Build climate resilient infrastructure now or lose $13bn to climate impacts – GCA tells Gov’t
Delay on the part of government to partner the private sector to build climate change resilient infrastructure, according to the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) will cost Ghana some $13bn.
This is against the estimated $1.3bn the Government of Ghana is expected to spend in building climate change resilient infrastructure across the energy, transport and water sectors.
“If you look at the existing infrastructure portfolio in Ghana, the existing roads, existing railways, existing energy systems, the existing water supply systems and all that, making it resilient will cost roughly $1.3bn.
“But the alternative reality of not making these infrastructure climate resilient, will cost the country $13bn and that’s a factor of 10, so there is a very simple choice for Ghana to make. Ghana has no alternative than to invest in making its infrastructure systems resilient now,” remarked the CEO of the GCA, Dr Patrick Verkooijen in a press briefing on Thursday, May 26.
Already, the GCA in its Roadmap for Resilient Infrastructure in Climate Change report on Ghana, has projected the to country to lose some $3.9bn in damages to its transport sector alone by the year 2050.
According to the GCA, it has in the said report, identified and analysed all climate risks facing Ghana’s infrastructure systems and proffered solutions that will enable Ghana build climate resilient infrastructure systems.
“We have identified and looked at all the infrastructure in Ghana, from transportation to water to energy and have analysed all the climate risks, the climate impacts of today, and we have even projected these impacts and how they will unfold over time.
“And to avert that, we have launched the Roadmap for Resilient Infrastructure in Ghana, and essentially it’s a business plan. It’s a plan of action, where there is a concrete business proposition on where to invest in Ghana, in which sector, how much it cost, how much will have to be mobilised by the government and particularly how much finance will be needed to be attracted from the private sector and from development partners,” Dr Verkooijen noted.
Ghana, along with its African peers on the Continent loses between $7.- $15bn to climate change impacts although cumulatively, African countries contribute below 4% to gas emissions resulting into climate change.
The billions of dollar loses made by African countries to climate change impacts, according to the African Development Bank, is expected to increase further to $40bn by 2030.
Presently, the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (AAAP) which is an African-owned and Africa-led climate change initiative, is looking to mobilize some $25bn for climate change adaptation investments on the Continent.
About the Global Center on Adaptation
The Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) is an international organization which works as a solutions broker to accelerate action and support for adaptation solutions, from the international to the local, in partnership with the public and private sector, to ensure we learn from each other and work together for a climate resilient future.
Founded in 2018, GCA is hosted by the Netherlands, working from its headquarters in Rotterdam with a knowledge and research hub based in Groningen. GCA has a worldwide network of regional offices in Abidjan, Ivory Coast; Dhaka, Bangladesh and Beijing, China.
Through this evolving network of offices and global and regional GCA teams, the organization engages in high-level policy activities, new research contributions, communications, and technical assistance to governments and the private sector.
