIN@eeas.europa.eu      Email : abu.mahamah@stma.gov.gh

                                                                                                       Telephone: 0246373077