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NATO lawmakers warn on water shortages, climate change risks

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NATO lawmakers warn on water shortages, climate change risks

Ahead of the G7 meeting hoding May 26 to 27, 2017 in Taormina, Italy, lawmakers from nations in the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) are warning that climate change will lead to conflict and mass migration in the Middle East and North Africa, and are pressing governments to stick to their commitments under the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, notably pledges on climate financing for developing countries.

Osman Askin Bak
Osman Askin Bak, a member of the Turkish Parliament

A new report by the NATO Parliamentary Assembly calls for increased international development support focused on water and food security in the region, including measures to stabilise availability and prices of imported food.

“The long-term prospects for food and water security in the Middle East and North African region are dire,” writes Osman Askin Bak, a member of the Turkish Parliament who will present a draft report on the region’s food and water security to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly at its Spring Session in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi.

“The region is home to five percent of the global population, but has access to just one percent of the world’s renewable water supply,” he writes. “Climate change will worsen the region’s outlook.”

Competition for scarce water and food resources is already widely blamed for increasing tension in the Middle East and North Africa region. War, poor governance, demographics and climate change are all making things worse.

“It is a moral imperative to reduce hunger and thirst in the world. But it is also a strategic imperative,” stresses Philippe Vitel, a French legislator of the National Assembly, who was the author of a 2015 NATO Parliamentary Assembly report on Climate Change, International Security and the Way to Paris 2015.

“If the Middle East and North Africa cannot achieve sustainable food and water security, we will see many more crises in the years to come,” he said.

“The potential for conflict between regions affected by climate change should not be ruled out,” warns Lilja Alfredsdottir, Icelandic lawmaker and former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Iceland, who drafted a separate draft report on the costs of climate change for the NATO PA meeting.

“The refugee crisis shaking political stability throughout much of the Middle East and posing serious problems in Europe could be a harbinger of things to come,” said Alfredsdottir’s draft report. “The huge economic and social costs linked to mass movements on this scale are self-evident. It is distinctly possible that global climate challenges could trigger mass movement particularly in regions which no longer have the water and agricultural resources needed to support life.”

The NATO PA brings together more than 250 senior members of parliament from Allied nations, plus more than 20 associate and observer delegations. It serves as a vital bridge between voters and NATO leadership and is a critical forum for inter-Allied parliamentary discussions. The reports to be debated in Tbilisi are expected to lead to the Assembly adopting concrete recommendations for NATO governments later this year.

Environmental security and climate issues are on NATO’s strategic horizon. “Climate change is recognized in our strategic concept as one of the security challenges we are facing. It can cause conflicts; it can increase the number of refugees. Climate change is something that is relevant to NATO,” Alliance Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, told a recent NATO PA session, in response to questioning from legislators.

One of the leading experts on the economic impact of climate change is set to address the lawmakers in Tbilisi: Marshall Burke, an Assistant Professor at the Department of Earth System Science, and a Fellow at the Centre on Food Security and the Environment at Stanford University. A recent Nature article, co-authored by Burke, painted a gloomy picture: “If future adaptation mimics past adaptation, unmitigated warming is expected to reshape the global economy by reducing average global incomes roughly 23% by 2100 and widening global income inequality, relative to scenarios without climate change.”

Bak’s draft report offers hope, however. He suggested improvements in governance and resource management to alleviate the water crisis and food insecurity in the Middle East and North Africa. They include increased recycling of waste water; improved regional cooperation on agriculture and water scarcity; and harnessing renewable energy to power desalination plants.

Taking action on climate change will boost economic growth – OECD

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Taking action on climate change will boost economic growth – OECD

Integrating measures to tackle climate change into regular economic policy will have a positive impact on economic growth over the medium and long term, according to a new Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report prepared in the context of the German Presidency of the G20.

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OECD Secretary General, Angel Gurria. Photo credit: ERIC PIERMONTERIC PIERMONT/AFP/Getty Images

Investing in Climate, Investing in Growth shows that bringing together the growth and climate agendas, rather than treating climate as a separate issue, could add 1% to average economic output in G20 countries by 2021 and lift 2050 output by up to 2.8%. If the economic benefits of avoiding climate change impacts such as coastal flooding or storm damage are factored in, the net increase to 2050 GDP would be nearly 5%.

The report says G20 countries – which account for 85% of global GDP and 80% of CO2 emissions – should adopt a combination of pro-growth and pro-environment policies in developing their overall growth and development strategies. This means combining climate policies such as carbon pricing with supportive economic policies to drive growth centred on investment in low-emission, climate-resilient infrastructure.

“Far from being a dampener on growth, integrating climate action into growth policies can have a positive economic impact,” said OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría, presenting the report at the Petersberg Climate Dialogue in Berlin. “There is no economic excuse for not acting on climate change, and the urgency to act is high.”

Infrastructure investments made over the next 10-15 years will determine whether the 2015 Paris Agreement’s objective to stabilise the global climate can be achieved, and delaying action will end up being more costly. The report shows that taking action only after 2025 would lead to an average output loss for G20 economies of 2% after ten years relative to taking action now. The delay would mean that, eventually, even more stringent climate policies would have to be introduced more urgently, risking greater environmental and economic disruption and leaving more fossil fuel assets as economically unviable.

Infrastructure is at the heart of economic growth and yet there has been chronic underinvestment in most G20 countries. Limiting the global temperature rise to below 2 degrees, in line with the Paris Agreement, will require $6.9 trillion per year in infrastructure investment between now and 2030, only 10% more than the carbon-intensive alternative. In addition, climate-friendly infrastructure is more energy-efficient and would lead to fossil fuel savings totalling $1.7 trillion annually, more than offsetting the incremental cost.

Even in countries where the transition to a low-carbon economy will be economically challenging, such as in net fossil-fuel exporters, the right combination of policies can mean that low-carbon growth offsets the cost in terms of the economy and jobs of putting in place mitigation policies.

The report recommends that G20 countries:

  • Ensure the integration of climate objectives in pro-growth reforms, in particular to deliver better resource allocation, stronger investment and structural reforms in line with the low-emission transition.
  • Strengthen climate mitigation policies, including carbon pricing, fossil fuel subsidy reform, smart regulations and the use of public procurement to help drive low-carbon innovation
  • Scale up efforts to mobilise private investment in low-emission and climate resilient infrastructure through further efforts to green the finance system.
  • Engage local governments, employers and workforce in the transition of exposed activities and communities, to deliver a just transition for workers.

Shell’s Bonga oil field delivers 702m oil barrels in 12 years

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Shell’s Bonga oil field delivers 702m oil barrels in 12 years

The Bonga oil field has produced about 702 million barrels of oil since inauguration in 2005, and operated at more than 92 percent availability in 2016, Managing Director of the oil field operator, Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo), Bayo Ojulari, has said.

SNEPCo-Shell
L-R: Head, Turnaround Maintenance, Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo), Tunde Olasubulumi; Engineering Manager, Chiedu Ejiofor; General Manager, Deep-water Production, Effy Okon; Managing Director, Bayo Ojulari; Communications Manager, Sola Abulu; Business Relations Manager, Alan Udi; and Transformation Manager, Toun Mustapha, at a press conference on the just completed turnaround maintenance of the Bonga deep-water asset held in Lagos… on Tuesday.

The volumes came from the Bonga main field and Bonga Phases 2 and 3 that unlocked the nearby Bonga North West field in August 2014. It has capacity for 65,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.

Addressing media executives in Lagos on Tuesday, May 23, 2017 on the new lease of life of Bonga after a major turnaround maintenance which was completed in April, Ojulari said one of the highpoints of the turnaround was the engagement of about 65 Nigerian contractor and subcontractor companies. Over 1,000 people were involved, spread across worksites and vessels in the exercise described as the biggest in scope in the 12-year history of the asset.

He said, “The exercise stimulated growth of support industries vital to deep-water asset management. It provided a wider benefit to the Nigerian economy by boosting demand for a range of goods and services including offshore vessels and platforms, materials, floating hotel and helicopters.”

According to Ojulari, the turnaround witnessed an optimisation of resources and was safely completed within schedule. The exercise included statutory and regulatory checks and inspections; repairs and replacement of equipment; and upgrade of facilities.

A critical success factor, according to Ojulari, was the collaboration by more than 10 functions who benchmarked their contributions against a robust execution plan. Procuring materials from Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) saved cost and ensured seamless delivery, and the project team sourced key equipment and carried out fabrications within Nigeria. This innovation, he said, marked a turning point in SNEPCo’s efforts to develop the capabilities of Nigerian companies in the provision of goods and services in deep-water oil and gas production.

Ojulari expressed delight at the increasing number of women on the frontline, noting that more women were involved at every stage of the turnaround compared to any of the three previous exercises. “I’m very pleased that over 95 percent of these women are Nigerians and they add to our growing pool of Nigerian deep-water professionals produced through the asset,” he said.

He commended the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and its co-venture partners for their timely support in the safe delivery of the turnaround.

SNEPCo is credited with producing the first generation of Nigerian deep-water oil and gas engineers, and in 2016, Bonga won “Asset of the Year” Award in the Shell Group.

Bonga is Nigeria’s first deep-water development in depths of more than 1,000 metres, and is located 120km offshore Nigeria. The Bonga Floating Production Storage and Offloading vessel receives crude and gas from production wells on the seabed and has the capacity to produce 225,000 barrels of oil and 210 million standard cubic feet of gas per day.

SNEPCo operates Bonga in partnership with Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria (Deep Water) Limited, Total E&P Nigeria Limited and Nigerian Agip Exploration Limited under a Production Sharing Contract with the NNPC.

RSPO condemns destruction of Peruvian amazon forest amid threats to community leaders

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RSPO condemns destruction of Peruvian amazon forest amid threats to community leaders

In an initial public statement, the Complaints Panel of the RSPO (Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil) condemned Plantaciones de Pucallpa (PdP) for its destruction of primary forests in Peru in violation of the RSPO’s code of practice. The RSPO’s findings come despite PdP’s withdrawal from the membership in October 2016. A full report from the complaints panel addressing the human rights impacts is still forthcoming.

RSPO
Peruvian government law enforcers and community representatives document continued and illegal deforestation in lands of Shipibo community of Santa Clara de Uchunya by Peruvian palm oil company Ochosur Sac (ex Plantaciones de Pucallpa). Photo credit: FECONAU

“The RSPO Complaints Panel has found Plantaciones de Pucallpa (PdP) (Peru) to be in breach of RSPO Code and Conduct and RSPO Principles and Criteria (RSPO P & C) during its membership period from 14 October 2013 to 12 October 2016.”

After over a year of deliberation and an independent satellite analysis commissioned by the RSPO, the Complaints Panel concurred with the complaint filed in December 2015 by the Shipibo community of Santa Clara de Uchunya that PdP had deforested over 5,000 hectares of forests, including primary forests.

In so doing, it had failed to comply with RSPO’s restrictions on the conversion of primary forests to plantations, measures to address risks to forests considered of High Conservation Value (HCV) and requirements to disclose all information about planting and conversion plans to the RSPO and affected communities.

The Complaints Panel rarely issues rulings after companies have withdrawn from membership of the RSPO. However, in this case the Complaints Panel found that there was “clear evidence that compensation liability would have been incurred,” but notes that “these findings and decision are of moral and persuasive value only, and cannot be enforced in light of Plantaciones de Pucallpa’s resignation as a RSPO member.”

Since its operations began in Shipibo territory, the operations of PdP, whose owners have created a new company called Ochosur SAC since leaving the RSPO, have been enveloped in controversy. Despite successive rulings, fines and suspensions on the part of different Peruvian government agencies, the operations continue and in recent weeks community members have reported further forest destruction to expand the plantation and more death threats.

One community member, Huber Flores Rodriguez, whose house and farm border the plantation, has recently reported several incidents where he has been accosted at night by groups of men threatening him and his family if they didn’t abandon their house. Mr. Flores claims that these include individuals with close ties to the palm oil company and a local land trafficking mafia connected with the regional Ministry of Agriculture. In February 2017, Mr Flores formally filed a request for physical guarantees from the Interior Ministry, but to date there has been no response.

Carlos Soria, head of the community of Santa Clara de Uchunya, said: “We are practically living under siege in our own territory. Almost every day there is more expansion of the plantation and anyone who challenges them is threatened. Our lands are still untitled and the plantations continue to operate. It seems that they are growing bolder seeing that the government is doing nothing. Do we have to die like Edwin Chota before they do anything? Where are we supposed to live? If our home is destroyed what hope for us and our future generations?”

Robert Guimaraes, President of FECONAU, added: “After a year of deliberation, the RSPO has determined that Plantaciones de Pucallpa destroyed primary forests and compensation should be paid. But what are our own authorities doing? There are lawsuits that were filed by the community almost three years ago that remain unresolved, the government ordered the suspension of the operations almost two years ago but the plantations and destructions continue to expand and the community and its allies are subjected to increasing aggression and threats while their lands remain untitled.

“Yet at the same time the government is receiving millions of dollars from the Norwegians, the Germans and the World Bank for its programme to protect Peru’s forests and title indigenous territories. What will it take for the government to finally step up and meet its promises to protect Peru’s forests and our rights as indigenous peoples?”

Conrad Feather from Forest Peoples Programme notes: “We welcome the RSPO’s initial resolution and await the findings on the requirements to respect indigenous peoples’ customary land rights. However, what hope of justice or redress for communities if companies can neutralise a complaint simply by resigning? The RSPO must address this if it is to have any credibility in Latin America.”

Bainimarama: Tackling climate change demands global cooperation

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Bainimarama: Tackling climate change demands global cooperation

Frank Bainimarama, Fiji’s Prime Minister and incoming president of the UN Climate Change Conference in Bonn in November (COP23), on Monday, May 22, 2017 at the 8th Petersberg Climate Dialogue in Berlin, Germany notes that it is only by the entire world coming together as one to address the impacts of climate change can the phenomenon be effectively tackled

Frank-Bainimarama
Frank Bainimarama, Fiji’s Prime Minister and incoming president of the UN Climate Change Conference in Bonn in November (COP23), speaking during the 8th Petersberg Climate Dialogue in Berlin, Germany

The Petersberg Dialogue was a critical path to the historic agreement we all reached in Paris at the end of 2015. After further success in Marrakesh, we are now into the implementation phase – which is why the theme of this dialogue is so appropriate – working together on solutions.

Because as I keep saying at every opportunity, only by the entire world coming together as one to address the impacts of climate change can we effectively tackle this crisis – one that affects every person on earth and especially those in vulnerable countries like Fiji.

I am convinced that when we act in the interest of the most vulnerable, we are acting in the interests of us all – because we are all vulnerable and we all need to act.

Fiji would not be able to give voice to the most vulnerable as president of this process without the help of Germany. Indeed, the combination of Europe’s largest economy and a small island developing state like Fiji is symbolic of the kind of cooperation that we need to succeed. It is a partnership rooted in the firm belief of both our nations that the fates of the developed and developing world are inter-connected.

To put it simply, we are all in the same canoe together. And the sooner that idea takes root around the world, the sooner we can provide hope and security for our own children and succeeding generations.

Today is all about dialogue – the Petersberg Dialogue. And we have our own name for this process. We call it Talanoa and we intend to bring it to COP23 Fiji in Bonn. Along with the Bula spirit and Fijian culture that has made our nation famous.

Talanoa is the Pacific concept of a process of inclusive, participatory and transparent dialogue that builds empathy and leads to decision making for the collective good. It is not about finger-pointing and laying blame. It is about genuinely listening to each other, learning from each other, sharing stories, skills and experiences. And we are convinced that this very Pacific process will help us all work together on solutions – as your theme so appropriately highlights.

I intend as incoming President of the COP to do the following: To work with Morocco to design the process for the Facilitative Dialogue of 2018 in Poland, and to work with Poland to ensure its success.

I also commit to making demonstrable progress on the implementation guidelines of the Paris Agreement. And also to advance all other aspects of our collective effort across a broad front – whether it is increasing the take-up of renewable energy, providing affordable insurance for those who are most vulnerable or boosting the development of sustainable agriculture; and all the while focusing on the impact of climate change and the urgent necessity to strive towards remaining within the 1.5 degree Celsius boundary.

We understand that at COP23, there is a formal and informal process. And I have made it a large part of my mission as incoming president to ensure that we bring together governments at every level and the people they govern, whether it is the private sector, civil society or ordinary men and women across the world. So in Bonn I will be dividing my time between what we are calling the Bula Zone – the formal negotiations – and the Bonn Zone – which is where much of the action will be. And where we can encourage the non-state actors to further initiatives that connect the global and the local.

While I have said that I will be president for everyone, it is only natural given the part of the world I come from, that we want to see climate action in the Pacific. We have a particular interest in our oceans and seas because they are our lifeblood.

Rising sea levels, as well as ocean acidity and warmer waters have a direct effect on our reefs and fish stocks and the prosperity of our coastal communities. So oceans and climate change aren’t separate. They are interlinked. A point that I will be making very strongly in June when I co-chair – with Sweden – the World Oceans Summit in New York.

I will also be emphasising as the year unfolds the absolute imperative of a technological and business transformation that can make the economic lives of our people better, while at the same time, reducing emissions. We are excited by some of the advances in renewable energy, battery storage, electric vehicles and other innovations. And the challenge is to take these innovations and scale them up so that they can become more accessible around the world.

Moyes resigns as Sunderland manager

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Moyes resigns as Sunderland manager

David Moyes resigned in the afternoon of Monday, May 22, 2017 as Sunderland manager without compensation. Moyes, who was Everton, Manchester United and Real Sociedad manager, departed after a meeting with Sunderland’s owner, Ellis Short and the Chief Executive, Martin Bain in London.

David Moyes
David Moyes

He leaves the relegated club without compensation after presiding over only six Premier League wins all season, falling out with some key players and failing to persuade Short to agree to his proposal, of signing virtually an entirely new team this Summer.

Nonetheless, Moyes was allowed to spend £30 million last Summer, but his signing failed to impress and, with the team struggling, he privately considered walking out as early as last Autumn.

Sunderland is seeking is eighth manager in six turbulent years after David Moyes concluded a calamitous 10 months on Wearside by resigning.

Reports have it that Moyes could soon be a candidate to replace the currently vulnerable Gordon Strachan as Scotland coach, but his departure represents a loss of face for Short, who recruited the 54-year-old Glaswegian at the fifth attempt last July.

By Felix Simire

Cycling Association, Cycling Lagos sign MoU for ‘Cycling Lagos 2017’

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Cycling Association, Cycling Lagos sign MoU for ‘Cycling Lagos 2017’

Lagos State Cycling Association has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Cycling Lagos team to stage Cycling Lagos 2017, one of the biggest cycling events in Africa.

Lagos-Cycling-MoU
L-R: Olabamiji Adeleye, Managing Director/CEO, Addefort Limited; Soji Adeleye, Chairman Cycling Lagos; Dr Ajibola Keshinro, Chairman, Lagos State Cycling Association (LSCA); and Mr Sunday Moses, Secretary, LSCA, during the signing of the MoU for the Cycling Lagos 2017 event in Lagos

Cycling Lagos is an annual event designed for cycling enthusiast, professionals and corporate organisations in Nigeria. Beyond the central idea of encouraging healthy living through regular exercise among corporate executives, the event will champion healthy competition among individuals and corporate organisations. The organisations through their participations are to encourage the general public to engage in cycling in their various communities for healthy living.

Speaking at the signing ceremony in Lagos, Mr. Soji Adeleye, Chairman, Cycling Lagos, described the signing as historical to the development of cycling as a sport and its potential to enhance tourism in Lagos and Nigeria.

“We are very excited about this MOU because it is historical; it is historical because of the potential of this event to not only promote tourism potential of Lagos but also enhance the development of cycling in Lagos and Nigeria,”  Adeleye stated.

Chairman Lagos State Cycling Association, Dr Ajibola Keshinro said the association was committed to supporting relevant organisations in promoting cycling in Lagos.

According to him, “the event will be packaged to showcase the best of Lagos State to the world.”

He commended the Cycling Lagos team for the laudable initiative that will further help to develop cycling as a sport in Nigeria and create wealth in Lagos.

Our climate, disaster risks concerns, by Glasser, Espinosa

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Our climate, disaster risks concerns, by Glasser, Espinosa

Robert Glasser, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Disaster Risk Reduction, and Patricia Espinosa, executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, in this joint treatise stress that climate change is not the only driver of disaster risk but it is the joker in the pack as the world tries to understand how it combines with other key risk factors

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Robert Glasser, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Disaster Risk Reduction (left), and Patricia Espinosa, executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change

It’s a simple fact that as we continue to pump record levels of greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere we are ramping up disaster risk around the globe now and for generations to come.

It goes with the sobering reality of warming and rising seas and widespread changes in the Earth’s systems that are influencing storms, winds and rainfall.

The toll this takes on human life, economies and government expenditures will be high on the agenda when world leaders gather in Mexico for the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in late May.

Latest figures show that disasters – 90% of which are classed as climate related – now cost the world economy $520 billion per year and push 26 million people into poverty every year.

In the 22 years that have passed since COP1, the first UN conference on climate change, we have seen greenhouse gas emissions reach critically high levels which bodes ill for those who already live in dry lands, on cyclone-exposed coastlines, flood plains, below unstable hillsides or in parts of the world dependent on glacier meltwater.

Over that time span we have also seen a doubling of weather and climate related disasters, which can further weaken least developed countries like Haiti which lost over 600 lives and around a third of its GDP when it was struck by Hurricane Matthew last October.

By some recent estimates the bill for Haiti’s recovery from that Category 4 hurricane comes to $2.8 billion, an extraordinary sum for a country where 60% of the population live in dire poverty.

The Philippines lost thousands of its citizens partly due to the slow passage of Typhoon Haiyan across the warming, rising waters of the Pacific Ocean in 2013. And again, the economic losses and the cost of building back better ran into billions.

Meanwhile the drylands of the Sahel and southern Africa already at high risk from rising temperatures, breached the limits of their capacity to sustain human life adequately in the last twelve months as country after country declared a state of national emergency and millions suffered the devastation of hunger and the loss of their livelihoods.

Just five years after the first famine of the 21st century was declared over, Somalia is again on the brink underlining the fact that 80% of the world’s hungry live in countries which are heavily prone to hydro-meteorological disasters.

Climate change, aggravated by phenomena like El Niño, is not the only driver of disaster risk but it is the joker in the pack as the world tries to understand how it combines with other key risk factors such as poor risk governance, rapid and unplanned urbanisation, poverty and environmental degradation.

Much of this understanding and better planning needs to be done now and at the local level. Adopting the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction two years ago, UN Member States agreed to substantially increase the number of national and local disaster risk reduction strategies in place by 2020.

These strategies will be the bedrock for decreasing disaster losses by 2030 through reducing mortality, economic losses and damage to critical infrastructure.

It is imperative that we break down any silos that exist between the exponents of disaster risk reduction whose remit extends beyond climate-related hazards, and those whose focus is on climate action.

As these national and local plans are put in place there is an opportunity to ensure joined up action across the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda including the Paris Climate Change Agreement, and an obligation also to avoid duplication of effort.

The achievement of many of the Sustainable Development Goals including those related to poverty, hunger, climate action, sanitation and clean water depend on this.

Both of us recognise that reducing greenhouse gas emissions and keeping global temperature well below 2 degrees C is the greatest long-term contribution that governments, local governments and the private sector can make to disaster risk reduction.

Meanwhile local planning for improved disaster risk management helps create a grass-root, societal demand for action and ever rising ambition nationally and globally for climate action above and beyond existing pledges.

The outcome of this fifth Global Platform has the potential to bring the worlds of disaster risk and climate risk closer together and that can only be a good thing for resilience; people everywhere and the future stability of our world.

While it is the poor and the vulnerable that are in the firing line now, no country or continent will be immune if we don’t take responsibility and seize the opportunity to act today.

Benue governor signs anti-open grazing bill into law

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Benue governor signs anti-open grazing bill into law

The Bill outlawing open grazing in Benue State has been signed by the Benue State governor, Samuel Ortom, into law.

Fulani-Herdsmen-Nigeria
Herdsmen grazing their cattle

Governor Ortom, who assented to the bill at a stakeholders’ meeting at the Benue People’s House, Makurdi, on Monday, May 22, 2017 described the development as a right step taken in a right direction.

According to Ortom, his administration would do all it could to protect the state from intruders and criminals.

While thanking those who sponsored the bill, the governor urged them to continue to support his government’s vision of making Benue a great state.

It will be recalled that the Benue State House of Assembly on Thursday, May 4 passed the bill prohibiting Open Rearing and Grazing into law.

The law states: “Nobody will be permitted to carryout open grazing outside the permitted ranches.

“Any person who contravene this act shall be guilty and upon conviction be sentenced to five years’ imprisonment with a fine of N1 million.

“Where damage is done to the crops the farm will be evaluated and the manager of the livestock be compelled to pay.

“Movement of livestock on foot within the state is hereby prohibited. Any person who contravenes this shall pay be sentenced to one year imprisonment or pay a fine of N500,000.

“Any livestock owner or manager who carries fire arms shall be treated under the penal code. All ranchers shall engage the services of security agencies.

“Any person who rustles cattle shall be sentenced to five years imprisonment or pay a fine of N100,000 per cow. Any livestock wandering shall be impounded by the department of livestock.

“Any livestock impounded and the owner not found shall be auctioned to the public and the proceeds be deposited into the state consolidated revenue account.

“There shall be established a special open prohibition Task Force and they shall enforce this laws as stipulated.”

By Damian Daga, Makurdi

International Biodiversity Day: Sustainable tourism vital for biodiversity conservation – Palmer

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International Biodiversity Day: Sustainable tourism vital for biodiversity conservation – Palmer

In the light of the global celebrations of the International Day for Biological Diversity on Monday, May 22, 2017 under the theme: “Biodiversity and Sustainable Tourism”, the world has been examining the positive but also potentially negative impacts that tourism can have on biodiversity.

Cancun
Cancun, Mexico: A popular tourist destination

Tourism is said to represent one of the world’s fastest growing industries. According to the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, the tourism sector grew by 3.9 per cent in 2016.

Many tourist destinations are centred on places of natural beauty and rich natural assets where people can enjoy outdoor activities, or simply relax. This provides millions of jobs, and income for local communities. For example, about 40 million people are drawn every year to the Caribbean’s beautiful beaches and marine life, providing $25 billion of revenue annually – and nearly 50 per cent of the region’s total income.

Dr. Cristiana Pașca Palmer, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity, said: “As we celebrate the 16th edition of the International Biodiversity Day let us all remember that by celebrating and protecting biodiversity we respect and give consideration to all forms of life that exist on this beautiful planet and that support the very existence of humans.”

Countries are already engaging in activities that support sustainable tourism and biodiversity. Protected areas, such as national parks, are popular tourism destinations. For example, some 1.4 million people visit Australian parks annually to experience their natural landscapes and culture. This contributes $23 billion to the economy.

Ecotourism is another option that promotes responsible travel to natural areas that conserve the environment and improves the wellbeing of local people. Ecotourism can provide livelihoods for indigenous peoples and local communities, as they are often the stewards of biodiversity-rich areas.

Dr. Pașca Palmer said: “Many conventional businesses, such as hotels and tourism operators, have taken steps to ensure that they adhere to sustainable tourism principles and best practices in their day to day operations.

“This is important, as countless travellers are now making choices based on whether good practices are followed by operators at their destinations.”

The Secretariat of the Biodiversity Convention works with governments on their tourism policies, with partners as they train protected area managers, as well as developing awareness-raising tools for tourists and tourism professionals.

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