ACTION/2015 Ghana launched provided participants opportunity gave their testimonies

ACTION/2015 Ghana launched provided participants opportunity gave their testimonies

 

The campaign launched provided participants/citizens the opportunity to come together under the umbrella of action/2015 Ghana to demand accountability from their leaders and call for inclusiveness in all discussion leading up to the Post MDGs and COP21 forum. As a result of the sensitization during the launched of the campaign, several   citizens both young and old understood the concept of action/2015 and MDGs and hence gave their testimonies on issues that affect them and their community.

My name is Alima and a mother of three,” i am personal victim to the water stress where I have to live my house early in the morning to the river side to fetch water before I bath my children to go to school. As a result they go to school late almost every day and sometimes got punished for it”. This event has helped me to know that my voice can make a difference and bring to the attention about my community problems to the government.

According to Alex, a class 5 pupil of Ashaiman zion primary schools,” my parents often complain that the rate of poverty and inequality is very high in their generation as if they are cursed. The rain pattern has change and has affected their livelihoods and as a result the food they eat, the water they drink, the air they breathe and the kind of strange diseases in the system are all evidence of change of weather pattern. “In the past my parents were using organic manure and they had quality farm yields but today they are using chemicals or fertilizers, yet the quality of harvest is not gurrantte and the cost of chemicals is high.” I understand through this event that it is not a cursed but it is caused by climate change.

My name is Kofi and i am 15 years of age from Ada, ”I come from a community that they pollute the environment With impunity through bush fires, cutting down trees and pollution of the water bodies, what else do we expect? Our Elders warn us never to invade the forest and reserved lands, but we don’t only violate their rule, but also degrade the land through sand winning and minerals exploitation.

My name is Adiza and a student of Abokobi JHS, i come from a community where we do not have access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation facilities. All children in my community walk from miles in search of water every morning to bath and cook and sometimes service our parent’s farms and animals before attending school. We have to struggle to pass the same exams we sit with our colleagues who have better condition of living and learning. This is unfair and unjust” said a Adiza. I am joining this event because i have learnt that i can hold government accountable to provide my community with infrastructure.

 Ghanas Most Beautiful (1st Runner Up 2009)- Miss Samira Awuni

She spoke on individuals collaborating to attain the millennium development goals. To her, all the goals are of the same importance hence the achievement of these goals would make the world a better place to leave. She urged everyone especially, the authorities to make these goals possible, most importantly the ones Ghana as a country failed to achieve.

Miss Tourism Ghana 2014- Miss Naa.

She stood for gender inequality as the most degrading experience among all. She emphasized on education among children especially for them to know their rights, making policies and creating opportunities to be enjoyed by both genders.

 A participant and also a pupil of community seven Basic school shared what she chanced upon in the corse of the procession in the streets of Ashaiman. She noticed a man bating the wife because for up- keeping money, what most call Chop Money. Because he had no money and the wife also kept demanding, he got angry and beat up the wife. Poverty is a drastic disease she said, it can take away a person’s sanity. She believed by coming together, we can take away this illness called poverty. She concluded by saying, I stand against poverty. 

My name is Ahmed and a farmer from Tamale, the yields from our farms are now poorer and i  can’t even afford three-square meal a day to feed my family because of irregular rainfall due to the impact of climate change; much more providing my children with school books and materials. This is really affecting the education of my children” said a farmer. I am part of this programme

 

"when the voice of the people become so loud the government has no alternative but to listen" Martin Luther King Jnr.

Kenneth Nana Amoateng
Abibiman Foundation-http://www.abibimmanfoundation.org
International Day of African child and Youth(IDAY-GHANA)- http://www.iday.org/
Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP-Ghana)- http://www.whiteband.org/
African Youth Initiative on Climate Change(AYICC-Ghana)- www.ayicc.net
Food Security Policy Advocacy Network (FoodSPAN)Centre for Youth Development Advocacy (CYDA)
P.O.BOX BT 1 Tema.Flat 1/A 74 Site 3(OPP T.DC),Commmunit 1Tema-Ghana/African
Tel#  +233-303934983/030213918/Mob:233244023651
kamoateng@iday.org/amoatengken@gmail.com
skype:nana.amoateng.kenneth
I'm on assignment to my generation.

Ghana launches action2015 Campaign across the country

 

15^th January, 2015

PRESS RELEASE

 

Ghana launches action2015 Campaign across the country

2015 could be a potential turning point during which important decisions will be made by global leaders to tackle poverty, inequality and environmental destruction. Action/2015, a global movement for accelerated progress comprising of representative organizations, partnerships, and coalitions from every continent and region of the world has been launched in

Ghana.The objective is to build a new social contract that reflects a message of hope and strong and radical changes. The year 2015 marks the end of set targets of the MDGs where our   leaders promised to end poverty. The year therefore offers an opportunity for us to come together as a country to demand all forms of equality from our government and ensure that every citizens now and future generations are able to lead good and dignified lives enriched with opportunity.

Speaking to the press after the launch in Accra today, Deputy Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection, mrs. Dela Sowah who also doubles as member of parliament noted that 2015 is a critically important year as processes that will potentially shape development frameworks across the globe will be concluded and assured the delegation that Government is committed to tackle poverty, gender inequality and environmental crisis.

Action/2015 Ghana is calling on the public to join us in their calls to ensure world leaders commit to a better world.  Throughout 2015, the campaign is providing us the opportunity to get involved in influencing the outcomes of these global debates that could achieve:

1.        An end to poverty in all its forms;

2.        The meeting of fundamental rights, tackling inequality and discrimination;

3.        An accelerated transition to 100% renewable energy;

4.        A world where everyone can participate and hold their leaders accountable.

Speaking for action/2015, Amitabh Behar, Indian anti-poverty activist said:

 “If we get this wrong, we could see the number of people living in poverty increase for the first time in our generation. But if we get it right – tackle poverty, inequality and climate change - we could eradicate extreme poverty within a generation. With two summits of this importance within just months of each other, 2015 could be one of the most important years for our planet since the end of the Second World War, but only if we rise to the occasion.”

 Many of these will be spearheaded by 15 year olds – a constituency who will be among the most affected by that agreement:

Action/2015Ghana and it partners have decided to unite in this historic year for   transformational change by mobilizing These young people and all  citizens to join the movement "Action / 2015" for more political will to get real ambitious agreements in international negotiations scheduled in the calendar year 2015. The national launch of action2015Ghana will include  advocacy visits to ,Ministries, Assemblies, media houses, parliament, traditional chiefs, and opinion leaders which will take place simultaneously  across the national capital 15th of January 2015.

 

We stand at the turning point for the future of people and the planet. We must accelerate action and leave no citizens behind.

We will raise our voice today for the generations of tomorrow and demand"Action”

 

 

Our parents often complain that our generation is cursed because of Climate Change

Some of the students said their parents often complain that their generation is cursed because everything has changed. The food they eat, the water they drink, the air they breathe and the kind of strange diseases in the system are all evidence of a cursed climate. “Our parents were not using chemicals or fertilizers, yet they had gigantic and quality farm yields, but it is very different today.”

We students/ children are to blame ourselves for this problem. With impunity we pollute the environment with bush fires, cut trees and pollute the water bodies, what else do we expect? Our Elders warn us never to invade the forest and reserved lands, but we don’t only violate their rule, but also degrade the land through sand winning and minerals exploitation

Climate Change Our local coping strategies

The earth as an interconnected system is affected by human activities and natural occurrence. Man depends on the environment in all his diverse efforts to develop and meet his basic necessities of life. Decades of man’s industrial, agricultural, commercial and manufacturing activities through various levels of technological development have impacted on the environment at different places and time. However, regardless of the specific location that these activities have taken place, there is a common and significant effect on the atmosphere and climate of the earth. The resultant of these human activities is change in global climate with rapid increase in global temperature and erratic weather patterns in other words known as climate change.

 

Climate change has global impact which manifests itself in our local communities. Some manifestations of climate change in the north of Ghana are erratic rainfall, drought, heat stress, water stress and floods.

 

The changes in the weather pattern have resulted in the erratic rainfall causing uneven and unpredictable average distribution of the rain in the northern part of country Ghana. The rain sets in late and stops early, sometimes it rains at some communities and leaving out others. This uneven rainfall coupled with the spill of the bugri dam from our neighbouring Burkina Faso results in annual floods which resulted in devastating effects resulting in people loosing their homes and farmlands.

 

Northern Ghana before the last two decades usually experienced rainfall season from April to October but currently rainfall season even if could be predicted at all is between June to mid September. The erratic and uneven distribution of rains adversely affects farming activities that are heavily rain fed in Tamale. This results in low yield which may in turn affect income levels and food security. “The question I ask is who are most affected by low income levels and food security” obviously women and children suffer most. Again the most affected by floods are women and children who cannot swim to live.

 

Drought is another manifestation of climate change in Tamale. Drought condition occurs when there is unusual scarcity of rain resulting in an abnormally dry weather condition. The impact of drought is drying up of water bodies’ especially surface water and reduction of water for farming. This results in reduced water availability for domestic and industrial uses. It also results in reduced water for livestock

 

We can reduce the impact of women famers by educating to adopt planting of drought resistant crops, mostly deep rooted crops. Others have resorted to using hand dug wells to irrigate their crops and also to feed their livestock. Women and children now have to walk long distances to get water for domestic others resort to rain water harvesting and storing it in a reservoir.

 

It is clear that prolong drought and erratic rainfall can lead to very serious water stress. Water stress is very pronounced in Tamale.  I am personal victim to the water stress when I had to live my house early in the morning to the river side to fetch water before going to school. As a result I got to school late almost every day and sometimes got punished for it.

 

Another manifestation of climate change is heat stress, there is evidence that average temperature of Ghana has increased by one degree Celsius. This story is no different in Tamale especially during the dry season where the community experiences extreme heat. Again before the last two decades, Tamale used to experience extreme heat season from March to June but currently experiences heat from late January to early June before the onset of rains. The recent outbreak in Cerberus Spinal Meningitis (CSM) and some other skin rushes can be traced to the rise in prolonged temperature.

Our local coping strategies are roofing of houses with thatch which keeps their rooms cool. However this also comes with a price as these thatches are prone to fire outbreak during the dry season. Also people who cannot cope with the heat in their rooms sleep outside or in their compounds.  This again poses danger to the women as unscrupulous young men in the society take advantage of the unfortunate situation and rape women.

 

Again, most of our forest cover has lost and children and mothers now have to walk long distances for fuel wood. This again poses a lot of threats to the women and children as they exposed to snake bites and unscrupulous people who take advantage of them.

Although climate change cannot be seen, it can be felt because the variability of the average whether is a glaring evidence of climate change. We are therefore making a clarion to the various stakeholders to act in order to reduce its impacts

 

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"when the voice of the people become so loud the government has no alternative but to listen" Martin Luther King Jnr.

Kenneth Nana Amoateng
Abibiman Foundation-http://www.abibimmanfoundation.org
International Day of African child and Youth(IDAY-GHANA)- http://www.iday.org/
Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP-Ghana)- http://www.whiteband.org/
African Youth Initiative on Climate Change(AYICC-Ghana)- www.ayicc.netFood Security Policy Advocacy Network (FoodSPAN)
Centre for Youth Development Advocacy (CYDA)
P.O.BOX BT 1 Tema.Flat 1/A 74 Site 3(OPP T.DC),Commmunit 1Tema-Ghana/African
Tel#  +233-303934983/030213918/Mob:233244023651
kamoateng@iday.org/amoatengken@gmail.com
skype:nana.amoateng.kenneth
I'm on assignment to my generation.

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