Ghana, Korea explore bilateral cooperation on climate change

Ghana and Korea are ramping up processes to complete a bilateral agreement on climate change to help build resilience against global crisis.

The framework on climate change, to be signed between the two countries, is meant to strengthen their collaboration in addressing climate change for sustainable development.

Also, the cooperation document would pave way for Korean investors to come into the country and invest in areas of climate change mitigation and green technology.

To facilitate the processes for the agreement, a delegation from the Korean government last Wednesday paid a courtesy call on the Minister of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Ahmed Ibrahim, in Accra, to discuss the hurdles that need to be cleared.

The Korean delegation was led by the Korean Ambassador, Park Kyongsig. Other members were the second secretary at the Korean Embassy, Hyunjoo Kim, and the Korea Environmental Industry and Technology Institute (KEITI) delegation Chief Representative, Dr Hong Seok Kim.

Context

The Republic of Korea and the government of Ghana have been working towards signing a framework agreement for cooperation on climate change between the two countries.

The two countries are pursuing a bilateral agreement that will enable the parties to work together on greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation.

The agreement is intended to establish a cooperative framework under Article 6.2 of the Paris activities while supporting sustainable development objectives.

Through the framework, the two sides aim to promote practical cooperation, including joint climate projects, technical exchange, and policy dialogue, in line with their respective national climate strategies.

In January 2023, Ghana formally expressed interest in concluding a bilateral climate change cooperation agreement with the Republic of Korea.

While in December 2023, the two sides reached an agreement on the main structure and content of the draft text, and the draft was initialled on the margins of COP28.

And in May, 2024, Korea completed its domestic procedures. Currently, the two sides are awaiting the completion of Ghana's domestic procedures in order to proceed with the next steps toward signature.

Assurance

The Korean Ambassador said after almost 50 years of bilateral cooperation between the two countries, Korea was committed to deepening its relationship with Ghana, especially in the area of environment and waste management.

He said the Korean delegation would visit Ghana again in June, this year, to firm up the processes for the signing of the agreement for sound management of the environment.

Mr Park called on the Ghanaian side to fast-track processes for the signing of the agreement.

“Korean private sector investors are waiting for the agreement to be signed so that they can invest in Ghana so that the country can get carbon credits. Korea is ready for the signing of the agreement.” 

Commitment

The Deputy Minister of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Rita Naa Odoley Sowah, who sat in the meeting for the sector minister, Ahmed Ibrahim, said Ghana had placed high value on the relationship with Korea and would go to every length to deepen that cooperation.

“We see Korea as a trusted partner in addressing the development challenges, especially in waste management,” she said.

She said the government was worried about the influx of second-hand textiles into the country and how to efficiently manage the textile waste.