A circular economy means re­ducing pressure on natural resourc­es and creating sustainable growth and jobs, while tapping into the potential of greener preferences and markets.

The roadmap which comes with an action plan, was designed by the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MES­TI) with funding from the Europe­an Union (EU) Commission.

It would focus on seven priority sectors; plastics, electronics, tex­tiles, agriculture and food systems; built environment (construction); waste and water.

The Sector Minister, Dr Kwaku Afriyie and his technical advisor, Oliver Boachie, gave highlights of the roadmap at the third Circular Economy Seminar in Accra on Friday.

The seminar was organised by the EU in Ghana in collaboration with the MESTI and the Ministry of Finance to create awareness on the need for faster transition and encourage EU-Ghana business partnerships.

Delivering his address, Dr Kwaku Afriyie said as part of efforts to achieve a successful transition, the government had made policy reforms based on the principles of circularity.

He listed some as the Hazard­ous and Electronic Waste Control and Management Act (Act 917, 2016), Ghana’s National Plastics Management Policy and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Scheme for Plastics.

The roadmap for circular econ­omy, he said, would create strong alignment among, policy-makers, the business communities, the in­formal sector, academia and civil society on the vision, and actions for a just transition.

He said it would also enable the country to identify the priority sectors of Ghana’s economy where Circular Economy would maximise national output, ensure sustainability, and encourage stakeholder involvement.

In addition to the roadmap and action plan, Dr Afriyie said the government was also undertaking a five-year project to establish a Circular Economy Framework for Plastics.

“The government believes that industry sustainability, which underpins the country’s economy, depends on their ability to adopt circularity principles, practices and processes to deliver products that render themselves to re-use, repur­posing, and recycling,” he said.

In a presentation, Mr Boachie said the roadmap, to be funded through internal and external sources, would lead the country toward sustainable, low carbon, resource efficient and competitive economy.

He said it would leverage on cir­cularity to pursue the Sustainable Development Goals and Ghana’s climate change mitigations, align ongoing initiatives and propose scientific recommendations on required policy interventions.

For his part, the EU Ambassa­dor to Ghana, Irchad Razaaly said continental study shows that, by adopting a small set of circular economy measures, Africa could increase its combined Gross Domestic Product 2.2 per cent and create 11 million additional jobs by 2030.

For this reason, he said the EU would continue to support coun­tries including Ghana to transition and derive the benefits that comes with having a circular economy.

As part of the event, there was an exhibition of green and other products, and the launch of the second circular economy compe­tition between small business and start-ups.