Ghana government urged to invest in paper bags production

Ms.  Joana Arthur, the Chief Executive Officer of Mending Papers Company Limited, a paper packaging company has called on the government to begin investing in the paper bag industry to save the country from Environmental pollutions associated with plastic waste.

In recent times, plastic waste of all kinds continues to pose environmental discomfort affecting the lives of humans, the soil, and the ocean.

The aesthetics of most beach fronts, major drains across the length and breadth of the country also leave much to be desired as the various shapes and forms of plastics from the bottling companies and sachet water producers continue to wreak health havoc.

The call for investment in paper bags and other forms of packaging materials, according to Ms. Arthur, was key to reversing the dangerous implications of the growing usage of plastics in the country on the health of its citizens.

Ms. Arthur in an interview with the Ghana News Agency to mark World Environment Day said achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)s on Quality Water access, Sanitation and Hygiene may also become far reaching should the country lag in adopting urgent steps to revise the narratives.

The day was celebrated on the theme "Solution to plastic pollution."

In September 2015, the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit adopted an international framework to guide development efforts, entitled ‘Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development’.

The SDG framework has a total of 17 goals, 169 targets and 244 indicators out of which 93 are environment related.

The SDGs aim to measure the most pressing issues facing the planet, including natural resource management, climate change, water-related issues, marine issues, biodiversity and ecosystems, circular economy, environmentally sound management of chemicals and waste, and many other topics.

According to the CEO. the company, was emulating the good examples of Rwanda in solving plastic menace through utilizing innovative recycling techniques and sustainable materials, to reduce waste, conserve natural resources, and promote a circular economy.

She noted how the recycling sector was capital intensive and the need for strict enforcement of existing legislation on plastics in the country.

Ms. Arthur was one of the five businesses from the Region to receive a matching grant of GH¢175,000 from the 2021 GrEEn Innovation Challenge run by the European Union and SNV to invest in her company.

She said the dream was to eventually end plastic waste in the country and encouraged Ghanaians and stakeholders to help make the change possible.

World Environment Day is the biggest international day for the environment. Led by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and held annually since 1973, it has grown to be the largest global platform for environmental outreach. It is celebrated by millions of people across the world.

World Environment Day 2023 is hosted by Cote d’lvoire and supported by the Netherlands and the theme will focus on solution to plastic pollution under the campaign #Beatplasticpollution.

Source: GNA