Ghana’s Minister for Energy, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, has called on developed nations to support the effort of developing countries to meet their net-zero targets by redeeming the funding pledges made some time ago towards the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
“Developing nations are facing the challenge of achieving the SD7 target of providing clean and affordable energy by 2030, due to the intense financial commitment required,” the Minister said while addressing a high-level SDG Summit Action on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, USA, on Sunday, 17th September 2023.
Most developing countries, he said, heavily rely on wood fuel to meet their energy need and argued that in the face of the global Energy Transition, this type of fuel, if not controlled, would erode the little gains chalked these few years in the quest to combat climate change.
According to him, energy is the heartbeat of every economy, therefore, Africa must have enough of it to support its socioeconomic development to enhance the welfare of the citizenry.
“Our right to develop our energy resources for the benefit of our people must, therefore, be respected and with no interference,” he said.
“We recognise that the electricity, cooking and transportation sectors are key areas in reducing greenhouse (GHG) gas emissions. Consequently, steps must be taken to transition these sectors towards a net-zero emissions future,” he added.
He continued: “To attain this, we must transition to the production and utilisation of clean energy and the implementation of measures to mitigate any emissions that occur in the process.
“This will ensure that we contribute our quota to the reduction of global GHG emissions and more importantly, achieve decarbonisation, energy access, security, and efficiency.”
The Ministry of Energy, the Minister said, is also aggressively promoting clean cooking with a focus on achieving 50 per cent access to the use of LPG as fuel and delivering three million improved efficient charcoal stoves by 2030.
“We have rolled out several programmes, notably, the LPG for Development, Cylinder Recirculation Model and Carbon-for-Free Stoves programme for the biomass sector,” he remarked.
He used the opportunity to reiterate Ghana’s commitment to partnering with investors to explore new energy frontiers to support sustainable, environmentally sound and gender-responsive economic growth.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com