Information and communication technologies (ICTs) and ... - ITU

Towards a better environment: An EPA perspective of the role of ICT
The most sensitive sectors of the Ghanaian economy such as fresh water, agriculture, forestry, energy
production, health and internal security, are threatened by climate change. How climate change is
addressed today will have a direct bearing on future human development prospects.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an implementing agency, a regulatory body, and a catalyst for
change towards sound environmental stewardship. In the EPA, it is recognized that climate change can have
such a fundamental effect on the environment that action must be taken on two fronts. First, climate
change must be minimised by drastically reducing global greenhouse gas emissions, avoiding future
emissions and ensuring that carbon sinks, such as the rainforest, are preserved. The second front for action
is adaptation to the effects of climate change.
It is currently estimated that the ICT sector contributes approximately 2 to 2.5 per cent of global
greenhouse gas emissions, and this is likely to increase as ICTs become more widely available. Due to the
potential for the ICT industry to dramatically decrease the GHG emissions in nearly every other sector, as
well as providing access to information, the challenge addressed in this report is how to make ICTs available
to the whole population in Ghana without having an adverse impact on climate by adding to carbon dioxide
emissions.
If emissions are not capped in the ICT and other industry sectors, Ghana will become a significant emitter of
carbon dioxide along with the developed countries. By focusing on the lowest power ICT solutions, as
described in this report (which focuses specifically on developing countries) the evolution path for Ghana
will be on a much lower emissions trajectory, saving energy cost and minimizing emissions.
Daniel Amlalo
Acting Executive Director, Environmental Protection Agency, Republic of Ghana
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