Topic:
Country: Ghana
Delegate Name: Macie Minor
Macie Minor,
Williamston High School
Republic of Ghana
World Health Organization
Climate Change and Public Health
In this day and age, there is one issue that rises above all, so terrible that it unites even the closest of enemies: global warming. Now, some countries merely have to lessen their carbon emissions and adjust their use of fossil fuels, but the Republic of Ghana is in a far more dire position. Situated next to the Gulf of Guinea, Ghana’s economy is heavily based on its environment through imports and exports. Already sitting on an unsound economy, Ghana is a slip up away from a nationwide catastrophe. With over 21% of Ghanaian economy dependent on agriculture, and another 29% dependent on exports and imports of goods such as cocoa. If climate change goes unchecked, Ghana will be a country that will greatly suffer socially, politically, and economically.
The Republic of Ghana has already made efforts into addressing climate change by signing the Paris Agreement, working with the UNFCCC, and passing around forty-seven environmental actions. It’s predicted that by 2080, the sea level around Ghana will rise by 40 centimeters (15.748 inches), ruining any kind of coastal city livelihoods. It is also predicted that Ghana will lose 70% of food and clean water sources. The Republic of Ghana has suffered immensely from effects caused by climate change; erosion, decimation of resources, and the sinking of literal villages will increase. Due to the environment suffering, the rates of violence and crimes within Ghana have increased. Spanning from a long history of complex politics, Ghanaian farmers and miners incomes are threatened by incoming policies. Due to certain mines containing dangerous levels of raw mercury and farmers’ lands being ruined, tensions have risen. Localized conflicts are what is fueling the fire of nation-wide violence. From goals as expressed by the Ghanaian president, shifting society towards a route of a low carbon society and greater health is what Ghana is trying to reach. It is difficult to say the least. Farmers and herders have already lost substantial portions of land and animals from the lack of usable land due to inconsistent rainfall.
The Republic of Ghana is looking for assistance. As much as the government is trying its best to adapt and seamlessly shift over to a greener society, the Ghanaian economy cannot handle it, on its own. The need for help rises every day, due to global warming Ghana no longer experiences its usual rainfall which crops are dependent on, and builds tension which leads to nationwide violence. Campaigns have already been put into action, but they are still too small and improperly funded, there’s not much that can be done. Without the help from other countries, by the end of the century Ghana could experience a mass starvation, resource depletion, and countrywide endangerment.
Sources
BBC. “Ghana Country Profile.” BBC News, 1 May 2018, www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-13433790.
Strouboulis, Anastasia, et al. “Conflict Prevention, Climate Change, and Why Ghana Matters Now.” Www.csis.org, Mar. 2023, www.csis.org/analysis/conflict-prevention-climate-change-and-why-ghana-matters-now.
