Green economic recovery through circular economy in Ghana

The project aimed to develop capacity in Ghana’s circular economy sector and to promote micro enterprises in the north of the country and support them in the efficient use of available resources. It thus contributed to a green economic recovery.

Training programme on the circular economy in NRW
14 junior Ghanaian managers from public institutions were given the opportunity to take part in a two-week training programme on the circular economy in NRW. The participants learnt about the circular economy as a holistic concept and about how the circular economy model can be transferred to the Ghanaian context. At the same time, they were able to network with companies and institutions in the circular economy sector from NRW and other parts of Germany and from Brussels. The programme was implemented in cooperation with the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy.

Professional course on plastics recycling in NRW
A three-week professional course helped 16 staff members from companies in Ghana’s plastics industry to acquire new skills. The practical training in NRW enabled technical staff in Ghana’s plastics production and recycling industry to significantly enhance their expertise on optimising plastics recycling in the country. Drawing on the expertise of specialist institutions and companies from NRW, participants were able to share experiences and talk to practitioners to discuss how elements could be transferred to the plastics industry in Ghana. The course was held in cooperation with the Kunststoff-Institut Lüdenscheid (Lüdenscheid Plastics Institute).

Networking and professional exchange
Activities were undertaken to promote professional exchange and networking between circular economy experts from Ghana and NRW. Two events involving experts from Ghana and NRW were organised at the West African Clean Energy and Environment Fair & Conference 2023 in Accra, at which technical topics were discussed and new partnerships initiated.

Expanding the public-private financing mechanism in northern Ghana
The public-private financing mechanism for micro enterprises from northern Ghana had already been trialled in the predecessor project. The project enabled micro enterprises and start-ups from northern Ghana to access small-scale funding financed in equal parts by the local private sector and project funds. In this follow-on project, the financing mechanism was successfully expanded and private funding for leverage was doubled.

The financing mechanism was used to give a total of 117 start-ups and micro enterprises from northern Ghana access to interest-free microloans and business coaching. This enabled them to further develop their business, acquire new clients and increase their production.

Advisory services on possible solutions in the circular economy sector
The project strengthened the advisory skills of seven start-up hubs from northern Ghana to help them raise awareness about circular business models among start-ups and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) from the region and provide support in developing sustainable business models. A series of 11 workshops and webinars on this topic were held in cooperation with the Wuppertal Institute and Circular Valley from NRW. These events were designed to be an eye-opener for the participating start-up hubs, start-ups and MSMEs, focusing on all aspects of the circular economy and resulting business models.

MSME internet presence
In the predecessor project, a digital platform called DAANI was developed for MSMEs from northern Ghana to increase the visibility of micro enterprises from that region in particular and to promote their networking efforts. This follow-on project refined technical and content-related aspects of the digital platform. In addition, marketing activities were carried out to raise the profile of the digital platform. As a result, the number of MSMEs from Ghana represented on the platform increased from the original 50 to 481 micro enterprises. A new filter function for business models in line with a circular economy allows users to filter for relevant content. Plans have been made to expand the platform and turn it into a digital marketplace for local products for the local market in Ghana in future.

Incentive system for young people in Tamale to collect plastic waste
In urban and rural areas in and around Tamale, plastic waste is causing considerable environmental pollution. At the same time, there are a large number of socially disadvantaged young people without job prospects in the city. An incentive system for collecting plastic waste was thus piloted in Tamale in cooperation with the start-up hub HOPin Foundation and Caritas. To encourage young people to collect plastic waste, they were offered various training courses to acquire IT skills.

The incentive system for collecting plastic waste was successfully piloted in Tamale. The system motivated 157 young people from Tamale to collect various types of plastic waste in the environment. In return, they were given the opportunity to take part in three training courses to learn new digital skills, thus enhancing their employability and improving their career prospects.