Ghana advancing despite 'deeply concerning' global climate trends - Minister

The First Minister of State for Climate Change and Sustainability, Issifu Seidu, has expressed concern over the failure of world leaders to address the issue of climate change.

Speaking at the High-Level Technical Convening on Solar Radiation Modification (SRM) in Accra on April 1, 2026, Issifu Seidu noted that, although Ghana as a country is reducing the production of greenhouse gases that cause climate change, the opposite is happening globally.

He pointed out that the implementation of policies and programmes such as the Nationally Determined Contributions, the Climate Prosperity Plan and the Green Taxonomy Framework, as well as Ghana’s focus on increasing its renewable energy to 20%, is helping the country’s climate change efforts as it pursues its economic targets.

“Yet, even as countries like Ghana take action, the global picture remains deeply concerning. Ten years after the Paris Agreement, global greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise. In 2024, global temperatures exceeded 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. UNEP’s recent Emissions Gap Report projecting up to 2.8 degrees of warming by the end of the century. This gap between ambition and reality underscores the scale of the challenge before us,” he added.

The Climate Change Minister also noted that Ghana and other African countries bear the full brunt of climate change despite the fact that they contribute less to global carbon emissions.

He indicated that millions of Africans, including Ghanaians, are being displaced by climate change and millions more are projected to be led into poverty by the menace.

“For Ghana, and for many countries across Africa, climate change is not an abstract future risk. It is a present and growing threat to development. Livelihoods in agriculture, fisheries, and the informal economy are becoming increasingly precarious. As one of the world’s leading producers of cocoa, Ghana is already experiencing how changing climatic conditions affect crop yields, farmer incomes, and global supply chains.

“Beyond agriculture, the impacts extend across our society. Our health systems are under increasing strain from heat-related illnesses, the spread of vector-borne diseases, and rising nutrition insecurity. In northern Ghana, heat-related mortality is already a significant concern. Flooding and extreme weather events are damaging infrastructure and disrupting economic activity. Without adequate adaptation and resilience measures, it is estimated that climate impacts could push at least one million more Ghanaians into poverty by 2050,” the minister said.

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Touching on the main focus of the event, Solar Radiation Modification (SRM), Issifu Seidu noted that while discussions on ways to fight climate change are pointing to SRM, which involves the reflection of portions of incoming solar radiation to reduce global temperature increases, the measure does not resolve the root cause of global warming.

He added that while Ghana and the African continent oppose the use of SRM in the fight against climate change because of its many flaws, it is important to have knowledge and capacity on it in order to engage constructively in discussions that may have far-reaching implications for the continent and the world.

The High-Level Technical Convening brought together members of the diplomatic corps, esteemed scientists, researchers, and policy experts from across the African continent.

Participants were taken through what SRM is, its types, the tools used for the modifications, and their potential impacts.

Also, researchers from across the African continent presented their findings on the impact of climate change in their various countries.

BAI

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