CLIP, EPA hold Northern Ghana launch of National Adaptation Plan

Changing Lives in Innovative Partnerships (CLIP), an NGO, in collaboration with the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) has launched the Northern Ghana phase of the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) to strengthen climate resilience and reduce vulnerability amongst communities in the northern sector of the country.

The launch in Tamale, sought to enhance awareness, promote local ownership and deepen multi-stakeholder commitment to the effective implementation of climate adaptation strategies especially amongst smallholder farmers, youth and decentralised government institutions.

The event attracted farmers, civil society organisations, representatives of Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs), research and academic institutions, youth, women’s groups and persons with disabilities.

Speaking during the launch, the Director of CLIP, Lukman Yussif, said it was timely given the increasing impact of climate change on livelihoods in the northern part of the country.

“We are gathered at a critical moment. Climate change continues to pose significant threats to agricultural productivity, livelihoods and overall resilience in northern Ghana,”Yussif said.

According to him although the country had made commendable progress in developing climate policies and frameworks, the success of the NAP would largely depend on the active participation of all stakeholders including regional and district authorities, civil society actors, farmer groups, youth and development partners.

He said CLIP, under the Empowerment for Life Programme, contributed to the development of the NAP through vulnerability assessments conducted across 13 districts in the northern part of the country, which documented climate risks faced by smallholder farmers.

“These insights have helped shape more farmer-responsive elements within the NAP reinforcing the need for policies to be grounded in local realities and informed by the voices of those most affected,” Yussif added.

The Technical Advisor for Food Security, Climate Change and Resilience, Empowerment for Life Programme, CLIP, Abdullah Mohammed, said the launch was to ensure that key stakeholders understood the NAP and took ownership of its implementation, adding that NAP would be integrated into the medium-term development plans of MMDAs and adequately resourced to ensure impact.

For his part, Nana Dr Antwi-Boasiako Amoah of the National Adaptation Plan Secretariat, EPA outlined key implementation priorities including awareness creation, resource mobilisation, capacity building and strengthened coordination at the district level.

He emphasized the importance of educating vulnerable populations on the NAP adding capacity-building programmes would be intensified to equip MMDAs with the knowledge and skills needed to implement climate actions effectively while improved coordination would enhance knowledge sharing and overall impact.

Professor Osman Tahiru Damba, Secretary-General of the Ghana Commission for UNESCO, called for a shift towards identifying opportunities within climate change.

He said “Climate change has come to stay with us; what is critical now is to convert challenges into opportunities and business solutions.”

The National Adaptation Plan (NAP), is the country’s long-term strategic framework designed to address climate change vulnerabilities and build resilience across key sectors such as agriculture, water resources, health and infrastructure.

It was developed under the leadership of the EPA and the Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology, as a coordinated roadmap to guide national and local efforts in adapting to climate impacts and safeguarding livelihoods.

The NAP was finalized and launched late last year in Accra.

Story by: our correspondent

Photo credit: CLIP