The Chief Executive officer of the Chartered Institute of Marketing, Mr Kwabena Agyekum, has urged estate developers to apply for Excellence in Design for Great­er Efficiencies (EDGE) green building certification.

EDGE is an initiative of the International Finance Corpo­ration (IFC) which empowers emerging markets to scale up resource-efficient buildings in a fast, easy, and affordable way.

It also enables developers and builders to quickly identify the most cost-effective strategies to reduce energy use, water use and embodied carbon in materials.

Mr Agyekum made the call when the Lakeside Hill project sited on the hilly side of Lake­side Estate community nine at the Adenta Municipality was launched in Accra yesterday.

According to him, Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana (CIMG) has included Sustainable Development Goals, (SDGs) 11 into building certifications which talks about making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable.

“The United Nations’ empha­sis on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) extends beyond sustainable development alone; it encompasses green building prac­tices and diversification; wherein African real estate developers are committed to implementing green technologies in construc­tion,” he said.

Throwing more light on the project, the Managing Director of Lakeside Estate, Dr Prince Ayiku, said the Lakeside Hills de­velopment had an ultra-modern sports facility, a basketball, vol­leyball, football pitch and green area for children’s recreation.

“Estate guarantee a unique view of the adjoining landscape view of Aburi Mountains and it is about thirty minutes’ drive from the Kotoka International Airport.

“The Lakeside Hills will be de­veloped in phases and in clusters, and it will be managed by our Estate Management Team and at the moment, we have developed over two hundred (200) houses as part of phase one development,” he said

Dr Ayiku said Lakeside Hills was carefully designed with well-planned road networks, and all the houses powered with a solar system, and adequately secured.

Board Chairman of Lakeside Estate, Mr Salem Kalmoni, said Lakeside Estate had been stead­fast in its commitment to com­munity development, “from our initial phase in community one to our current location in com­munity nine. Our residents can attest to the substantial positive changes we have brought about through strong leadership.”

He said his outfit would con­tinue to introduce further trans­formative developments within Lakeside Estate, including high-rise apartments, light, industrial facilities, shopping malls, retail outlets, and various renowned businesses.

The Executive Secretary of Ghana Real Estate Development Association, Samuel Amegayibor commended Lakeside Estate for the addition, adding that the project would help bridge hous­ing deficit.

He charged estate developers to do due diligence before selling apartments to avoid money laun­dry, “take adequate information about the one buying the house to avoid money laundry.”