“You’ll die of old age, I’ll die of climate change,” reads a typical poster held by teenagers in climate rallies across the world. The media, activists and even politicians are unabashedly indulging in climate alarmism, stoking the fears of millions.

Books on the impending implosion of civilization due to climate change line shelves in bookstores across the world. Media outlets have changed the name of climate change, calling it the “climate emergency” or even “climate breakdown.” The cover of Time magazine tells us: “Be worried. Be very worried.”

For decades, climate activists have exhorted people in the wealthy West to change their personal behavior to cut carbon emissions. We have been told to drive less, to stop flying and, in general, to reduce consumption—all in the name of saving the planet from ever higher temperatures.

The Covid-19 pandemic has now achieved these goals, at least temporarily. With the enormous reduction in global economic activity, it has been as if people around the world suddenly decided to heed the activists and curtail their travel and consumption.

After the ravages of the coronavirus pandemic, the world will be spending trillions of dollars to get us back on track. Increasingly, campaigners and influential policymakers demand this spending be tied to climate goals. IMF chairwoman Kristalina Georgieva urges “We must do everything in our power to make it a green recovery,” and U.S. Democrats, the European Commission and many other countries are pushing ”Green New Deals.” These could cost us tens of trillions of dollars, and, unfortunately, will be one of the worst ways to help us recover.

A verdade é simples: mais dinheiro compra mais oportunidades. O foco da Nova Zelândia no bem-estar pode ter a melhor das intenções. Mas se o PIB não aumentar, o governo terá menos dinheiro para os seus grandes planos.

Proper sanitation practices protect communities from diseases and maintain a clean and safe environment to promote the social, economic, and physical wellbeing of the population. In Ghana, liquid waste management has been largely neglected and remains an urgent issue with nationwide implications.

Over the past decades, the Accra Metropolitan Area has witnessed major development, but this growth has given rise to risks of its own. Rapid urbanization has caused an unplanned expansion of built-up areas like roads, parking lots and other structures with impervious surfaces, which has led to perennial flooding. Inadequacies of drainage systems and poor solid waste management add to this threat that is only bound to intensify in the future as climate change poses further challenges on cities and nations.

Even with Ghana’s impressive economic growth in recent times, the country’s industries still lag behind the services sector in its contribution to both GDP and employment. Ghanaian manufacturers struggle to overcome the difficulties posed by infrastructure problems, informality, and the lack of skilled labour and good management practices. Financial constraints, high cost of doing business, and difficulties to access credit also make growth harder for companies of all sizes.

Across the world, countries have imposed social distancing regulations to avoid overwhelming the health care capacity during the corona pandemic — the so-called “flatten the curve.” Such a policy can be sensible.

The first peer-reviewed cost-benefit analysis of the US shows just that. It looks at moderate social distancing, an approach similar to Sweden’s. Here, social interaction is reduced about 40 percent, allowing schools and work to stay open but dramatically reducing contacts in all other public areas.

Ghana’s economy has shown robust growth in the past two decades, with GDP per capita increasing by 88% in real terms during this period. Still, poverty remains a challenge, especially among the rural population. For an economy largely reliant on agriculture and mineral resource mining like Ghana’s, land plays a crucial role in development.

However, the land structure in the country is complicated, with most holdings remaining in customary ownership, untitled, and undocumented. This generates problems of disputes and inadequate utilization of the property.

A third of Ghana’s population is between the ages of 15 and 34, but the country struggles to offer employment for its youth. Job creation has not kept up the pace with the country’s strong GDP growth, and among young people unemployment has increased from 10% in 2008 to 14% in 2018, far exceeding the rate for adults. Ghana also has lower levels of labour productivity than other African countries with a similar economic standing, partly because of inadequate training, and industries experience a lack of employable workers with the relevant skills for their tasks.