Northern Ghana continues to experience accelerated warming, erratic rainfall and prolonged dry spells that threaten livelihoods, agriculture and the local ecosystem.
In communities such as Wulugu in the North East Region and Buipe in the Savannah Region, households rely heavily on firewood and charcoal for cooking.
Yet, these fuels are increasingly scarce, forcing women and children to walk long distances to collect wood, while simultaneously driving deforestation and environmental degradation.
According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Northern Savannah Zone, which spans roughly 9.7 million hectares, has already lost over 77 per cent of its woodland cover between 2001 and 2015.
This is largely due to fuelwood harvesting and charcoal production.
Against this backdrop, Youth Empowerment for Life (YEFL) Ghana, with support from Oxfam under the DANIDA Strategic Partnership II Programme, has rolled out a climate-resilient, gender-focused intervention aimed at reducing reliance on biomass, promoting cleaner energy, and improving household wellbeing.
As part of the initiative, 200 energy-efficient cookstoves have been distributed to women in Wulugu and Buipe to reduce the use of fuelwood and charcoal production.
The items include 50 firewood-efficient models and 150 charcoal-efficient stoves, designed to cut charcoal use by up to 80 per cent.
Additionally, the project has trained 40 young people, including 20 Fulbe youth, as Youth Environmental Brigades to champion climate awareness, lead regreening activities, and support peaceful agro-pastoral coexistence in the face of climate stress.
Climate-resilience
Presenting the items to the beneficiaries on separate occasions, DANIDA SP II Project Lead at YEFL Ghana, Emmanuel Ndukwe, said the initiative aimed at promoting climate-resilient, gender-sensitive solutions in the beneficiary areas.
He said empowering women with cleaner alternatives and equipping young people to lead environmental action would contribute significantly to reducing deforestation and strengthening community resilience.
He added that the intervention complemented advocacy for reduced LPG prices and the expansion of LPG distribution points in rural areas to improve access to modern cooking energy.
“These energy-efficient cookstoves reduce fuelwood use by nearly 80 per cent and cut harmful emissions that mainly affect women, this is a meaningful step towards safeguarding forest resources while improving health and household savings", Mr Ndukwe said.
The organisation believes that empowering women with cleaner alternatives and equipping young people to lead environmental action will contribute significantly to reducing deforestation and strengthening community resilience.
Gratitude
Some of the beneficiaries who spoke to the Daily Graphic expressed appreciation for the gesture, and said it would go a long way to reduce the health hazards associated with using fuelwood while protecting the environment.
A beneficiary, Amina Mohammed, said “this stove uses very little charcoal. Before, I used to buy charcoal almost every week, but now I save money and cook faster, the smoke is minimal".
Another beneficiary, Salamatu Salifu, said the use of the stoves would help save the environment, particularly shea trees which were often used for fuelwood.
Writer’s email:mohammed.fugu@graphic.com.gh
