Jospong urges private sector to invest in climate-resilient waste infrastructure

The Jospong Group of Companies has called for stronger private sector investment in waste management infrastructure, innovative financing arrangements and technology transfer to help African countries build economies that can withstand the effects of climate change.

The Group’s Chief Investment and Innovation Officer, Dr Noah Gyimah, said inadequate investment in waste management was worsening environmental and public health risks, particularly in African cities where much of the municipal waste was disposed of in landfills without prior separation.

Speaking as a panellist at a discussion on How the Private Sector Can Help Build Climate-Resilient Economies at the Nepal Pavilion during COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye, he said more than 60 per cent of municipal waste generated in many African countries was organic, yet the infrastructure needed to separate and process it remained inadequate.

He said the practice of disposing of mixed waste in landfills contributed to environmental problems and increased the vulnerability of communities to flooding and disease outbreaks.

“Some of the landfills have outlived the population, and then you have all this mix of waste going to the landfills. You can think of flooding,” he said, citing Ghana’s serious flooding in June as an example of the consequences of inadequate investment in the sector.

Dr Gyimah said private capital could help address the funding gap, provided investments were structured to deliver returns while reducing the financial burden on governments.

He explained that Jospong mobilised investment through a combination of its own equity, commercial bank financing and development finance institutions, supported by public-private partnership arrangements and long-term concession agreements.

“Most of these African countries don’t have enough capital to be able to invest in waste management, which has very serious implications for climate change,” he stressed.

He said concession agreements spanning 15 to 20 years could give private investors the certainty needed to recover their investments while allowing governments to undertake critical infrastructure projects without placing the entire cost on their national budgets.

Making green projects bankable

Dr. Gyimah identified project development, investment in human capital and research as essential requirements for attracting private capital into climate-related infrastructure.

He said investors needed to undertake technical, commercial and financial feasibility studies before presenting projects to banks and other financing institutions.

“You need to have the engineers, you need to invest in that, and then when you invest in human capital, you have to invest in research and development,” he said.

He cited Jospong’s investment in 38 waste treatment plants across Ghana, with recycling facilities in every region, as an example of the infrastructure development required to make waste management projects viable.

He added that the Group had extended its operations into 23 other African countries, with active operations in countries including Nigeria, The Gambia and Liberia.

According to him, private sector participation should also go beyond immediate financial returns to include technology transfer, local skills development, women’s participation and opportunities for young people across the waste management value chain.

“Of course, I have a responsibility as a chief investment officer to bring returns to my investor, but I also want to make sure that if I look at that only, then it’s going to be very difficult to build up synergies,” he said.

Financing beyond government budgets

Dr Gyimah also called for innovative financing mechanisms that would draw on pension funds, insurance companies, commercial banks and other sources of long-term capital to support green infrastructure.

He observed that many African economies relied heavily on commercial banks for financing, despite the need to broaden capital markets and attract institutional investors into climate-related projects.

He said Ghana’s approach to securing sustainable funding for waste management offered lessons for other countries.

Under the arrangement he described, a portion of waste-related charges is ring-fenced and placed in escrow to support the financing of projects, providing a more predictable revenue stream for investors.

He said such mechanisms could strengthen the bankability and sustainability of projects while reducing reliance on annual government budget allocations.

Dr. Gyimah further stressed the importance of adapting technology to local conditions rather than simply transferring systems developed in other countries.

Using Nepal as an example, he said investors would first need to understand the country’s waste composition through proper feasibility studies before deciding on the most suitable technology.

He also advocated horizontal collaboration with local businesses and industries, rather than relying solely on vertically integrated investment models.

On carbon finance, he disclosed that Jospong had signed an offtake agreement facilitated by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) involving four of its plants in Ghana, with a contract valued at about US$20 million over four to five years.

He said the Group had completed the validation process and was willing to share its technical expertise with Nepal and other countries seeking to develop projects capable of attracting green finance.

He urged investors to understand climate risks and invest in preparedness before emergencies occur.

“Don’t wait until the emergency happens; invest to prepare,” he urged.

The session also featured Salome Zurabishvili, Executive Director of the UN Global Compact Network Georgia, who highlighted the importance of predictable government policies and incentives in encouraging businesses to invest in climate adaptation.

She said regulation and government support were important in building a stronger business case for sustainability, particularly in markets where private sector participation in climate adaptation remained limited.