Ghana has been selected alongside Bangladesh to run a project that will take inventory of plastic waste produced in Ghana and those that are legally and illegally imported into the country.
The two year project funded by Norway follows research that has shown that there is lack of accurate data on the volume of plastic waste in the system and this is contributing to the inability to effectively deal with the menace which has engulfed the environment and the country’s water bodies.
Speaking at an event to launch the project the Minister of Environment Technology and Innovation, Prof Kwabena Frimpong Boateng said government may in future initiate plans to ban single use plastics.
The problem of plastic littering in Ghana has become a major challenge especially during the rainy season.
Streets and waterways in Accra, and other urban areas in the country are inundated with single-use plastics such as shopping bags, pure water plastic bags, plastic takeaway food boxes, water and soda bottles.
Although governments, both past and present have taken steps to deal with the situation, no concrete results have been achieved.
This, some have attributed to the lack of accurate data on plastic waste generated in the country and those that come in from other countries.
The Marine litter and micro plastics project seeks to provide Ghana and Bangladesh with accurate data and options on how to manage plastic waste.
Speaking at the launch of the project to discuss how to manage and minimize the generation of plastic waste, the Minister of Environment Science Technology and Innovation, Prof Frimpong Boateng said while government considers options to ban certain plastics, people must minimize the use of certain plastic materials.
A representative from Resource Futures an NGO in the management of material resources, David Lerpiniere spoke on how the project will be implemented.
The two year project is being implemented by the secretariat of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm, (BRS). If successful, it will be replicated in other countries facing challenges with plastic waste.
Story filed by Doreen Ampofo
