Abstract
Over the years, Ghana has invested considerable effort and resources together with international partners to develop the energy sector and to mainstream energy low carbon pathways into national development plans. Low carbon development (LCD) provides a good opportunity, of not only building upon earlier energy and climate change local processes and structures but also help to mainstream low carbon agenda in economic activities and national development plans. For this to work however, require efficient institutions and effective institutional arrangements. Based on extensive literature analysis, personal communications and inputs from stakeholders, the paper highlights the key institutional arrangements, their interactions, challenges and proffers recommendations for improvements. To improve energy and low carbon development effort from the perspectives of institutional structures, would require, clearer institutional mandates, continuous improvements in institutional coordination (intra and inter), capacity and skills development, sustained visibility of the essence of energy and LCD at high political levels as well as engagement by civil societies. Equally important are the issues of finance, data availability and quality, monitoring and evaluation.
Highlights
In the past two decades, climate change issues have received high attention and commitments in Ghana
With respect to Ghana‘s commitment to climate proof its economic development, it has engaged itself to pursue the following: (a) at the international level, it signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 1992 and ratified it in 1995, (b) Ghana believes that there presently exist in the world, knowledge and technologies that could be effectively harnessed to help Ghana to develop via low carbon pathway without having to pursue the conventional development route associated with high greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and (c) effectively mainstreaming low carbon development strategies (LCDS) into its development planning would be the surest means to ensure that it trickles down to the lowest possible levels of development
Ghana has made progress in establishing institutions, put in place policies, strategies, coordinating mechanisms and other relevant processes to facilitate the implementation of climate change mitigation strategies
Summary
In the past two decades, climate change issues have received high attention and commitments in Ghana. With respect to Ghana‘s commitment to climate proof its economic development, it has engaged itself to pursue the following: (a) at the international level, it signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 1992 and ratified it in 1995, (b) Ghana believes that there presently exist in the world, knowledge and technologies that could be effectively harnessed to help Ghana to develop via low carbon pathway without having to pursue the conventional development route associated with high greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and (c) effectively mainstreaming low carbon development strategies (LCDS) into its development planning would be the surest means to ensure that it trickles down to the lowest possible levels of development. Ghana‘s national medium term development framework provides the overall vision and strategies for the coordination of how the economic transformation will take place in a consistent manner. What drive the development structures are ―suitably capable institutions‖
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