It was a sun-kissed hazy day in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates on December 2, 2023, during the 28thClimate Change Conference held at the Expo City. The venue was the Ghana Pavilion and the entire leadership and workforce of the Jospong Group had every reason to be proud.
This was the day that saw representatives of the Swiss Government, led by His Excellency Ambassador Felix Wertli of the Swiss Federal Office for Environment (BAFU) and representatives of the Jospong Group, led by visionary Executive Chairman, Dr. Joseph Siaw Agyepong, sign an authroisation document which conferred an internationally Transferred Mitigation Outcome (ITMO) credit on the Integrated Waste Recycling and Compost facilities of the Jospong Group of Companies.
The number of dignitaries, who witnessed the historic occasion, was awesome. It included no less a personality than His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, President of the Republic of Ghana; Dr. Kwaku Afriyie, Minister of Environment, Science, Technology, and Innovation (MESTI), Dr. Freda Prempeh, Minister of Water and Sanitation, as well as representatives of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Ghana.
The ITMO status covers four out of the 38 waste treatment plants belonging to Zoomlion Ghana, a subsidiary of Jospong Group, which were selected for the initial phase of the project aiming to generate approximately 1.5 million metric tons of carbon dioxide valued at US$20 million from now until 2030.
For His Excellency Ambassador Felix Wertli of the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment (BAFU), the signing of the document was of great significance to the Swiss government in pursuit of reducing carbon emissions to meet the Sustainable Development Goals.
He highlighted the mutually beneficial nature of the agreement, with Ghana reducing emissions and enhancing waste management while Switzerland advances its climate goals. He also expressed Switzerland’s eagerness to continue strengthening its relationship with Ghana in these endeavours.
Dr. Agyepong, on his part, said the world has now gone green, and as such, about 1,000 of Zoomlion’s diesel waste trucks are undergoing conversion into electric vehicles in partnership ZeroNox in the USA. He announced the company’s plans for extensive climate-related research in 2024, adding that the Jospong Group intends to sponsor a number of individuals in climate studies.
Zoomlion’s exploits at carbon trading can be traced back to the year 2008 when it partnered the British Council of Accra to carry out a pilot project on its landfill sites.
“Everything our great Group has embarked upon has green components, says Ms. Sophia Kudjordji, Chief Corporate Communications Officer of the Jospong Group. “From its inception, the Jospong Group has been on a mission to foster sustainability and help build a green environment in Ghana and across the African continent. One of the standout achievements of the Group is the generation of substantial carbon credits, made possible through various innovative initiatives, Ms. Kudjordji added.
“I am aware that climate change has become the single greatest challenge facing humanity and the single biggest threat to all life on Earth, and I believe that we all in one way or the other have a role in mitigating its devasting impact on humanity,” Dr. Agyepong, stressed in an interview.
“In 2006, when by the grace of God, I caught the vision to go into waste management, my primary mission was to improve the lives of people by ensuring environmental cleanliness using simple but modern technologies. My joy was to see our streets and homes clean while providing livelihood for the teeming youth of our beloved country, Ghana,” Dr. Agyepong further said.
“We at Jospong Group fully agree that it demands urgent and concerted action from all nations including the private sector to lower emissions and reduce the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere,” he added.
It is worth noting that the Jospong Group of Companies has been at the forefront of this movement, setting an exemplary model for businesses and looking to incorporate eco-friendly practices into our operations.
At the heart of the Jospong Group’s sustainability journey lies an unwavering commitment to ESG principles. “These principles serve as the guiding light for the Group’s activities, shaping its efforts to minimize its environmental footprint, empower communities, and uphold the highest standards of corporate governance,” says Noah Gyimah, the Group’s Chief Investment & Innovations Officer.
“As part of our journey to this project, we developed a mitigation activity document including the technical description of the project,” added Ing. Dr Glenn Gyimah, of the African Environmental & Sanitation Consult (AFESC).
“This also encompassed the involvement of our national government, the Regulator which is the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Ghana as well as an independent validator.
“We also developed a Municipal Solid Waste Flow analysis that can justify the quantity of emissions captured and a financial analysis to guide us. With our four plants combined up to the year 2030 we could save a carbon emission of not less than 1.6 million metric tonnes of carbon equivalent of methane,” Dr Gyimah explains further.
“Going forward, Jospong Group is setting up plants in each of the 16 regions of Ghana. We are not relenting in our efforts; we must ensure that we excel in this venture,” says Mrs. Florence Larbi, Chief Operating Officer of the Environment & Sanitation Cluster of the Jospong Group, an outfit which oversees the operations of the recycling and Composting facilities.
“It is also about appreciating the value of waste and proper waste management systems,” she said.
Source: Jospong News
