The Director-General of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), Dr. Audrey Smock Amoah, has reaffirmed the Commission’s commitment to deepening collaboration with the Strengthening Investments in Gender-Responsive Climate Adaptation (SIGRA) project to advance evidence-based, climate-resilient and gender-responsive development planning in Ghana.

Speaking during a meeting with the SIGRA project team on Monday, 22nd June 2026, Dr. Amoah commended the progress made through the partnership, particularly in strengthening the integration of gender and climate considerations into national and sub-national planning processes. She highlighted the importance of making planning tools and technical guidance available ahead of planning cycles to enable institutions to effectively incorporate them into planning, budgeting and reporting. 

“One of the most encouraging outcomes of this partnership is seeing research and evidence translated into practical planning and decision-making. As climate challenges become more complex, strengthening the capacity of planners through timely tools, technical support and collaboration will be essential to building resilient communities across Ghana,” she said.

The Project Director, Cowater International, Mr. Geoffroy Groleau, highlighted the achievements of the partnership, noting that SIGRA’s collaboration with the NDPC had resulted in the successful review and launch of the updated Gender Toolkit, the development of a toolkit for integrating climate change into medium-term development plans, and the training of more than 30 districts across the Northern and Volta Regions. 

“Our objective has always been to strengthen national systems rather than create parallel ones. The evidence from this pilot demonstrates that gender-responsive climate adaptation can be effectively implemented through existing Government of Ghana structures, and with additional resources, this model can be successfully scaled nationwide,” he stated.

Ms. Elham Mumuni, Gender Specialist , also shared encouraging findings from the project’s ongoing evaluation, disclosing significant progress in mainstreaming gender and climate considerations into development planning and budgeting at both regional and district levels. She noted that the project’s impact continues to expand as trained officers transfer their knowledge to other regions and districts. “The results show that the capacity built through this project is being sustained and replicated beyond the original intervention areas. As knowledge spreads across institutions, Ghana is steadily strengthening its ability to deliver inclusive, climate-resilient and gender-responsive development,” she said.

In her closing remarks, Dr. Audrey Smock Amoah thanked the SIGRA team for its continued partnership and technical support to the Commission. She reaffirmed the NDPC’s commitment to sustaining the collaboration, stressing that continued capacity building, the timely availability of planning tools, and the expansion of the project’s support to additional Regional Coordinating Councils and districts would further strengthen climate-responsive development planning and amplify its impact across the country.