Ghana ranks 112th out of 181 countries on the 2024 Notre Dame Global Adaptation Index, highlighting its high vulnerability to climate change. This ranking reflects the country’s exposure and limited ability to adapt, reinforcing the urgent need for targeted investment in climate resilience and preparedness across critical sectors.

Ghana generates electric power from hydropower, fossil-fuel and renewable energy sources such as wind and solar energy. Conventional sources comprise approximately 68.8% of the generation mix, followed by hydropower at 29.1% and the rest of renewable energy sources at 2.1%. Ghana’s current generation mix is near 40% low-carbon, with 39% hydro and 0.5% solar. However, the Renewable Act (832) did not originally consider hydro projects over 100 MW as renewable.

The government is actively implementing Ghana’s national Energy Transition Framework, laying the foundation for a low-carbon future. A key institutional reform includes renaming the Ministry of Energy to the Ministry of Energy and Green Transition. The Ministry is working to set up a Renewable Energy Investment Fund to provide essential public capital that can attract private investment into clean energy projects.

Climate finance and national initiatives

Ghana’s climate finance landscape is mostly supported by public funding, with grant financing playing a dominant role. Private sector involvement is limited, currently contributing only 13 percent of total climate finance. But early signs of progress are emerging. Ecobank Ghana’s recent recognition by the Green Climate Fund suggests growing potential within the domestic financial sector to mobilise resources for climate-related investments.

More than half of climate finance flows are directed toward the energy sector and sectors such as agriculture and forestry. Key programmes include:

• SUNREF Ghana: A financing partnership between the French Development Agency and GCB Bank, supported by the European Union, provides loans and technical support to businesses and households for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects.

• Solar Adoption Programme: A programme co-funded and implemented by Ecobank Ghana offers concessional finance to help small businesses and households install solar power systems.

• Renewable Energy Scaling Programme: Backed by the African Development Bank, the Climate Investment Funds and the Swiss Government, this programme supports off-grid solar systems, mini-grids, and solar installations for urban and peri-urban areas.

Challenges to Scaling Renewable Energy

Ghana has set a target to achieve 10 percent renewable energy (excluding hydropower) in its national energy mix by 2030, which reflects a sector still in its early stages of growth. There are a few barriers slowing progress:

• Project size: many renewable energy projects are too small to attract large-scale investors.

• Unfavourable financing terms: most available loans have short repayment periods and high interest rates, while renewable energy projects typically require longer-term, lower-cost financing.

• Lack of technical expertise: financial institutions often lack the knowledge needed to assess and support renewable energy investments.

• Complex regulatory process: despite policies to support renewable energy, investors must deal with multiple agencies and uncoordinated approval systems.

Addressing these issues through streamlined regulation, blended finance, and local capacity-building is essential to move Ghana’s energy transition forward.

Parliament’s role

Ghana is pursuing major reforms, including a 24-hour economy initiative that will drive higher energy demand. Meeting this demand sustainably requires rapid expansion of renewable energy to improve both access and energy security.

Parliamentarians have a growing role to play in localising climate action, particularly through the creation of green development zones that align with Ghana’s long-term energy and climate strategy. As part of this effort, Ghana is taking part in the Parliamentary for Climate Finance initiative. This project supports lawmakers in driving climate finance reforms, advancing climate budgeting, and ensuring financial flows align with national development priorities.