The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) launched a new initiative to promote waste recovery in Ghana, through the creation of a digital and one-stop shop solutions platform that will connect all stakeholders along the waste management chain.

Speaking at the inception workshop, Ms. Gita Honwana Welch, UNDP Country Director emphasized the importance of effective waste management for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and encouraged stakeholders to view waste as a resource that present opportunities for economic development, job creation and technological innovation.

“We call on you to partner with us and start a journey that will see us working together in the coming months to co-design tools and solutions […] as we continuously think through the deliverables of this initiative to ensure that they adequately meet the expectation of all stakeholders, and offer the country the best way forward for waste recovery, in line with the national development agenda”, Ms. Welch stated.

The “Multi-Stakeholder Waste Resource Platform” initiative will facilitate investment and access to the market, fill data gaps, build the capacity of local government operators, raise the visibility of service providers in the private sector, and increase awareness across society on the importance of sustainable waste management. In the medium and long-term, it is envisaged that the digital platform will provide ready and consistent data that will serve as a basis for economic and policy decisions on waste management and resource recovery. In addition, the initiative will launch a national competition to provide technical and financial support to a few projects that will test innovative waste recovery solutions.

The inception workshop brought together more than a hundred participants from the waste management sector in Ghana. These include representations from the government, private sector (recyclers, plastic manufacturers, waste collection associations and companies), academia, NGOs and media. The participants lauded the initiative and pledged to collaborate with UNDP to co-design the platform and its features (such as a mobile app), in what is going to be a continuously evolving and iterative process.

Mr. Oliver Boachie, Special Advisor to the Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, stated that “the Ministry is fully committed to ensuring the success of this initiative, which clearly contributes to our policies and plans, like the National Plastics Management Policy currently being developed”.

Similarly, Ms. Kate Opoku, Country Leader of the NGO “Let’s Do it Ghana”, expressed excitement. “We are grateful to UNDP for coming up with this great initiative, that I believe will connect all of us in the waste sector to share ideas to enhance synergy”, noted Ms. Opoku.

The initiative is funded by a new facility called “Country Investment Facility” set up by the UNDP Administrator, Achim Steiner. The facility provides UNDP Country Offices with the opportunity to promote innovation and the use of technology as one of the most efficient and sustainable ways to expand the capabilities of people and communities.