Ghana UNESCO holds 2-day ESD roadmap meeting

Stakeholders in a two-day conference have called for a comprehensive assessment and strategic planning of Ghana's Country Initiative for Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). 

This initiative, developed through a collaborative effort of relevant mandates, aims to promote a more sustainable and equitable future for the nation.

The stakeholders made the call when the Ghana Commission for UNESCO held a two-day meeting on the ESD Roadmap 2030 and the Country Initiative in Accra.

Event 

The event, funded by the UNESCO-Accra Office, brought together the ESD Country Team to assess achievements, identify challenges and outline the future direction of the initiative.

During the discussions, the ESD Team identified several challenges and opportunities for improvement, defined clear roles and responsibilities for various stakeholders and developed a comprehensive action plan for the implementation of the ESD strategy. 

Presentations

In a presentation, the Principal Programme Officer (Education) and Focal Person for ESD in Ghana, Moses J.Y. Gemeh, said the ESD played a crucial role in addressing environmental, social and economic challenges to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 4.7.

Mr Gemeh explained that the ESD 2030 Roadmap was built upon the vision of the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005-2014) and the Global Action Programme (GAP) (2015-2019). 

“Member states, including Ghana, are expected to develop activities in five priority action areas: advancing policy, transforming learning environments, building the capacity of teachers and educators, youth mobilisation and empowerment and local level action,” he added.

To effectively advance ESD on a national scale, he said there was a need for relevant ministries to collaborate to harness partnerships, encourage communication for action, track issues and trends on ESD, mobilise resources and monitor progress.

Challenges 

The Director of Education and Training, National Youth Authority (NYA), Ernest Amoako, said there was a need for comprehensive solutions such as improving education quality, promoting gender equality and partnering with educational institutions. 

He expressed the belief that ESD would address those challenges and empower the youth. “Through ingenuities such as the Country Initiative for ESD, the NYA aims to create a more inclusive and prosperous future for the country's youth,” he said.

The Secretary-General of the Ghana Commission for UNESCO, Ama Serwah Nerquaye-Tetteh, on behalf of the Chief Programme Officer responsible for Natural and Human Sciences, Apollonius Osei Akoto Asare, emphasised the need for ESD in realising the SDGs. 

She urged stakeholders to actively engage in the process and work collaboratively to ensure the country’s progress in this area.

The CEO of the NYA, Pius Hadzide, said the youth needed to be involved in shaping development plans. 

The Associate National Project Officer (NPO), UNESCO, Richmond Attah-Williams, also emphasised the need for stakeholders to collaborate to promote sustainable development and create a more equitable future.