When Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson stood before Parliament to present the 2026 Budget on the theme: “Resetting for Growth, Jobs and Economic Transformation”, he also reset expectations for Ghana’s environmental and economic direction.
The document, while steeped in fiscal recovery and job creation rhetoric, carries a strong undercurrent of environmental ambition—from climate finance and green infrastructure to land reclamation and circular economy initiatives.
The introduction of the Ghana Green Finance Taxonomy (GGFT) and the creation of a Ghana Carbon Office mark significant institutional steps.
They aim to direct both public and private capital toward low-carbon projects—from renewable energy and waste recycling to sustainable manufacturing.
If executed well, this could anchor Ghana as a regional hub of green capital flows and carbon trading under the Paris Agreement framework.
However, the effectiveness of these instruments hinges on transparency and verification.
Without strong “do no significant harm” criteria and independent monitoring, Ghana risks repeating global experiences of greenwashing, where investments labelled as ‘sustainable’ fail to deliver genuine emission reductions.
Shift
The introduction of parametric drought and flood insurance, targeting over a million residents in flood-prone Accra, signals a paradigm shift—from post-disaster relief to pre-disaster preparedness.
Such climate-risk instruments can shield the poor from economic shocks, maintain fiscal stability, and reduce dependence on emergency borrowing.
Yet, Ghana must tackle the equity challenge. Parametric products are often designed for efficiency, not inclusivity.
If the poorest households—especially informal settlers and smallholder farmers—are not covered, resilience becomes a privilege, not a right.
Under the Circular Economy Framework for Plastics, the government’s partnership with SMEs to recycle waste and produce biodegradable materials is a step in the right direction.
Eleven local businesses have already benefitted from funding support, with thousands of tonnes of waste collected and green jobs created.
Still, the scale remains modest relative to Ghana’s waste crisis.
Without strong extended producer responsibility legislation, major plastic producers will continue externalising environmental costs while smaller firms shoulder the clean-up burden.
Transition
The rollout of hundreds of thousands of LPG cookstoves and solar streetlights aligns with Ghana’s energy transition goals and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Cleaner cooking fuels can cut deforestation and improve public health, while renewable streetlighting enhances safety and lowers municipal energy costs.
Yet energy sustainability requires economic realism. LPG remains fossil-based, and maintenance of solar assets at the local level is historically poor.
Without local ownership and financing models for maintenance, these projects risk becoming symbolic gestures rather than lasting solutions.
The government’s commitment to reclaim degraded lands and enforce stricter anti-galamsey measures is commendable.
Yet enforcement-heavy approaches without community buy-in have historically backfired. Environmental justice demands inclusion.
Local communities should not just be subjects of reclamation; they must be partners and beneficiaries through green job creation, tree nursery enterprises, and land tenure security.
Plan
Perhaps the most economically ambitious — and environmentally contentious — policy is the National Oil Palm Development Plan.
While it promises thousands of jobs and export diversification, large-scale monoculture plantations risk deforestation and biodiversity loss.
Ghana must learn from Southeast Asia, where palm oil expansion undermined both ecosystems and smallholder livelihoods.
To balance growth with responsibility, government-backed financing under the US$500 million Oil Palm Finance Window must be tied to strict sustainability standards and certification requirements for beneficiaries.
The plan to redirect portions of the Petroleum Funds into domestic infrastructure and renewable energy investments could redefine Ghana’s resource governance model.
But if “green” becomes a political label rather than an investment discipline, the nation risks turning its sovereign wealth into a fiscal liability.
A clear investment policy, climate risk screening, and independent oversight are essential to maintain both financial and environmental integrity.
Across these initiatives, a recurring issue stands out — implementation governance.
The writer is a PhD candidate (Environment & Development),
Presbyterian University College.
