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Smart City Lagos: Necessity of the time

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Smart City Lagos: Necessity of the time

Once again, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State is blazing the trail. Recent report in Environews Nigeria including other local Nigerian daily newspapers gave prominence to the news item concerning the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Lagos State Government and Dubai authority (represented by Smart City Dubai, a company) for the creation of Africa’s first smart city, the Smart City Lagos. It was a news item with euphoria and one that gladdens the heart, in the sense that, finally, Lagos is swimming with the tidal wave of contemporary urban development instead of remaining stagnant and be left at the base of progress among other world Mega Cities.

With the aid of an impression of the development, a representative of Smart City Dubai explains details of the proposed Smart City Lagos to state officials
With the aid of an impression of the development, a representative of Smart City Dubai explains details of the proposed Smart City Lagos to state officials

The snippets from the news item about the MOU covered the anticipated benefits: “…. it is expected to bring multi-billion-dollars investments to the city, create thousands of jobs and transform the Ibeju-Lekki axis in particular and the entire Lagos State in general.” (Steve Ayorinde, Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy). The reasons for Smart City Lagos: “…. a deliberate attempt by us to establish a strong convergence between technology, economic development and governance,” and “…. part of the larger vision to make Lagos cleaner, safer and more prosperous.” (Governor Akinwunmi Ambode). The import of the project: “…. Lagos will become an important center for innovations in smart technologies, wellness and destination for green tourism.” (Governor Ambode). The anticipated feat of the project. “…. the project would become world’s first carbon neutral city.” (Governor Ambode). Lastly, the features: “…. 12-lane road, hotel resorts, world-class technological education facilities and a rail metro line.” (EnviroNews, Friday, June 24, 2016).

Clarity of the operative word. The operative word being referred to here is “smart city.” What exactly is smart city? A search by this writer brought to the fore a few of the following definitions among several others: “A city equipped with basic infrastructure to give a decent quality of life, a clean sustainable environment through application of some smart solutions.” (Smart Cities website). “Smart City is an invention arising from the NEED to live a good, healthy life, intelligently, by solving most of our problems that we face today and fulfilling our needs for the future.” (City Urbanes). “Smart cities are cities of the future where technology will be used to improve efficiency of infrastructure and public services.” (IBM). A city can be defined as “smart” when it fulfills the need of a high quality of life with the help of modern technology.” (Infographic).

When the different definitions cited above are further deciphered, the common thread is the ubiquity of ICT and its application to facilitate high quality of life premised on advanced social, cultural, economic, environmental development, infrastructural development and efficient delivery of urban basic services.  Therefore, the MoU that the LASG signed with Smart City Dubai is to introduce a “new urbanism” as a way of life, by creating a city that “works” and where life more abundant is guaranteed for its residents. This of course is a clear departure from what obtains in present day municipal Lagos, where uncontrolled urbanisation has taken its toll on city planning, service delivery, security, environment and the economy. As a first step, Governor Ambode should be commended for having the laudable vision for “Future Lagos” both in words, deeds and actions.

Where is the geographic location of the Smart City Lagos? While the objectives and beneficial impacts of the Smart City Lagos project are unambiguous, there is a cloud hanging over the form the development of the Smart City will take. Is it going to take the form of a new city to be developed from scratch on a tabula rasa location (undeveloped/pristine land). If yes, where is the intended area located? Or is it a “vest pocket” development in the midst of a sparsely populated rural area at the outlay of the Mega City? Or is it a blanket urban renewal and rejuvenation project that would touch every nook and cranny of the Mega City Region? Or is it a twin development of the on-going Eko Atlantic City (a prospective smart city) whose site preparation and sand filling had already taken off at the Lagos Bar Beach? Would the Smart City Lagos have any affiliation with the Lagos Free Trade Zone (FTZ) along the Ibeju- Lekki axis of the Lagos Mega City?

A specific answer needs to be provided by the LASG for the reading public in order to sensitise Lagos residents about the ambitious project. If the Smart City Lagos is going to be developed at a new site, definitely a large parcel of land would have to be acquired for the purpose. For this reason, the LASG would need to be proactive about how to deftly handle the issue of Omo onile, who are likely to be antagonistic of government for usurping their ownership of their ancestral land, whenever the project is about to kick off. The recurring issue of Omo onile which snowballed into unending/fatal fracas between this group of people and the LASG officials at the site acquired for the development of the Lagos Free Trade Zone is a sad reminder that should never be repeated in the course of developing the proposed Smart City. Therefore, the government should go the extra mile in properly sensitising the locales (villagers) where the project will be located, through their village heads so that their support could be made facile. This is necessary to be done and must be done in order to avoid any hitches that could delay the project or scare off prospective foreign investors. Government must not portray itself as a brazen usurper of people’s land or underrate the reaction of the people when treated shabbily, no matter the goodness of government intention to bring development to the specific location, for the benefit of the residents. Once the approach is inclusive and participatory by involving all concerned, particularly the local communities, the project would have a smooth sail. This is a first assumption to one of the questions asked earlier in this piece.

The second option is premised on the assumption that, if the government chooses to develop the Smart City as an “oasis” of modern/affluent settlement, amidst existing impoverished village settlements, which are unplanned and lacking the trappings of modernity in terms of road infrastructure, electricity and social amenities. We try to hazard this guess, purposely to zero in on the implications of such decision or choice by the government. In the case of the painted scenario, the issue of accessibility to the new site of the Smart City should be a major consideration. Government would need to provide high grade road connectivity to the new city such that its accessibility from any directions of the Mega City Region would not be a challenge. Excellent road accessibility is one of the determinants that investors would consider in making the right decision whether to be  a willful participant in the joint venture to establish a business concern in the Smart City.

The Lagos-Lekki Expressway seems to be the only carriage road that would serve as arterial link to the Smart City site. That stretch of road has been “a-work-in-progress” for unduly long time and still is. Second, the carrying capacity of the road is far inadequate for the present volume of vehicular traffic along that axis and, as a result, it is always plagued with daily traffic congestion. Road users are often held in traffic most especially during the morning and evening rush hours, wasting a lot of man-hour struggling to get to their work places on the Island, Victoria Island, Mainland and Ikeja.

The Lagos-Lekki Expressway is going to play a pivotal in the success of the Smart City project, because of the road’s usefulness as a major link road along the presumed axis where the new Smart City is likely to be developed. This being so, it logically follows that the LASG would need to embark on massive rehabilitation of that expressway through expansion and addition of more lanes to enhance ease of vehicular passage. The construction would involve large scale demolition of all the eyesore mumbo jumbo developments which impede smooth traffic flow on the expressway. It is the only solution that would allow for the acquisition of more land space for additional right of way for the road expansion. This seems a herculean task in construction time and cost, which can neither be ignored by the state government nor procrastinate the rehab work, for reasons of the country’s parlous economy, paucity of funds and galloping inflation. As they say in local parlance, delay is costly.

For space constraint, I will fast forward this piece and focus on other very important aspects and offer useful tips (though unsolicited), which the core group of Smart City Lagos may find worthy of consideration. I am bringing my random musing to the fore of public conversation on the Smart City Lagos project as an engaged citizen (citizen participation) of Lagos and also from the perspective of a professional Urban Planner who views the city with “trained eyes.”

There is no template for developing a Smart City. The approach that works well in one city might fail in another city. Ask the Indian Government. India is home to over 100 pilot Smart Cities and what the officials of the participating cities found out is that the success or failure of a Smart City basically depends on the level of development of the city, willingness to embrace change and reform, available resources and aspirations of the city residents. Another research finding concluded as follows: “In order to compete in the international economy, cities…must demonstrate the availability of certain key assets, including a better educated and more highly educated workforce; globally linked telecommunications; efficient air and surface transportation; knowledge-based research institutions; flexible, mission-oriented, public and private organizations; an attractive quality of life; and fiscal soundness.” (N.R Pierce, 1993).

I strongly recommend to Governor Ambode and cerebral Pat Utomi with his Team in charge of the Smart City Lagos project to diligently take stock of each of the key assets listed above as they relate to the situation in Lagos and do a critical analysis of them as part of the preparatory stage for the take-off of their assignment. The review of the key assets would guide the Group to take informed decision as appropriate, instead of making decision in a vacuum of information.

Learning far and near. There is no monopoly of knowledge about what makes a Smart City works well. Inter-city cross pollination of ideas, collaboration, and exchange programme, C2C or city consultancy is perfectly okay. We make bold to say that the LASG’s MoU with Smart City Dubai is a leap in the right direction. It is spot on. But what the LASG must begin to understand is that the height Dubai attained today among notable global cities, to the level of a “poster child” of a successful Smart City, was not a sudden flight. It was through a diligent urban planning exercise that was embarked upon in the early 1990s, which the kingdom/emirate of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) tenaciously and committedly followed through with the elements of the plan. There was no undue interference from any “strongman” or sheik to distort the course of the plan, unlike what obtains in the Abuja Master Plan, which every appointed Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (except El-Rufai, who restored sanity to the implementation of the plan circa 2007) distorted the master plan with impunity.

The level of governmental and citizen discipline regarding obedience of the law and stickler to development regulations in Dubai, with due respect, is not what we are used to in Nigeria, albeit we all know the adverse effect of our aversion to government regulations. It is an ill-wind that does no good to our cities’ development and the quality of life of the people that live in these cities. What works in other cities, miraculously does not work in Nigerian cities because the government lacks the political will to obey its own laws while the citizenry lacks the discipline to comply with development regulations. Let us cast our minds back to the incidences of collapse buildings in Lagos and other parts of the country over the years, to buttress the point being advanced in this piece. Many of the causes were attributed to violation of set rules and building regulations.

The LASG will surely learn the know-how or the rudiments of a Smart City development, from the Dubai experience; but the political will and discipline to practice the ideas undiluted, is another topic for another day.

By Yacoob Abiodun (Former Secretary, National Housing Policy Council; Urban Planner; Planning Advocate)

South Pole’s CO2 levels highest in 4 million years

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South Pole’s CO2 levels highest in 4 million years

The Earth passed another unfortunate milestone on May 23 when carbon dioxide (CO2) surpassed 400 parts per million (ppm) at the South Pole for the first time in four million years.

South Pole
South Pole

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the South Pole has shown the same, relentless upward trend in CO2 as the rest of world, but its remote location means it’s the last to register the impacts of increasing emissions from fossil fuel consumption, the primary driver of greenhouse gas pollution.

“The far southern hemisphere was the last place on earth where CO2 had not yet reached this mark,” said Pieter Tans, the lead scientist of the NOAA’s Global Greenhouse Gas Reference Network. “Global CO2 levels will not return to values below 400 ppm in our lifetimes, and almost certainly for much longer.”

Over the course of the year, CO2 levels rise during fall and winter and decline during the Northern Hemisphere’s summer as terrestrial plants consume CO2 during photosynthesis. But plants only capture a fraction of annual CO2 emissions, so for every year since observations began in 1958, there has been more CO2 in the atmosphere than the year before.

Last year’s global CO2 average reached 399 ppm, meaning that the global average in 2016 will almost certainly surpass 400 ppm. The only question is whether the lowest month for 2016 will also remain above 400.

Upward trend continues

And the annual rate of increase appears to be accelerating. The annual growth rate of atmospheric carbon dioxide measured at NOAA’s Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii jumped 3.05 ppm during 2015, the largest year-to-year increase in 56 years of monitoring. Part of last year’s jump was attributable to El Nino, the cyclical Pacific Ocean warming that produces extreme weather across the globe, causing terrestrial ecosystems to lose stored CO2 through wildfire, drought and heat waves.

Last year was the fourth consecutive year that CO2 grew more than 2 ppm – which set another record. This year promises to be the fifth.

“We know from abundant and solid evidence that the CO2 increase is caused entirely by human activities,” Tans said. “Since emissions from fossil fuel burning have been at a record high during the last several years, the rate of CO2 increase has also been at a record high. And we know some of it will remain in the atmosphere for thousands of years.”

Paris emerges Global Earth Hour Capital 2016 winner

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Paris emerges Global Earth Hour Capital 2016 winner

Paris is this year’s Global Earth Hour Capital. WWF’s Earth Hour City Challenge recognises the “City of Light” as a role model for climate action and awards Paris for its ambitious vision and successful engagement with business, civil society and other cities on its journey toward sustainability.

Paris, France
Paris, France

Paris hosted last year’s historic global climate summit and has shown strong climate leadership, creating a model for other city governments to replicate. In addition to setting up an effective centralised Climate Agency, ensuring clean vehicles, extending public transportation and developing waste-to-fuel conversion, Paris has also incorporated a regular review process to ensure that the city is on track to meet its sustainability goals as well as the current and future needs of its citizens.

“As the world works to bring the Paris climate agreement into action, the ‘City of Light’ is leading by example,” said Marco Lambertini, Director General of WWF International. “Winning WWF’s Earth Hour City Challenge reflects Paris’ commitment to inspire global action to reduce emissions and build environmental sustainability through green urban development.”

Selected from a shortlist of 18 national finalists, Paris impressed the international jury with its innovative actions, long-term vision and willingness to collaborate and share knowledge capital with cities around the globe.

WWF’s Earth Hour City Challenge 2016 saw participation from 125 cities representing 21 countries. Cities were evaluated on their level of ambition and innovation in developing climate-smart solutions that advance sustainable development under local circumstances.

National winners included Belo Horizonte, Brazil; Boulder, USA; Chiangrai, Thailand; Edmonton, Canada; Hue City, Vietnam; Jakarta, Indonesia; Lappeenranta, Finland; Montería, Colombia; Murcia, Spain; Petaling Jaya, Malaysia; Quito, Ecuador; Rajkot, India; Santa Rosa, Philippines; Shenzhen, China; City of Singapore, Singapore; Tshwane, South Africa and Umeå, Sweden.

Paris now joins the ranks of previous global Earth Hour City Challenge winners such as Vancouver, Cape Town and Seoul, all of whom have shown extraordinary leadership in developing innovative solutions for tackling climate change and reducing the ecological footprint of urban lifestyles.

“Paris, as a member of ICLEI, is a global forerunner in sustainability. The city’s ambitious, long-term, holistic vision, supported by concrete climate actions and ambitious targets set the bar high for the Earth Hour City Challenge this year. Paris has demonstrated its commitment to inspire, collaborate and exchange knowledge with cities around the world, taking this to new heights as the host of the COP21 last year,” said Gino Van Begin, Secretary General of ICLEI.

WWF works closely with ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability to mobilize cities to participate in the Earth Hour City Challenge. ICLEI provides the use of its carbon Climate Registry as the reporting platform for the initiative.

“I am very happy and honoured to see Paris and Parisians being rewarded with the prestigious Earth Hour City Challenge award by WWF. As Paris acts in concrete terms against air pollution, this recognition encourages us to go further in linking public health and protection of the environment,” said Anne Hidalgo, Mayor of Paris. “Cities have always been on the front line of change, and have always foreseen, prefigured and pre-empted the future. This makes them key actors of the ecological transition. Paris will take up this 21st century challenge,” continued Hidalgo.

Separately, on 30 June, WWF will announce the winner of the We Love Cities campaign – the public engagement arm of the Earth Hour City Challenge – on welovecities.org and through social media. The We Love Cities campaign engages citizens around the world to express their support for cities committed to sustainability through votes, tweets and Instagram pictures. To date, more than 230,000 people have voted for their favourite urban area from the 46 cities profiled on the campaign’s website. Voting closes on 26 June 2016 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific Standard Time.

UN demands empathetic approach to global drug problem

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UN demands empathetic approach to global drug problem

Around five per cent of the adult population, or nearly 250 million people between the ages of 15 and 64, used at least one drug in 2014, according to the latest World Drug Report released by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Yury Fedotov, with President Muhammadu Buhari
Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Yury Fedotov, with President Muhammadu Buhari

Although substantial, this figure has not grown over the past four years in proportion to the global population. The report, however, suggests that the number of people classified as suffering from drug user disorders has increased disproportionally for the first time in six years. There are now over 29 million people within this category (compared to the previous figure of 27 million). Additionally, around 12 million people inject drugs with 14 per cent of these living with HIV. The overall impact of drug use in terms of health consequences continues to be devastating.

The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, in his message to mark the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking commemorated yearly on June 26, said: “The challenges posed by the world drug problem require a global response that is simultaneously effective, compassionate and humane.”

He stated further that “addressing the world drug problem demands a considered and unified response by Governments.  The illicit trade in drugs fosters transnational organised crime networks, systemic corruption and widespread violence.  It is also a major public health menace.  Millions of people are directly affected, especially the poor, vulnerable women and children, and those living in fragile communities.”

In Nigeria, the European Union funded project “Response to Drugs and Related Organised Crime in Nigeria” being implemented by UNODC is supporting national efforts in fighting drugs trafficking, preventing drug use and curbing organised crime through strengthening policy formulation, legislation and coordination; enhancing law enforcement capacity and inter-agency coordination and supporting relevant bodies to provide enhanced drug prevention, treatment and care services.

The project has supported the formulation of National Drug Control Master Plan 2015-2019, a strategy document driving the response of the Nigerian government to drugs and related issues in Nigeria. It was publicly launched on June 26, 2015.

Closely related to this is the finalisation and commencement of the field testing of the draft national guidelines for quantification of narcotics and estimation of precursors and psychotropic substances for medical and research purposes; development of national minimum standards of drug dependence treatment in 2014; the development of national policy guidelines for drug counseling for NDLEA in 2015; assessment of 17 drug treatment facilities and the subsequent development of 11 Model Drug Treatment Centres and seven Regional Training Hubs including the development of national minimum standards on drug treatment; and commencement of pilot drug treatment at one prison in 2016. The project has trained over 1,000 health practitioners in drug treatment and over 800 law enforcement officers from seven agencies in law enforcement techniques.

This is the first International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking since the adoption last year of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Goal 3 calls on countries to strengthen the prevention and treatment of narcotic drug abuse, end AIDS and combat hepatitis. Goal 16 is designed to help to build peaceful, just and inclusive societies and institutions that can address illicit drugs, crime, corruption and terrorism.

The SDGs also informed the deliberations of the UN General Assembly Special Session on the World Drug Problem in April 2016. They support the founding principle of the International Drug Control Conventions, which is to ensure the health and well-being of humankind. This requires a balance between interrupting drug supply and preventing and treating the harmful impact of drugs on people’s health.

The Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Mr. Yury Fedotov, observed that “UNODC’s World Drug Report 2016 advances further understanding of the problem. In alarming detail, the report shows a rise in the number of problem drug users from 27 to 29 million people aged 15-64; the disastrous resurgence of heroin in some regions; the appalling loss of life due to overdoses, and the disproportionate impact illicit drugs have on women, among many others challenges.”

He added that “one of the key recommendations of this year’s World Drug Report is that achieving sustainable development and countering the world drug problem must not exist as distant cousins. Illicit drugs threaten the security and health of people, while weakening both communities and institutions. If targets of the Sustainable Development Goals are to be achieved under Goal 3 on health, and Goal 16, on peaceful societies, as well as many other goals, drug-related development initiatives should be mainstreamed into general development efforts.”

Images: Solar brightens insurgency-hit villages in Adamawa

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Images: Solar brightens insurgency-hit villages in Adamawa

Characterised by limited access to modern energy services with majority of the population relying on the traditional solid fuels (biomass) to meet their cooking and heating needs, the villages of Gaya Silkami and Fa’a Gaya are beneficiaries to a power non-grid rural communities with solar based energy services.

Courtesy of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN) under the Sustainable Energy for All (Se4All) initiative, the two neighbouring rural communities in Hong Local Government Area of Adamawa State who are still smarting from the effects of an attack last year by the Boko Haram sect, have been given an energy lifeline that is improving health services, providing potable water, illuminating the community and boosting mobile communication.

Outdoor community lighting in Gaya Silkami
Outdoor community lighting in Gaya Silkami
Solar panels on the roof of the Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria (LCCN) Arewa Diocese Gartsanu Maternity Clinic, the Gartsanu Gaya
Solar panels on the roof of the Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria (LCCN) Arewa Diocese Gartsanu Maternity Clinic, Gartsanu Gaya
Solar fridge-freezer at the Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria (LCCN) Arewa Diocese Gartsanu Maternity Clinic, the Gartsanu Gaya
Solar fridge-freezer at the Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria (LCCN) Arewa Diocese Gartsanu Maternity Clinic, Gartsanu Gaya
Solar freezer at the Gaya Silkami Primary Health Care Centre
Solar freezer at the Gaya Silkami Primary Health Care Centre
Patients at the Gaya Silkami Primary Health Care Centre
Patients at the Gaya Silkami Primary Health Care Centre
Water supply in Gaya Silkami
Water supply in Gaya Silkami
Mallam Ja'afaru Biyma, a representative of the District head (left) with Manaseh Gachanunaya, a junior community health extension worker (JCHEW) at the Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria (LCCN) Arewa Diocese Gartsanu Maternity Clinic, Gartsanu Gaya
Alhaji Abba Saleh, a representative of the Head of Service of Hong LGA (left) with Manaseh Gachanunaya, a junior community health extension worker (JCHEW) at the Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria (LCCN) Arewa Diocese Gartsanu Maternity Clinic, Gartsanu Gaya

 

Project signpost
Project signpost
Young faces at Gaya Silkami
Young faces at Gaya Silkami
L-R: Mallam Ja’afaru Biyma, a representative of the village head in Gaya Sikalmi; Alhaji Abba Saleh, a representative of the Head of Service of Hong LGA; Javan Zakaria, clinic-in-charge at the Gaya Silkami PHCC; and Sunday Igoche, project contractor
L-R: Mallam Ja’afaru Biyma, a representative of the village head in Gaya Silkami; Alhaji Abba Saleh, a representative of the Head of Service of Hong LGA; Javan Zakaria, clinic-in-charge at the Gaya Silkami PHCC; and Sunday Igoche, project contractor
Okon Ekpenyong, an engineer and deputy director with the ECN (right) sharing a point with Mallam Ja’afaru Biyma (left) and Javan Zakaria
Okon Ekpenyong, an engineer and deputy director with the ECN (right) sharing a point with Mallam Ja’afaru Biyma (left) and Javan Zakaria

UNDP, ECN light up Adamawa insurgency-hit communities with solar energy

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UNDP, ECN light up Adamawa insurgency-hit communities with solar energy

Two rural communities in Hong Local Government Area of Adamawa State in Northeast Nigeria are effectively recovering from the ravages of insurgency, thanks to an energy lifeline that is improving health services, providing potable water, illuminating the community and boosting mobile communication.

The water supply facility in Gaya Silkami
The water supply facility in Gaya Silkami

In February 2015, rampaging Boko Haram militants invaded the villages of Fa’a Gaya and Gaya Silkami. While the former was caught unawares and suffered considerable human and material casualty, the latter had gotten wind of the attack and villagers sought refuge in the nearby mountains for some days before trekking for hundreds of kilometres – in the dead of the night on foot – to Hong. Some were able to make it to Yola, the state capital.

With the insurgency subsiding, normalcy now appears to be returning to the communities as the villagers are returning to their homes, and picking up the pieces of their lives.

But the darkness awaiting them is, to their relief, being lit up, courtesy of an initiative aimed at expanding access of local communities to modern energy services (such as solar energy) under the Sustainable Energy for All (Se4All) programme being promoted by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN).

Most of the houses in both villages – predominantly Kilba tribe – are built with mud blocks and thatched roof, and the villagers live in a cluster. While Gaya Silkami has a population of about 1,345, Fa’a gaye has 830. They are mostly into cattle rearing and cultivation of crops such as maize, groundnut and millet.

The major sources of water supply in the villages include manual water pump, stagnant ponds, run-off streams and rain water. But Se4All has enabled the installation of a solar-powered water borehole along with two 10,000-litre capacity overhead tanks providing clean and potable water supply for the villagers.

Similarly, the villages are not connected to the national grid, making them very dark at night. Residents lack access to – and can’t afford to buy – kerosene to fuel their lamps for night lighting, spend huge amount to purchase batteries for torchlight and very few can afford a generating set. However, 267 solar home systems have been provided the households (167 in Gaya Silkami and 100 in Fa’a Gaya) to provide lighting in the night for security, reading and enable users to charge their mobile phones.

Just like the single Primary Health Care Centre (PHCC) in Fa’a Gaya, one of the two PHCCs in Gaya Silkami was burnt down by members of the Boko Haram sect during the attacks. While the one in Fa’a Gaya has not been rebuilt since the return of the indigenes, Gaya Silkami’s PHCC has however been reconstructed. Consequently, Solar PV Systems were installed on the roofs of the two PHCCs in Gaya Silkami, and a solar-powered freezer/fridge provided for each of the centres. The systems were installed to provide lighting and power the freezer/fridge in the clinics.

Javan Zakaria, clinic-in-charge at the Gaya Silkami PHCC, said: “Before now, we used to go to Kuva which is about 50km away to get our vaccines. The vaccines can be stored here now because of the solar freezer given to us by the UNDP at no cost. We also have light 24 hours a day.

“We are very grateful for this kind gesture. We didn’t expect to benefit from such a programme because we are in the village. We now have more patients coming to us. In fact, we are now a big clinic.”

Ja’afaru Biyma, a representative of the village head in Gaya Sikalmi, stated: “We are very grateful for the lamps, which we also use to charge our handsets. It has been useful in many situations because it can run for 24 hours after full charge. However, we will very much appreciate it if UNDP and government can provide us with an ambulance.”

Alhaji Abba Saleh, a representative of the Head of Service of Hong LGA, submitted: “We hereby thank the UNDP and ECN for providing us with energy sources to power borehole for water supply, to preserve drugs in the clinics, light our homes and the community and charge our phones. The Pumping machine and the freezer were also provided at no cost. All these will go a long way in improving the quality of life.”

Aliu Idris, Chief Imam of Guw Dutse community, which is several kilometres from Gaya Silkami, said: “Our people come from our village that is over 2km away from here to fetch water from this new facility in Gaye Silkami. We are pleading with the UNDP and ECN to extend this gesture to us as well because we do not have water and we trek a long distance to come here to fetch water.”

Because the PHCCs are government facilities and have the tendency to go on strike at intervals, the Se4All programme has therefore equipped a nearby missionary clinic at Gartsanu Gaya – the Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria (LCCN) Arewa Diocese Gartsanu Maternity Clinic – with a solar-powered fridge-freezer that is used to preserve vaccines and drugs, as well as light up the rooms in the health centre.

Manaseh Gachanunaya, a junior community health extension worker (JCHEW) at the clinic, disclosed: “Before now, we had nowhere to store the vaccines so we brought them from Mijidi or Hong which is about two and half hours’ journey from here. Our immunisation was not so good then. But all these have changed as we can now preserve drugs here. We immunise close to 100 children in a day.”

Okon Ekpenyong, an engineer and deputy director with the ECN, said: “Communities that have been driven away by insurgents are now returning. And now that they are returning, it’s like going back into darkness. And when these people return from exile, we at the UNDP/ECN now decided that they want to change the standard of living of the community by providing them with necessary energy for daily living, which include energy for lighting, energy for water supply, energy for primary health care delivery. In that case now we decided that we are going to provide them solar energy because in this case they will not need petrol or kerosene but they will use the natural sunlight. So now we are using this solar to provide them water supply. We are also providing them solar lightening with which they can use to charge their phones.

“In Gaya Silkami, the project has successfully provided about 167 households with over 1,345 people with solar lighting systems which would enable the villagers perform domestic duties effectively at night, charge their mobile phones in the convenience of their homes and help children read at night. With this, the villagers do not have to worry about buying kerosene or dry cell batteries for lighting. The portable water supply would help to improve the health condition of the villager by reducing cases of infection from water-borne diseases, and reduce the number of hours needed by women and children to fetch water from the stream.

“The project also trained some youths in the installation of the solar home systems, and the installation and maintenance of the solar powered borehole. This is a form of job creation for the youths who can now install and maintain some of these facilities for other communities.”

Berlin pulls out of fossil fuels

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Berlin pulls out of fossil fuels

Following in the footsteps of Stockholm and several others, the German city of Berlin is the latest city to pull out of fossil fuels

Aerial view of Berlin skyline
Aerial view of Berlin skyline

Berlin’s parliament voted on Thursday to pull its money out of coal, gas and oil companies.

The new investment policy, part of the German capital’s goal of completely weaning off carbon by 2050, will force the city’s pension fund – worth $852.8 million, or €750 million – to divest from shares of German oil giants RWE and E.ON, as well as the French behemoth Total.

The move comes a week after Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, vowed to end its investments in fossil fuels companies, making Berlin the seventh major Western city to join a divestment movement that already includes Paris, Copenhagen, Oslo, Seattle, Portland and Melbourne. In September, New York Mayor Bill de Blasiourged the city’s five pension funds – worth a collective $160 billion – to sell their $33 million exposure to coal, by the far the dirtiest fossil fuel.

A handful of smaller U.S. cities have pledged to curtail fossil fuel investments, too.

“Berlin’s decision to blacklist fossil fuel companies is the latest victory for the divestment movement, which serves to remove the social license from companies whose business model pushes us into climate catastrophe,” Christoph Meyer, a campaigner with environmental non-profit 350.org’s Fossil Free Berlin project, said in a statement. “We will keep a close eye on the administration to make sure it upholds today’s commitment and urge the city to now take quick steps to break its reliance on coal power.”

The decision, hailed as a victory for environmentalists, comes as the divestment movement gains steam in the wake of the historic climate treaty brokered in Paris in December. About 170 nations signed the accord at the United Nations in New York two months ago. More than 500 institutions – including well-endowed universities, pension funds and religious organizations collectively representing $3.4 trillion – have agreed to stop investing in fossil fuels since the campaign began.

The divestments put pressure on fossil fuel companies to take serious steps to reform their businesses as world leaders try to dramatically slash carbon emissions. Without that, global temperatures are likely to rise well above 2 degrees Celsius, or 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit, by the end of the century, altering the climate enough to jeopardise the future of human civilisation.

It’s not a particularly contentious move for Berlin. For much of the last decade, Germany has aggressively pushed to transition from an economy powered by fossil fuels to one propelled by clean energy under a policy called Energiewende. As of 2014, the country – considered the economic powerhouse of Europe – generated 26.2 percent of its power from renewables, according to Strom-Report, a project run by a group of German data journalists.

“We’re not alone anymore,” Charly Kleissner, the founder of the KL Felicitas Foundation, a group pushing for divestment from fossil fuels, told the German business newspaper Handelsblatt last week. “The next generation is all in.”

How Brexit will transform energy, climate

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How Brexit will transform energy, climate

A post-Brexit UK will still have energy ties to the EU, but there will be big changes, writes Sara Stefanini in Politico. She lists five ways Brexit will impact energy and climate

Stepping down: British Prime Minister David Cameron wipes away some sweat as he speaks to business leaders at a recent forum in London. Photo credit: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images
Stepping down: British Prime Minister David Cameron wipes away some sweat as he speaks to business leaders at a recent forum in London. Photo credit: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images

Britain’s departure from the EU will force broad changes to the bloc’s energy and climate policies, and remove a crucial ally for Central Europeans — but it will also give London far more freedom to pursue nuclear projects.

The U.K. has often been an energy outlier in the EU, advocating nuclear power and shale gas sources shunned by others. Its alliances tend to shift, always with the aim of keeping interference from Brussels to a minimum and taking an ambitious yet financially minded approach to tackling climate change.

But there’s a lot to lose on both sides of the Channel after Thursday’s vote.

A post-Brexit U.K. will still be tied to the rest of Europe through gas and electricity links and an emissions trading market it is unlikely to ditch, but it will have less influence on the bloc’s decisions. The EU, instead, will lose a strong pro-free market voice, which has historically helped tone down some more statist schemes coming from Continental capitals.

Leaving the EU will relegate the U.K. to a sort of lobby group in Brussels, Swedish Liberal MEP Fredrick Federley told a Politico conference a few days before the referendum.

“It would be sad to see the old empire of the United Kingdom reduced to another Norway,” said Federley, who leads the Emissions Trading System (ETS) reform discussions in the European Parliament’s Industry and Energy Committee. Norwegians “are now lining up outside my office to meet because they want to affect the policies of the ETS — companies, ambassadors, ministers and members of the national parliament.”

Here are the five ways a Brexit will impact energy and climate:

  1. Climate recalibrations

The U.K. has traditionally been a leader on climate policies, in 2008 becoming the first country to set a long-term binding law cutting emissions by 80 percent by 2050 and creating a voluntary carbon emissions market before the EU launched its own bloc-wide system. But if Prime Minister David Cameron steps down (as he’s already done), there’s no promise that leading Leave politicians will follow that high-ambition track.

“While not all Euroskeptics are climate skeptics, few climate skeptics are not also Euroskeptics,” the environmental analysis group E3G said in a private briefing note on the possible effects of the referendum. This means any new government could, for instance, scrap the country’s renewable energy targets and tax on high-polluting power plants.

A post-Cameron leadership could also change the country’s approach to the Paris climate agreement. “It could potentially submit a highly ambitious (nationally determined contribution) to the U.N., it could ramp down its ambition, or it could ignore it, which would be a blow to the whole process,” said Will Nichols, a senior environment and climate change analyst at the risk advisory firm Verisk Maplecroft.

Christiana Figueres, the U.N.’s outgoing climate secretariat chief, agreed earlier this week that a Brexit would force a revisit of the plan EU countries submitted in Paris as a 28-member bloc. “From the point of view of the Paris agreement, the U.K. is part of the EU and has put in its effort as part of the EU, so anything that would change that would require then a recalibration,” she said.

Even if the U.K. wants to continue shoring up global climate change efforts, it will have a harder time doing so as a stand-alone country that only produces 2 percent of worldwide emissions, said Barry Gardiner, the Labour Party’s shadow climate and energy minister.

Asked about the interplay between London and Brussels climate policies at a U.K. parliamentary hearing in January, Cameron agreed that climate is an issue on which the two sides work well together, stressing that his government “played a key role” in getting the EU to high ambition. The U.K. takes a “strong view” on sustainable development and climate change, he said. “So we’re able to lead by example in these forums, including in the European Union.”

  1. Security in numbers

Energy security was at the core of the Brexit energy and climate debate, with the Remain camp arguing that leaving the EU would weaken the U.K.’s bargaining power at a time when its domestic oil and gas is waning.

The U.K.’s Energy and Climate Change Secretary Amber Rudd put the argument in simpler terms: strength in numbers.

“I’m old enough to remember the power cuts of the 1970s, when Britain was the sick man of Europe,” she said in a speech in March on the benefits of staying in the EU. Rudd pointed to the threat of “countries such as Putin’s Russia,” which uses its ability to cut off deliveries or hike prices as a foreign policy tool. “As a bloc of 500 million people, we have the power to force Putin’s hand.”

But the European Commission’s latest package of energy proposals — focused on securing and diversifying the bloc’s gas supplies — do the very opposite, countered Andrea Leadsom, Rudd’s deputy as minister of state for energy and climate change.

The Commission’s desire to get a look at intergovernmental energy agreements between EU and non-EU countries before they’re signed would leave the U.K. “possibly reliant on a group of unelected eurocrats,” she said in a speech in May.

Of even bigger concern is the proposal to require countries to help out their regional neighbors if they have a gas supply crisis, she added. “If we remain to become part of the energy union, and another member state faces problems with their gas security — perhaps because of a political dispute with a supplier — we will be required to deprive our own small businesses of energy here at home.”

  1. Energy bills go up… or down?

Both sides of the Brexit debate argued their position would ensure lower household power and gas bills.

An independent report commissioned by the British power and gas grid operator National Grid fell in the Remain camp’s favor. Leaving the EU could cost the U.K. up to £500 million per year in the 2020s, as a result of uncertainty over energy and climate investments, it found.

Staying in the EU would have kept down the energy sector’s cost of finance, but on the other hand leaving will free Britain of bloc-wide targets that constrain the choice of energy technologies, the report said.

British energy prices depend on EU policies, Iain Conn, CEO of the British energy company Centrica, told Politico in May. The country imports about 6 percent of its electricity from the Continent, and 50 percent of its gas from inside and outside the EU.

“If the U.K. is not around the table in the EU, influencing how efficient the European energy market can be, how much competition there is in the European energy market, then the probability is that our customers in the U.K. will see higher energy costs,” he said.

Leavers disputed these claims, arguing that without the cost of being an EU member, the government will have more money to help the U.K.’s poorest.

“If you vote to leave, the hundreds of millions of pounds that we give every week to the European Union come back to Britain,” Justice Secretary Michael Gove told the Independent in May. “One of the ways in which we can help those most in need is by cutting VAT on domestic fuel. Because fuel bills are 10 percent of the average weekly outgoings of working families.”

  1. Central and Eastern Europe loses a friend

As an EU member, the U.K. formed a partnership with Central and Eastern Europeans in debates over how much say the Commission, and other members, should get in a country’s climate and energy policies.

Brexit will be a loss for the eastern nations, not just because the U.K.’s presence diversified the group, but because it brought voting numbers in the Council of the EU — where Britain, Germany, France and Italy have the greatest weight thanks to their large populations.

The U.K. and the CEE want a flexible system for ensuring countries do their part to meet the bloc’s emissions, renewables and efficiency targets for 2030, all while keeping the Commission’s monitoring to a minimum. That puts them at odds with countries such as Germany, Denmark and Sweden, which want to make sure laggards are held accountable.

Without London’s banking, Central Europeans will have a tougher time resisting efforts to give Brussels more say in national energy policies.

  1. Investors in the lurch

Investors like long-term predictability, so the U.K.’s exit will likely cause upheaval for businesses planning to build renewable energy plants or drill for shale gas in the U.K., at least for a couple of years.

The chiefs of oil and gas majors BP, Shell and Centrica were among the 200 business leaders who signed a letter in February warning that a vote to leave “put the economy at risk.”

Ambiguity about the new U.K.-EU relationship will raise uncertainty about changes in energy and climate policies, leaving investors in limbo. “And investor uncertainty often comes with a risk premium,” said Antony Froggatt, a senior research fellow at the London-based think tank Chatham House.

Leaving the single market could also open the U.K. to new import taxes, adding cost to equipment such as foundations for offshore wind farms or parts for the French-led Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant project in Somerset. But it would also eliminate the EU’s trade duties on Chinese solar equipment imports, exposing domestic companies to much cheaper panels and modules, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance, an analysis firm.

“You could imagine the U.K. would work rapidly on free trade agreements with the European Union, but that would take some time,” said Dario Traum, a policy adviser at Bloomberg New Energy Finance. “And over that period of uncertainty, you would probably see big investors holding back until they know for sure what environment they would be operating in.”

FUNAI plants trees, establishes Pioneer Garden

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FUNAI plants trees, establishes Pioneer Garden

The Federal University Ndufu Alike Ikwo, on Wednesday, June 15 2016, launched a novelty by floating what they call Pioneer Garden.

Tree planting with the Vice Chancellor, Professor Chinedum Nwajiuba
Tree planting with the Vice Chancellor, Professor Chinedum Nwajiuba

The Garden is meant to honour and immortalise staff and students who started the institution five years ago.

The Garden is located in the east of the university, akin to the Biblical Garden of Eden that shares the same location. It measures 174metres by 62 metres.

Some pioneer management staff and students took turns to plant trees in the Garden during the flag-off ceremony performed by the Vice Chancellor, Professor Chinedum Nwajiuba who initiated the programme.

The Vice Chancellor planted the first tree in the park on behalf of the pioneer Vice Chancellor, Professor Oye Ibidapo-Obe, before planting his own. Others who planted trees in the park were the pioneer Registrar, Mr. G. O. Chukwu; the Bursar, Alhaji Rafiu Aliu; the Librarian, Dr. O. O. Adedeji and the Dean of Student Affairs, Dr. C. E. Mbah who planted on behalf of the deans.

Professor GMT Emezue planted on behalf of the Deputy Vice Chancellor while Dr. Moses Alo planted on behalf of the heads of departments. Dr. Oguga Egwu, Comrade Emma Chigbata and Comrade Isdore Nwachukwu planted on behalf of ASUU, SSNAU and NAAT respectively. A cross section of pioneer students also planted on behalf of the final year set.

Professor Nwajiuba said the essence was to give honour to whom it was due, contending that pioneering was a privilege that was rare to come by. He said the Garden would be adorned with seats so that students and even the pioneer students could, in future, take their families to relax there.

He thanked the staff and students who donated plants for the occasion and promised that their names would be immortalised in a plaque to be erected in the Garden while those that planted trees would have their names etched on the trees they planted.

The Vice Chancellor stated that recognising the donors was in appreciation of their sacrifice in a society where “we are dominated by what we take rather than what we give”.

Video: Experts demand enforcement of National Health Bill

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Video: Experts demand enforcement of National Health Bill

Statistics shows that most Nigerians do not have access to good health care services despite promises made by government over the years.

Critics say the country’s health system will remain in a poor state unless the fundamental problems confronting it are addressed.

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