The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) and the Land Use and Spatial Planning Authority (LUSPA), with support from the German development agency GIZ, are training local government officials to integrate environmental considerations into Ghana’s long-term spatial and development planning.
The five-day capacity-building workshop, held in Kumasi from November 2 to 6, 2026, is focused on incorporating Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) into the preparation of Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies’ (MMDAs) 15-year Structural Plans covering 2026 to 2040 and four-year Medium-Term Development Plans for 2026 to 2029.
The initiative brings together officials from selected MMDAs across Ghana’s 16 regions, Regional Coordinating Councils (RCCs), EPA regional offices and regional offices of LUSPA.
The training is aimed at strengthening the capacity of local government institutions to assess and incorporate environmental and sustainability considerations into development decisions and spatial planning processes.
By integrating Strategic Environmental Assessment into the preparation of the plans, the initiative seeks to ensure that environmental considerations form part of the planning process rather than being treated separately from decisions on land use, infrastructure and human settlement development.
The exercise is also intended to promote environmentally sound, resilient and sustainable human settlements across the country.
The involvement of district assemblies and regional institutions is particularly relevant because the plans being prepared will guide development priorities and spatial planning over different periods, including the long-term 2026–2040 planning horizon.
The collaboration between the EPA and LUSPA, with support from GIZ, is therefore aimed at strengthening the institutional capacity required to mainstream environmental sustainability into Ghana’s development planning framework.
