The Kassena-Nankana East Municipal and the Kassena-Nankana West District Assembly in the Upper East Region have expressed their commitments to mainstream clean cooking system into Medium-Term Development Plans (MTDPs)
The two assemblies made the pledge at a stakeholder sensitisation programme organised by the Organisation for Indigenous Initiatives and Sustainability (ORGIIS-Ghana), an advocacy Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) on environment at Paga, in the Kassena-Nankana West District on Friday.
According to the two assemblies, the mainstreaming of clean cooking issues into their various medium-term development plans would help create the enabling environment for producers of improved cook stoves within their districts to operate without hindrance.
The Development Planning Officer of the Kassena-Nankana West District, Tarihu M Salifu, explained that the assembly had made provisions to tackle climate change and the clean cooking initiative in line with the MTDPs.
He said the assembly had been collaborating with ORGIIS over the years to implement development projects in the district and reiterated the assembly’s commitment to offering support to ensure that the project succeeds.
Mr Salifu promised that the assembly would endeavour to create an enabling environment for all NGOs and Civil Society Organisations including ORGIIS to operate smoothly to improve standards of living of the people.
The Development Planning Officer of the Kassena-Nankana East Municipal Assembly, Alhassan Abdul-Baty, on his part disclosed that the municipal assembly had already factored the clean energy cooking into its MTDPs.
He said the assembly took into consideration, the health, gender and energy issues in the formulation of the cleaning cooking issues in its MTDPs and added that the assembly would also employ awareness creation via radio discussions, durbars and community sensitisation programmes on the benefits using improved cook stoves, as well as the health hazards of traditional methods of cooking .
The Executive Director of ORGIIS, Julius Awaregye, explained that the advocacy programme, being implemented by his outfit under the project, “Voice for Change (V4C) Partnership Programme,” was to educate stakeholders on the benefits of using improved cook stoves for healthy living and protection of the environment.
He stated that the five-year strategic partnership project being funded by the Netherlands Development Organisation (SNV), aimed at supporting the government to achieve its renewable energy goals and to deliver the expected outcomes of its climate change policies and the Sustainable Development Goals in general.
Mr Awaregye, the Executive Director of ORGIIS, said the overall aim of the project was to advocate for the paradigm shift from the traditional ways of cooking to more efficient, cost effective and sustainable ways of cooking as well as improving the health of the people.
He called on the various assemblies to make budgetary allocations to support clean cooking initiatives, including creating an enabling environment for all especially producers of clean cooking stoves systems to be able to operate within the districts without challenges
FROM SAMUEL AKAPULE, PAGA
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