The Ghana Youth Environmental Movement (GYEM) has urged government to review and enforce Renewable Energy Act 832 (2011) to develop and promote the renewable energy sector in Ghana.

This is part of the Movement’s advocacy efforts to review and enforce the Act, supported by the Business Sector Advocacy Challenge (BUSAC) Fund and its development partners DANIDA, EU and USAID.

The Renewable Energy Act was passed to facilitate the achievement of the goal set for renewable energy in the National Energy Policy to account for 10% of total energy generation in the country by 2020.

Passed and assented to by the president in 2011, the Act provides the legal basis for fiscal incentives and regulatory framework to attract investment towards the development, utilization and efficient management of renewable energy resources in the country.

However, key provisions in the document such as establishing a Renewable Energy Authority to oversee the implementation of renewable energy projects and activities in the country.

It also touches on the operationalizing a Renewable Energy Fund for the development, promotion and utilization of renewable energy resources in Ghana have not been implemented.

President Akufo-Addo in his 2017 State of the Nation Address delivered on February 21, admitted that the Renewable Energy Act needed a review to “provide further incentives to attract the private sector to invest”.

He acknowledged that the challenges and difficulties Ghana faced in generating enough electricity to meet her increasing demands for economic growth and development in the past “resulted in frequent power outages and planned power rationing across the country in recent years, leading to reduced workforce productivity, high cost of doing business, and lack of power for essential activities in the home”.

Against this backdrop, GYEM has urged key stakeholders, state actors and implementing institutions such as the Energy Commission, Ministry of Energy and others to fully implement key provisions in the RE Act such as the establishment of the Renewable Energy Authority and the operationalizing of the Renewable Energy Fund, among others.

Most importantly, the Energy Commission and partners are called upon to fast track and expedite action on the RE Master Plan to provide concrete plans to achieve key targets in the industry.

This will give overall policy goals, milestones and timelines that will guide the development of Renewable Energy Technologies (RETs), as well as their deployment and integration into the energy mix.

The Ghana Youth Environmental Movement is a leading youth-led environmental and renewable energy advocacy group in Ghana. Formed in 2012, the group has spearheaded several campaigns to promote renewable energy and environmental sustainability.