The Member of Parliament for Manso Nkwanta in the Ashanti region, Mr Tweneboa Kodua Fokuo has underscored the urgent need for the country to invest in renewable sources of energy due to the numerous advantages it offers for the Ghanaian economy.
According to him, Ghana needs to leverage the potential of renewable energy since it helps in reducing air pollution and the mitigation of climate change.
Speaking on the floor of Parliament on Wednesday January, 2022 in a statement to commemorate the 2025 UN International Day on Clean Energy which is observed on January 26 annually, Mr Tweneboa Kodua Fokuo said “renewables offer a way out of import dependency, helps countries diversify their economies and cushion it unpredictable price swings of fossil fuels, while driving inclusive economic growth, new jobs, and poverty alleviation”.
“Mr Speaker, The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) estimates that 90 percent of the world’s electricity can and should come from renewable energy by 2050. Renewables offer a way out of import dependency, allowing countries to diversify their economies and protect it from the unpredictable price swings of fossil fuels, while driving inclusive economic growth, new jobs, and poverty alleviation.
It is crucial to invest in renewable energy and educate about its benefits regarding reducing air pollution and mitigating climate change in order to leverage this potential for improving environmental health”, Mr Fokuo stated.
The Manso Nkwanta MP also raises concerns about the dangers associated with continues dependence of fossil base source of fuel which is responsible for green gas effecs causing climate change with negative effects on human life and the environment.
“For many decades, fossil fuels such as coal, oil or gas have been major sources of electricity production but burning carbon fuels produces large amounts of greenhouse gases which cause climate change and have harmful impacts on people’s well-being and the environment”, Hon Tweneboah noted.
Read the full statement published below:
A STATEMENT ON A CALL FOR INCREASED ENERGY IN GHANA BY MR TWENEBOA KODUA FOKUO (MP, MANSO NKWANTA) 21ST, JANUARY, 2025
Mr Speaker, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, in its resolution 77/327, decided to proclaim 26 January – the anniversary day of the founding of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) in 2009 – as the International Day on Clean Energy as a call to raise awareness and mobilize action for a just and inclusive transition to clean energy for the benefit of people and the planet.
Mr Speaker, the UN Day of Clean Energy is aligned to the Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG7) which calls for “affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all” by 2030.
For many decades, fossil fuels such as coal, oil or gas have been major sources of electricity production but burning carbon fuels produces large amounts of greenhouse gases which cause climate change and have harmful impacts on people’s well-being and the environment.
Mr Speaker, The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) estimates that 90 percent of the world’s electricity can and should come from renewable energy by 2050. Renewables offer a way out of import dependency, allowing countries to diversify their economies and protect it from the unpredictable price swings of fossil fuels, while driving inclusive economic growth, new jobs, and poverty alleviation.
It is crucial to invest in renewable energy and educate about its benefits regarding reducing air pollution and mitigating climate change in order to leverage this potential for improving environmental health.
Mr Speaker, of all the renewable forms of energy, solar energy comes highly recommended as it is sustainable, renewable, and plentiful.
Mr Speaker, with increasing technological interventions, most countries around the world have resorted to residential solar energy productions by having roof top solar panels to tap solar energy which has also seen unit cost of production reducing. Adopting this style of energy production will be helpful and timely for Ghana as current cost of electricity production, partly from fossil fuel, continues to rise.
Mr Speaker, it is undoubted that Ghana, being at the equator, is well positioned to benefit from abundant solar energy to its advantage, helping to achieve our goal of moderating energy cost whilst contributing to producing cleaner energy and saving our planet which aligns to SDG7 of the United Nation.
Mr Speaker, the benefits of producing energy from renewable sources is enormous and include:
- Reducing global warming
- Improved public health
- Jobs and other economic benefits
- Stable energy prices
- Reliability and resilience
Mr Speaker, Ghana in aligning to the UN clean energy day and SDG7, could install solar panels on rooftops of various homes and businesses.
Ghana currently relies heavily on natural gas for its energy production, which is costly, unreliable, and also produces greenhouse gases with its associated challenges.
We need to reduce our reliance on natural gas and expand into solar – producing clean energy, moderating cost, and saving our planet.
Residential solar power is becoming affordable everyday than ever with the technology becoming readily available across the world.
With Solar energy, the key challenge which tend to hinder many is the onset cost which could be substantial, though not prohibitive. Ghana could learn from countries that have been successful in rolling out homes and business solar programs at scale.
To reduce the initial set-up cost burden, the government could provide financial incentives such as tax credits, rebates, and grants to offset the initial expenses of purchasing and installing solar panels. By taking advantage of these subsidies, one could significantly lower the amount needed to invest out-of-pocket, making solar energy more accessible.
Mr Speaker, again, incentives should be considered to woo investors to begin mass local production of Solar Panels to further reduce its cost.
Mr Speaker, further incentives proposed to be considered to encourage the adoption of solar panels installation at homes and businesses include:
- One-time grants to households depending on the amount of energy generated from solar panel
- Dedicated subsidized loans to support with the initial installations cost
- Rewarding homes that use electronic installations that are energy efficient such as energy saver air conditioners, TVs, fridges etc. Reward should be based on reliance on solar energy and efficiency with same.
- Creating the necessary platform for households to be able to sell excess energy back to the national grid
Mr Speaker, as we join the United Nations in observing this important day, as legislators, we should reflect deeply on the significance of producing cleaner energy and the case for promoting rooftop solar panels for homes and businesses in Ghana.
Though there are some initiatives to support rooftop solar panels in Ghana, there has not been any achievement at scale, and we need to review and look at the shortfalls to understand why we still do not have solar panels on our roofs and the abundant solar energy is just being wasted.
Do we need to incentivise more to encourage use of solar panels in residential homes and businesses?
Does it require legislation to let it work?
Mr Speaker, one thing is clear, that renewable energy is the future of energy production given all the associated benefits and Ghana should not be left behind.
We should learn from countries that have been successful with harvesting solar energy for homes and even industrial use such as India, Brazil, Chile, Poland etc.
Ghana stands to benefit, and I urge the house to give it a thought as we observe the UN Clean Energy Day on 26th January.
Let’s go clean energy
Let’s save energy cost
Let’s save our planet
END.
