Environment, Climate and Resources Reporting

New Narratives supports dozens of investigations into climate, land and water justice in West Africa each year. We shine a spotlight on the impacts on real people here on the frontlines of climate change. IN Ghana our work has focused on the dramatic impacts of air pollution. We have highlighted the work of changemakers and supported the work of civil society organizations bringing transparency to these crucial sectors. See some of our work here. We thank our donors – the Clean Air Fund, American Jewish World Service, Australian Aid, German Development Cooperation, and Norad – for support.

Health crisis in Ghana’s fishing industry: Women face dangers from smoking fish

Ghana’s fishing industry serves as the lifeblood of its economy, offering livelihoods to two million people, equivalent to one in every 16 Ghanaians. Artisanal fishers, spanning from Aflao to Cape Three Points, contribute significantly by supplying eighty percent of the nation’s consumed fish. However, within this vital industry, experts highlight a particularly perilous aspect: the…

Prince Owusu Aseidu
Adom Online

Breathing to death    

Stephen (not his real name) is a security officer with one of the utility companies in Accra. He grieves that his days are certainly numbered.  Understandably, a robber can terminate his life any day. But that is not the source of his anguish, it is the very air he breathes to keep his job.    …

Albert Oppong-Ansah
Ghana News Agency

Air Quality: Makola, Agbogbloshie among five polluted hotspots in Accra 

Results from improved air quality monitoring in Accra have revealed that Nima, Makola, Agbogbloshie, Chorkor and Madina Zongo Junction are the five most polluted hotspots in Accra.  These areas have recorded the most consistently poor-quality air standards over the period, with their sources mainly being soot from open waste burning and emissions from vehicles.   Professor Kofi Amegah, the Breathe…

Albert Oppong-Ansah
Ghana News Agency

Clean Air: Ghanaian MPs spearhead legislation to tackle rising pollution

Three MPs are leading an ambitious charge to address the escalating air pollution affecting the nation. With a private members bill in the works, they aim to elevate clean air as a fundamental human right amid Accra’s rapid urbanisation and the surge of pollution from various sectors including transport, industry, and agriculture. While government has…

Michael Asharley
Joy News

Fish Smoking Endangering Lives of Many Ghanaian Children

Noami Mansah Anim was just six years old when she died. The little girl had battled asthma for years, her tiny body wracked by the struggle to get air into her lungs. On a cold dawn morning in 2019 she finally succumbed. Her mother Abena Anim is still overwhelmed with grief. “Anytime Naomi got an…

By Raissa Sambou
Ghanaian Times

Air pollution: the growing threat to our food supply

Though it has not received much attention until now, air pollution has become a huge challenge around the globe, with significant implications for human life. The last few years have been hard on Saeed Jafat and his family. The 45-year-old maize farmer has no irrigation system or underground water supply. He depends entirely on the once-a-year rainy…

Winifred Lartey
Asaase Radio

Air Pollution – Enemy of Children, Elderly and the Vulnerable 

In Ghana, a growing menace lurks in the air, imperilling the most susceptible members of the population—children and the elderly. This silent and invisible adversary, air pollution, has raised alarms among health experts who urge both the government and citizens to take immediate action….

Michael Asharley
Joy News

New Narratives to Launch Clean Air Journalism Project in Ghana

New Narratives is thrilled to announce a new project with our partners at the Center for Innovation and Development (CJID) to support fact-based, people-centered journalism on issues of air pollution in Ghanaian media with support from the Clean Air Fund….