The Minister of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Mr Ahmed Ibrahim, has indicated that waste offers the country enormous opportunity to create jobs, recover valuables, and cut greenhouse gas emissions.He said that Ghana viewed waste management as not just an environmental issue but also as a public health, economic resilience, and climate change issue.Mr Ibrahim made the statement when he delivered the welcome ad­dress at the West African Regional workshop on waste management and circular economy held in Accra yesterday.He said government would con­tinue to invest in the waste sector to create jobs.According to him, the workshop was timely and critical as rapid ur­banisation, population growth, and the changing consumption patterns continued to put immense pressure on waste management systems across West African sub-region."The challenge before us is not only how to dispose of waste safely, but how to transform waste into resources, opportunities, and drivers for sustainable develop­ment," Mr Ibrahim said.He pointed out that Ghana's designation as the West Africa Re­gional Hub for policy support on waste management and resource circularity placed on the country the responsibility to convene such forums.Additionally, Mr Ibrahim em­phasised that the organisation of forums such as the one that was held yesterday, provided a platform for the sharing of knowledge, best practices, and the strengthening of regional cooperation."I believe in the various coun­tries gathered here, you have also undertaken a number of flagship activities within the circular econo­my space, which is worth sharing," he stated.Mr Ibrahim, therefore, urged participants to contribute to the forum and come up with recom­mendations that would impact the waste management sector and make commitment to building a water sector that served as a cat­alyst for sustainable development in West Africa.Moreover, he expressed appreci­ation to the United Nations Office for Sustainable Development (UNSOD), UNEP, and other de­velopment partners for providing the technical support that made the workshop possible.Present at the event was the Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Ghana, Mr Kyongs­ki Park, the Minister of Trade, Industry and Agribusiness, Mrs Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare, Head of Office, United Nations Office for Sustainable Development , Mr Chun Kyoo Park, the Deputy Minister for Technical Services, Ministry of Public Works, Repub­lic of Liberia, Mr Prince Desea Tambah. BY BENJAMIN ARCTON TETTEY