The private sector has been advised to assume the position as a critical player in addressing climate change and its impacts in Ghana.

The sector is, therefore, encouraged to leverage the Green Climate Fund (GCF) to increase investment in climate change adaptation and mitigation initiatives.

Executive Director of the Indigenous Women Empowerment Network Ghana (IWEN Ghana), Celestina Andoh, gave the call during an interaction with journalists at Gbetsile in the Kpong Katamanso Municipality of the Greater Accra region.

She underscored the need for private sector actors to collaborate and design joint environmentally friendly programmes and projects to enable them to access funding from the GCF.

The Green Climate Fund (GCF) is the world's largest dedicated climate fund, and mandate is to foster a paradigm shift towards low-emission, climate-resilient development pathways in developing countries.

As an operating entity of the financial mechanism of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), GCF has become a vital part of the global climate finance architecture.

It has mobilised $ 10 billion during its first replenishment and invested in transformational climate projects worth over $ 40 billion in more than 100 countries.

Ms Andoh said although climate change impacts are devastating, it also provides massive investment opportunities to transform lives and protect the planet.

"The private sector must adapt to changing needs of the environment by leveraging the collective strength to invest in more sustainable projects to change the current course of climate change," she stated.

She appealed to the government to be more commited towards creating the enabling environment for private sector investment in Ghana's climate action priorities.

She noted that large-scale investments are required to reduce emissions and adapt to the adverse effects of climate change, hence the need to get private sector actors to leverage efforts to mobilise resources and develop innovative climate services.