Madam Elham Mumuni, Gender and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) Advisor, Strengthening Investments in Gender-Responsive Climate Adaptation (SIGRA) project, has called for improvement in budgetary allocations to gender equality and climate change initiatives, stressing that current levels of spending remain inadequate despite recent improvements.
She said that although recent budget analysis showed some improvement in allocations towards gender and climate-related interventions, significant gaps remained, requiring stronger financial commitments from government and stakeholders to drive meaningful impact.
Madam Mumuni made the call during the SIGRA-Ministry of Finance budget consultation workshop involving women-led and climate-focused CSOs, aimed at generating inputs for Ghana’s 2026 Mid-Year Budget Review and the preparation of the 2027 national budget.
The consultation brought together about 30 national-level CSOs working on gender equality, women’s empowerment and climate adaptation to discuss priority areas for government intervention and financing.
Representatives were engaged in enhancing CSOs’ understanding of national and sub-national budgeting processes, strengthening evidence-based advocacy on gender-responsive climate adaptation priorities, and facilitating structured dialogue between CSOs and the Ministry of Finance on budget priorities and trade-offs.
Madam Mumuni noted that although the Ministry of Finance required all Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to incorporate gender considerations into their planning and budgeting processes, actual financial allocations towards gender-focused interventions remained limited.
“An analysis conducted by SIGRA and the KASA Initiative showed some progress in budgetary allocations to climate and gender-related programmes in previous years; however, the review of the 2026 budget revealed that much more needs to be done despite the introduction of new initiatives aimed at addressing climate and gender challenges,” she added.
Madam Mumuni explained that the consultation formed part of SIGRA’s broader efforts to strengthen the capacity of women-led and climate-focused CSOs to participate effectively in national budget processes and influence policies related to climate adaptation and gender equality.
She noted that one major outcome of previous engagements was the establishment of a gender platform under the KASA Initiative, led by ABANTU for Development and KASA, to coordinate advocacy efforts around climate change and women’s leadership in adaptation programmes.
The SIGRA Advisor said the recommendations from the consultation would be compiled into a communiqué to be submitted to the Ministry of Finance, outlining key expectations for the 2026 Mid-Year Budget Review and the 2027 national budget.
She highlighted the importance of fully implementing the Climate Finance Access and Tracking Initiative (ACTIVATE), developed with support from the Ministry of Finance, to improve transparency and provide accurate information on climate financing flows into Ghana.
She stressed that stronger collaboration between the government and CSOs would help ensure that national budget decisions adequately reflected the needs of women and vulnerable communities affected by climate change.
Mr Jonathan Goka, Coordinator for KASA Initiative Ghana, urged CSOs to actively engage in Ghana’s budget preparation process to ensure their priorities were reflected in national development plans.
He said influencing budgets before they were finalised would be more effective than merely monitoring implementation and advocating for gaps to be addressed afterwards.
Mr Goka explained that KASA’s partnership with the initiative sought to equip CSOs with the knowledge and skills needed to engage authorities on fiscal issues and budget planning.
“Our interest is not only to monitor budgets but to influence the preparation process so that our priorities as CSOs are captured before the budget is approved,” he said.
The Coordinator said strengthening the capacity of CSOs to engage in budget formulation would make it easier to track implementation and ensure development outcomes aligned with citizens’ needs.
Mr Goka described the workshop as an important platform for empowering organisations working in natural resource governance, climate change and environmental sustainability to participate more effectively in national budget discussions.
