The Women Environmental Programme (WEP) has called on the Federal Government to ensure climate justice for women by implementing policies and programmes that increase clean energy access for Nigerian urban and rural poor women.
Priscilla Achakpa, Executive Director of the Women Environmental Programme (WEP). Photo credit: http://i.ytimg.com/
The call was made on Monday in a statement endorsed by Priscilla Achakpa, Executive Director of the WEP. According to her, the call became necessary due to the devastating effects women suffer due to lack of clean energy access in the country.
“Every day, Nigerian women are faced with energy challenges ranging from health problems resulting from the use of crude energy sources for cooking, to wastages of agricultural produce due to poor energy access for preservation and processing. Unfortunately, women are affected more by lack of access to clean energy as they are the ones involved with energy-demanding activities,” stated Ms. Achakpa.
In Nigeria, research shows that women produce 60-80% of agricultural food and also make up almost 100% of those who process basic food stuff.
She added: “Billions of Naira is lost yearly due to wastages of agricultural produce as a result of lack of preservation facilities. It is estimated that Nigeria loss N1 billion annually to fresh tomato wastage. Similarly, women are the ones responsible for cooking energy as they are primarily responsible for domestic cooking. Lack of clean energy access has seen over 120 million Nigerians use firewood as cooking energy. World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that 98,000 Nigerian women die annually due to illnesses that result from the smoke they inhale while cooking with biomass fuel.
“This huge energy lack is coming out of the huge energy resources the country is endowed with – hydro, wind and solar – which could be harnessed to make energy accessible to all the nooks and crannies of the country. Sadly, about 23.73 million households in Nigeria, out of 28.9 million households in the country have no access to the national electricity grid, according to the National Electricity Regulatory Commission.
“The implication of this energy situation on women is widening inequalities between women and their male counterparts. This is further exacerbated by the impacts of climate change, making women poorer and increasing their vulnerabilities. Nigerian women have come out to speak with one voice that enough is enough of this injustice. We challenge the government to as a matter of urgency implement all policies and programmes that will harness our huge energy resources and make clean energy available for Nigerian women. We have suffered lack of energy for too long and can take it no longer.”
In a statement on the Committee of African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC) meeting in preparation for COP21, African Civil Society insists that Heads of States from the continent missed a huge opportunity in New York to show the world their commitment to climate change
Secretary General at the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA), Mithika Mwenda. Photo credit: pamaccafrica.blogspot.com
The 70th UN General Assembly taking place in New York provided an opportunity for Committee of African Heads and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC) to meet, get updates, exchange views and analysis on the continent’s effort to consolidate itself on the ongoing international dialogue process for a suitable climate change agreement, which will be reached in Paris in December 2015.
New York provided a key strategic moment for the convergence of African leaders to discuss and agree on a position that will secure African people a promising future in view of the rising impacts caused by the changing climate, which will disproportionately affect the most vulnerable in the society.
Mithika Mwenda, Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA) Secretary General, states: “Firstly, we take this opportunity to commend the leadership of HE Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC) for the stewardship she has provided in positioning climate change as the top-most priority for the Commission. Yet, we remain concerned that some Heads of State continue to bypass this crucial opportunity to join CAHOSCC, which is their platform to demonstrate their commitment to navigating this critical issue.
“We were disappointed by the absence of several CAHOSCC members at the press conference convened by its Coordinator, HE Fattah El Sisi, the President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, and attended by Chairperson of the African Union (AU) HE Robert Mugabe.
“CAHOSCC remains the platform of Heads of State and Government and was conceived to provide the highest political leadership possible. We wish to remind our leaders that the Ministers have their platform where they compile the African Position and priority issues, under the guidance of the African Group of Negotiators.
“As the civil society, we are on top of the developments in Africa as the climate change negotiations unfold and hope that our leaders will not fall into the trap of 2009, when they gave into a wholly unacceptable outcome. This can only happen if they are available to listen and widely consult with other stakeholders across the continent.
“We echo the views discussed at the press conference led by the AUC Chair that Africa should be left to develop its own initiatives to enhance the climate resilience of our people while contributing to the global effort to defeat the challenges of climate change.
“We urge our Governments to build on the existing initiatives and avoid the emerging trend where the African continent is turning out to be the experimental ground for climate change solutions developed elsewhere. We want to see our Governments’ firm commitment to a strong unified African position during COP21, on the Initiative on enhancing support to Africa on Adaptation and Loss and Damage, and the African Renewable Energy Initiative.
“Energy access and adaptation, certainly, are the most pressing issues in Africa’s response to the climate crisis. We feel that Africa has strong networks, institutions and the sufficient capacity to deal with any area of climate response, may it be adaptation, mitigation, technology transfer or finance.
“Under the Climate and Development for Africa Programme (CLIMDEV) partnership, the AUC, AfBD and the UNECA have come together in an unprecedented relationship that has provides policy and programmatic guidance on continent-wide outreach: bringing together governments, UN Agencies, Regional Economic Integration Communities, the Private Sector, and Civil Society among others.
“We call on our Governments and development partners to support the work of the CLIMDEV Africa Programme to enhance its capacity rather than duplicating the work its already doing under African Climate Policy Centre (ACPC), Africa Climate Change Fund (ACCF) and CAHOSCC.
“We urge that recommendations of this partnership continue to set the framework of Africa’s response to climate change, and any other effort should be geared towards strengthening them. Only then will we see hope for millions of people suffering at the hands of climate change across Africa.”
PACJA is a continental coalition of civil society organisations from diverse backgrounds in Africa, that aims at unifying and coordinating isolated civil society efforts on climate change advocacy in Africa, so as to ensure that pro-poor and people-centered response measures are given attention as governments in Africa seek to mainstream climate change into national poverty reduction and sustainable development strategies and actions.
Abuja-based non-governmental organisation (NGO), Connected Development (CODE), has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to probe transactions related to the N9.2 billion National Clean Cookstove Scheme (NCCS).
The cookstoves imported under the N9.2 billion FG project
In a statement issued on Monday, September 28, 2015, Chief Executive of CODE, Hamzat Lawal, stated that, after over six months of frequent engagement with stakeholders both in private and public sector on the issue government should take a closer into the disagreement between the Federal Ministry of Environment and Integra Renewable Energy Services Limited (the official contractor handling the project) in order to reinforce the objective of the scheme.
The Federal Executive Council (FEC) in November, 2014 under the reign of former President Goodluck Jonathan approved the above sum (of N9.2 billion) as an intervention fund to procure 750,000 clean cookstoves and 18,000 wonderbags to mitigate the environmental as well as health hazards caused by the use of wood to generate energy for cooking food which, according to World Health Organisation, accounts for the death of over 95,000 women annually in Nigeria. This is the third highest killer after Malaria and HIV.
Lawal said: “Our latest assessment report on the execution of the exercise titled When State Agents Becomes Kleptocratic Women Are Deprived of Alternatives! vehemently oppose the intrigues that led to the contractor institutionalising a court case against the ministry to protest plots to terminate the contract.
“The 15-page document urges President Buhari to find out exactly where the money is and how it was spent.
“It’s already over 256 days since this announcement, and 120 days after some of the funds were released to the Federal Ministry of Environment, the fate of 750,000 rural households that were supposed to enjoy from the benefit of this project still remains hanging.”
Lawal, who is also the Co-Founder of Follow The Money, noted that the Ministry of Environment confirmed receiving the sum of N5 billion after series of campaigns on the importance of the scheme in curbing the incessant felling of trees to generate fire for cooking and also reduce the quantity of smoke that poisons food as well as pollutes the atmosphere.
“While responding to our Freedom of Information Act (FoIA) letter, the contractor confirmed that it received N1.2 billion from the Ministry of Environment to procure clean cookstoves, although the clean cookstoves exhibited were not newly procured from our findings, N3.7 billion was confirmed by the Permanent Secretary, Fatima Mede, to be in the account of the Ministry of Environment, while we could not ascertain how the Ecological Funds Office has utilised the remaining N4 billion.
“It is noteworthy to state at this point that the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC), Nigeria’s agent of horizontal accountability, has been an ally since we started monitoring the execution of this programme, and they have every bit of information concerning it.
“While kicking the status quo from its point of equilibrium using various strategies to ensure that this initiative doesn’t toe the part of others, we are still hoping that the ICPC will take pro-active steps after being part of the processes we have initiated to address the uncertainties beclouding the successful implementation of this exercise,” declared Lawal.
With the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) now adopted and Climate Week drawing to a close in New York, Mafalda Duarte, Programme Manager of the Climate Investment Funds says the activity and impetus around climate and development sends “a loud and clear message” ahead of climate negotiations in Paris.
Mafalda Duarte, Programme Manager of the Climate Investment Funds
She said: “2015 is a crucial year for both climate and development. We saw very clearly in New York that the transition to a low-carbon economy is essential if we are not to derail years of development progress.”
“The events of the past week send a loud and clear message to leaders to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and support vulnerable communities to adapt to climate change when they meet in Paris.”
“The Multilateral Development Banks have all expressed their support for and commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals. The CIF has been key in supporting MDBs scale-up their climate finance action and looks forward to doing even more in the future.”
The unending flood situation in Makurdi, the capital of Benue State in Nigeria, doesn’t seem to be abating any time soon as recent findings have revealed that the Food Basket’s capital’s drainage system and residents’ sanitation practice as well as lack of awareness of the dangers of living along flood plains is inimical to checking impending flood.
A flooded part of Makurdi, Benue State
This revelation came to the fore during an investigation carried out by this correspondent in Makurdi following the information provided by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) recently of impending flood occasioned by the intermittent release of water from the Lagdo Dam in Cameroon.
The agency warned that Nigerian states along River Benue trajectory are likely to face impending flood as Cameroonian authorities announced plan to release excess water from Lagdo Dam between August and November. NEMA’s Director General, Muhammad Sidi, said the warning became imperative as a similar exercise in 2012 led to massive flooding and loss of lives and property in Nigerian communities.
Coupled with the continuous neglect to the issue of proper drainage system, sanitation practice and attitudinal change by past governments, most residents of the state have continued to put the state at risk of flood during heavy downpours and in recent times, the Lagdo Dam scare. As a result of these, many indigenes have suffered serious health challenges and loss of properties, while some areas are at the edge of extinction due to the possibility of them being wiped out by flood.
Boniface Ortese of SEMA at the Makurdi International Market IDP camp
Recently, in a move to mitigate against flood in the state, the state government constituted a Flood Disaster Committee which was headed by the Commissioner of Works and Transport and comprised of other commissioners such as those for Water Resources and Environment, Information and Orientation, Urban and Housing, including the Adviser on Lands and Survey and the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) to take control of any flood-related issue.
The committee had disclosed in a radio programme monitored in Makurdi, that the state government had put measures in place to avert possible flooding of parts of the state in the event of any heavy downpour and produced jingles to inform people living along flood plains to relocate in order to avert being flooded by excess water from Lagdo Dam.
Makurdi residents affected by flood are to be relocated to the newly built but unoccupied Makurdi International Market as a temporary measure to cushion the hardship they are currently facing having been displaced from their homes.
The Deputy Governor of Benue State, Benson Abounu, made this known recently when he led some government officials on a verification visit to assess the situation at the Kucha Utebe settlement along Makurdi – Gboko Road, which is one of the most affected areas.
Addressing residents of the area, Abounu, who sympathised with them, expressed worry that flooding of some parts of the state along the banks of River Benue had become a regular occurrence.
He assured them that government was aware of their plight and was putting in place measures to provide temporary accommodation for them while seeking ways of finding a permanent solution to the problem.
In a remark, the state Commissioner of Works and Transport, Emmanuel Manger, pointed out that the construction of dams as well as dredging of River Benue were the solutions to the issue of flood in the state.
The state Commissioner for Water Resources and Environment, Nick Wende, and the Executive Secretary of State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Boniface Ortese, who accompanied the deputy governor on the visit, in their separate remarks disclosed that mattresses, blankets, and mosquito nets were readily available to be distributed to those who would be moved to the camp. They added that government would make provision for mobile toilet facilities as the ones in place would not be enough for the anticipated number of people.
Speaking with this writer, a resident of the Kucha Utebe settlement and father of three, Terfa Anum, expressed happiness over the deputy governor’s visit, saying it had given them a ray of hope. He called on the state government and other relevant authorities to act fast as several houses were already taken over by water leaving residents stranded, adding that with the continuous increase in the water level, even those yet affected were already living in fear judging from their past experiences.
Thereby, in a swift move, the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) opened the temporary IDP camp for flood victims on Friday, 25th September, 2015 in the state capital, Makurdi when it became imperative that the excess water released from Lagdo Dam swelled the River Benue banks and areas within its flood plains were fast flooding and houses were submerged gradually, reminiscent of the 2012 experience.
Speaking with the SEMA boss, Boniface Ortese, at the flood IDP camp in Makurdi on Saturday, 26th September, 2015, he confirmed that the ongoing registration which started with the coming of heavy rainfall had reached over 300 and due to the overwhelming effect of the flood, is expected to rise. He added that the camp is capable of taking in 5,000 people with the current allocation of four house-heads to a store.
He assured that security at the camp would be tight to forestall any breakdown of law and order.
Reacting to cases of residents not heeding to the impending flood information passed across, the SEMA Executive Secretary stated that it was due to ignorance. “When I tried to educate some people in the Wurukum area of the impending flood, some were asking if I am Noah that I know flood is coming. Now most of them have come to me saying if only they listened to me and acted as I advised, they would have been affected,” he added.
Ortese advised that, for the recurrent flood disaster to be dealt with, the Federal Government should dredge River Benue, people on riverine areas and flood plains have to be relocated, the people should understand their choice of residence with alternatives other that river areas, people who build along water ways should be stopped and government should make sure that these places are opened for water to channel itself into the River Benue.
A resident at the Makurdi International Market IDP flood camp, Aor Yende, while speaking with this writer, noted that government’s effort at temporarily camping them is commendable but they cannot preempt her on what else to do to alleviate their plight more.
He added that the option of relocating to a flood free area would be welcomed if the government can compensate them in terms of new land and new commiserate building structure.
In one of the areas visited in the state capital, Low Level; a resident and landlord whose house was recently affected by flood, ASP Samuel Tugudu (Rtd.), complained that flood from excessive rainfall which had flooded his house has made him to live in fear of worse flood with increase in rainfall.
According to the retired police officer, he has settled on the said land since 1976 without any incidence of flood until August, 2015 when he woke up to find himself in a pool of water after heavy downpour at night.
In his words, “I have tried my best since I moved into my house to curtail water flow and mitigate against flood, but all my efforts became useless, because of indiscriminate sanitation practice by people in my area which clogged up the available drainage system and there was no support from the government, particularly, in the area of meting out sanitation punishment to residents who dump refuse in gutters.”
He continues; “Any time rain falls, water in the gutters carries a lot of refuse and sand from different places and since the drainage systems are partially blocked, the water doesn’t have a clear way to drain hence, the water spills over into bordering spaces and into our homes.”
In another interview with a woman whose house is on the brink of being flooded at the Kucha Utebe area of Makurdi, Mrs. Christiana Uke, she said, the flood is scaring but she has nowhere to go to with her large family. She noted that, despite that, she hopes the government would find lasting solutions to the Lagdo Dam flood issue which is becoming perennial.
Another respondent who narrowly escaped the flood by relocating from the currently affected area, who simply identified herself as Vicky, a student at the Benue State University, complained that “although the government had done well in informing the populace of the impending flood, many did not heed to the warning.”
According to her, when she heard the news of the impending flood, she moved out of her old apartment only for another occupant to move in even with the news of the impending flood in that area.
She further laments that the landlady too was callous in exploiting the new tenant’s ignorance and collecting money from him considering that the area is prone to flood and was earmarked to be affected again.
In another interview with a victim of flood caused by a six-hour downpour on 7th August, 2015 that left many parts of Makurdi flooded and over 100 houses submerged in Wadata Rice Mill, Demekpe, Agboughoul village, Achusa village and Logo, a tailor and father of two, Peter Akor, stated that the flood took them by surprise. “We were not prepared for this, because we have not had serious rainfall in Makurdi recently,” he stressed.
Our investigations in the affected areas of the flood caused by rainfall indicated that the areas had either blocked or non-existent drainages as the case may be.
When Cameroonian authorities released excess water from Ladgo dam on 25th August, 2012, the deluge of water caused great damage downstream in Nigeria, leading to the submerging of many riverside settlements. The flood continued unabated between September and October 2012 and the “Food Basket” State, Benue which has River Benue as a major river passing through it experienced relentless flooding cutting across not only her state capital – Makurdi but all the major towns on the river bank. So to say, the flood ravaged and swept way anything within a 10-kilometre radius of the bank of River Benue and her tributaries which include River Katsina-Ala and River Buruku.
The devastation sacked communities in Makurdi, Apa, Agatu, Otukpo, Guma, Buruku, Tarka and Kasina-Ala Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state, leaving in its trail over 700,000 displaced persons amid thousands of houses/huts and farmlands submerged or washed away.
Although the state government in response to the flooding opened flood camps in public schools in Makurdi for affected people, many of the victims remained traumatised after the flood and many sharp practices where observed as reported in the recently released report of “The 2012 Flood Impact Assessment” of Benue State conducted by the Benue Non-governmental Organisation Network (BENGONET) with support from United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Benue State Government.
According to the report with the goal to identify the extent of damage caused by the flood with the aim to mitigate future occurrence, government should develop a disaster management blueprint and ensure that all her agencies responsible for response to disaster such as SEMA heed to the document and it should go all out to support flood victims in order to enhance growth in all ramifications.
Suffice to add that the state government should aggressively embark on the construction of new drainage channels, expand existing ones in the state, especially in Makurdi to enhance the free flow of water and relocate people along River Benue bank and flood plains while it enacts legislation banning further development in the affected areas which are flood plains, etc.
When most of these measures mitigating measures highlighted in this piece are carried out, the state may very well heave a sigh of relief if not, she will continue to face the menace of flood disaster year in- year out especially with the clear and present danger of climate change which also affects the melting of the world’s icecaps thereby leading to more water with little drainage channels to control the flow.
NASA found evidence of liquid water on the Red Planet, which means there is the potential for life beyond Earth.
Martian streaks painted by water. Photo credit: NASA
We seem to discover water on Mars about once a year. Well, that’s not quite true: We’ve known Mars has water for quite a while. However, there are a lot of mysteries still to solve about how that water behaves and where it’s located. In particular, we’d like to know if water sometimes flows on the surface of the planet, which would tell us a lot about the cycles both above and below ground. And of course water is essential for life as we know it – finding flowing water, even transient flows, would make Mars seem a little more Earth-like.
The problem is that any liquid water evaporates quickly in the bone-dry Martian desert, and other processes can leave traces that mimic dried-up flows. When so little water is involved in the first place, it leaves us looking for the Martian equivalent of water spots on a long-dry drinking glass. And those spots are chemical traces – salt and other minerals once dissolved in the water – which must be identified by robotic spacecraft from orbit.
Today, scientists using NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) have identified some of those traces: A little bit of water comes and goes on Mars’ surface. The streaks of material the researchers observed grew slightly during each Martian summer, indicating they might be the result of water flowing or seeping out when the temperatures are high enough. The answer came from using the spectrum of light reflected and absorbed by the material, which turned out to be salts with traces of water left in them.
Similar behaviour in Earth’s Atacama Desert in Chile provides a habitat for some hardy microscopic organisms. If there’s life under the surface of Mars, these temporary flows of water could be a place they occasionally show up aboveground. Unfortunately the dried-up flows are high on crater walls, so none of them are easily accessible to rovers like Curiosity.
Mars is drier than the driest desert on Earth: It has no lakes, oceans, or rivers, and its atmosphere has at best tiny traces of water vapour. However, Mars used to be much wetter. We can see signs of long-gone lakes and riverbeds, though it’s unlikely the planet was ever warm enough to be a lush, damp place like Earth is. The disappearance of Mars’ surface water is one of the mysteries we still have to solve.
However, we’ve suspected water can sometimes flow on Mars for a while. The various orbiting Mars-mapping probes have spotted small landslides along slopes that appeared between orbital passes, which could be caused by water, but are more likely to be the result of more boring geological processes.
The new paper, published today in Nature Geoscience, is based on another intriguing phenomenon. Some slopes at the edges of old craters show streaks of material that reflect much less light than their surroundings. These streaks – known as “recurring slope lineae” or RSL – appear during relatively warm Martian weather and fade as the weather cools off, changing size and shape from year to year. That sort of thing certainly looks like it could be caused by water flowing or seeping out before evaporating again … but we want to be sure.
Martian chemistry helps us there: The soil is full of salts, inorganic chemicals that dissolve easily in water. There are several familiar types of salts: sodium chloride is table salt, magnesium sulphate is Epsom salt, etc. The ones on Mars are more complex: perchlorates (which are based on molecules involving one chlorine and four oxygen atoms) and other combinations. These chemicals absorb light of particular colours, which allowed the authors of the new paper to identify the salts. Better yet: These salts still had traces of water that didn’t evaporate, like if a little moisture gets into the salt shaker and makes the grains stick to each other.
There’s a lot of water under the surface of Mars, but it’s mostly frozen and mingled with other chemicals. For that reason, it’s possible that when the Sun shines and the air is warm enough in the Martian summer, some of that water can melt and flow out. Alternatively, the trace amounts of water in the atmosphere could deliquesce: condense out of the air and stick to minerals on the surface (which already have some water on them), forming salty goo.
Neither idea completely solves the problem of where the water came from. We’ll be hearing more about water on Mars for years to come, including rumours and some hyped-up expectations. Underneath the hype, though, is a steady increase in understanding about where the Martian water is, how much it shaped the surface in the past, and what it might be doing now – and whether life is at all possible.
Nigeria and several other Parties yet to ratify the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilisation have the opportunity to do so at the upcoming Treaty Event 2015, being held in conjunction with the General Debate of the seventieth session of the United Nations General Assembly, from 28 September to 1 October 2015. The Treaty Event is an effective means for promoting wider participation of states in the multilateral treaty framework, and also serves as an advocacy tool to raise awareness and appreciation of international law among the general public.
Muhammadu Buhari, president of Nigeria. Photo credit: tv360nigeria.com
Nigeria signed the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit-sharing on February 1, 2012, but she is yet to ratify the treaty. Several other nations have neither signed nor ratified the treaty.
However, two new ratifications this month to the Nagoya Protocol brings the total number of ratifications to the treaty under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) to 66. There are a total of 92 signatories.
Since its entry into force on 12 October 2014, the Nagoya Protocol has received 11 additional ratifications from the following countries: Cambodia, Croatia, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominican Republic, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Lesotho, Liberia, Mauritania and the Republic of the Congo. The ratifications come from diverse regions of the world indicating broad support for this treaty.
“Following the recent ratifications by Croatia and Cuba, we expect a number of additional ratifications and accessions to the Protocol in the coming weeks as a number of countries are finalising their national processes,” said Braulio Ferreira de Souza Dias, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity. “We hope to achieve our target of reaching well over 100 Parties by the second meeting of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting to the Parties to the Nagoya Protocol (COP-MOP 2) in December 2016. To achieve this goal, we count on the support of Parties and our partners to promote ratification of the Protocol.”
Increasing the number of Parties to the Nagoya Protocol remains key in achieving Aichi Biodiversity Target 16 which provides that “by 2015, the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilisation is in force and operational, consistent with national legislation”. The impact of the Protocol in creating greater transparency and legal certainty for providers and users of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge will increase as more countries join the Protocol and undertake to implement its obligations.
By promoting the use of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge, and by strengthening the opportunities for fair and equitable sharing of benefits from their use, the Protocol will create incentives to conserve biodiversity, sustainably use its components, and further enhance the contribution of biodiversity to sustainable development and human well-being.
Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara has received a United Nations report detailing decades of environmental destruction in the country, especially during 11 years of civil war and political turmoil. The presentation was made to Mr President in Abidjan, the capital city, on Friday.
L-R: United Nations Special Representative Aichatou Mindaoudou presents UNEP’s Post-Conflict Environmental Report to Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara. Photo credit: Kadidia Ledron
Ouattara’s government came to power in 2011 and asked the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) for a post-crisis environmental impact assessment of the country.
“We thought it appropriate for the government to have some idea of the changes that have affected the diverse environmental ecosystems of Côte d’lvoire for more than half a century,” Remi Allah-Kouadio, minister of the environment, urban sanitation and sustainable development, says in the report’s foreword.
Following the request, UNEP conducted a desk study and remote sensing analyses of the country’s environment; then agreed with the government on the scope of fieldwork to be undertaken. Fieldwork began in June 2013.
Parts of the Ébrié Lagoon are badly polluted. Photo credit: UNEP Geneva
The assessment covered the environmental factors that had direct or indirect connections to the 2001 civil war, which pitted supporters of Laurent Gbagbo against those of Ouattara over Gbagbo’s refusal to step down after losing the 2010 presidential election.
The 157-page report covers forests, including those classified, and national parks; environmental degradation of the Ébrié Lagoon adjacent to Abidjan; environmental concerns related to unplanned urban expansion; industrial and artisanal mining and their environmental footprint; and the risk of oil spill along the nation’s coastline.
Key Findings
UNEP’s assessment found significant degradation of forests; the loss of flora and fauna in all national parks affected by the conflict; the doubling of Abidjan’s population; the slowdown in the mining sector and the ill-health associated with artisanal mining; as well as pollution of the Ébrié Lagoon.
The state of the lagoon and the possibility of offshore oil spills are of concern to the Abidjan Convention, whose brief is to work with coastal countries in the sustainable management of the coasts, ocean, their resources and environment.
Abidjan’s population doubled to five million during conflict. This led to the deterioration in urban services, increased water pollution, inappropriate disposal of hazardous and municipal waste, severe land degradation, and other environmental problems.
The Lagoon, from which Abidjan had drawn much of its reputed lustre in bygone years, has been degraded due to disposal of liquid and solid waste, and unplanned land reclamation. Today, the lagoon, which empties into the Atlantic Ocean through an opening of the Vridi Canal is unsightly and foul smelling, although a modest cleanup operation has begun.
“There is evidence of heavy metal and pesticide pollution in the fish in the Ébrié Lagoon which needs to be addressed as a matter of priority,” UNEP says in its report published in July.
Oil Spill Risk
Offshore oil production in Côte d’Ivoire began in the late 1950s, with proven reserves of 100 million barrels in 2011, according to the report. The risk of offshore oil spill comes from this activity and from the present high degree of ship traffic in the area.
Meantime, the report says, the nation’s capacity to deal with an oil spill has been degraded, due to the wartime looting and destruction of laboratories at the Ivorian Anti-pollution Control Centre, CIAPOL.
Recommendations
Human activity accounts for just 10 per cent of the severe pollution of the Ébrié Lagoon, according to the report. This means the lagoon could recover, UNEP says, and become an engine for Abidjan’s economic revival. A rejuvenated lagoon could offer opportunities for commercial and artisanal fishing, recreation, fast and efficient water transport, tourism, and a waterfront worthy of the region’s economic hub. For this to happen, UNEP recommends that the government remove accumulation of pollution, prevent further encroachment onto the lagoon, control or stop use of it as a waste dump.
“Recovery would make an immeasurable difference to live of Abidjan citizens,” UNEP says.
Abidjan could reclaim its title as the “Pearl of the Lagoon”. As part of the lagoon’s recovery, UNEP says the unstainable growth of Abidjan must be reversed. The city’s growth had been driven by fear during the civil war. Now the city has depleted groundwater, poor water supply infrastructure, sanitation and waste management, education, and healthcare.
“It is possible to restore Abidjan‘s former environmental quality even with its current population of five million but resources needed to do so would be vast,” UNEP says in the report.
The Abidjan Convention is a legal tool for Cooperation in the Protection and Development of the Marine and Coastal Region of West, Central and Southern Africa.
Students of three Nigerian universities have built cars they will race at the Shell Eco-marathon, Africa (SEMA) in South Africa on October 2 – 4, thanks to the sponsorship of the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC) Joint Venture.
One of the student-built cars for the Shell Eco-marathon Africa contest in Johannesburg, South Africa later this week
The students of University of Lagos, University of Benin and Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, collectively known as Team Nigeria, will join 40 teams from four countries to test the energy efficiency of their cars at the Zwartkops Raceway, near Pretoria. The event will be hosted by the School of Electrical Engineering at the University of Johannesburg. The Shell Eco-marathon competition challenges students in different continents (America, Europe, Asia and Africa) to build and race energy-efficient cars, and rewards those that travel farthest with the least amount of fuel.
“The sponsorship of the students opens an exciting phase in our long-standing support for education in Nigeria,” said Osagie Okunbor, Managing Director SPDC and Country Chair, Shell Companies in Nigeria. “In addition to awarding scholarships, building schools and donating science equipment, we’re challenging the leaders of tomorrow to begin to think about, and act on the difficult energy choices facing a rapidly increasing world population.”
In 2014, the SPDC JV provided seed funding for the three universities and sponsored them to the European edition of the competition in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. They also participated in the maiden edition of Shell Eco-Marathon Africa which held in South Africa in 2014, with the University of Benin team winning the Best Designed Car award. SPDC organised a test drive at the Campos Mini stadium in Lagos in March 2015 to test the readiness of the students.
General Manager, External Relations SPDC, Igo Weli said: “The test drive was very successful and watched by cheering parents. The outcome of the event provided the assurance that the Nigerian students will pass the rigorous technical inspection before being allowed to race at Shell Eco-marathon in Europe or Africa. We’re pleased that our support has encouraged other universities to take part in this project designed to drive the efficient use of energy.”
The SPDC JV has a long history of supporting education through scholarships and other initiatives. It has endowed professorial chairs for teaching and research in eight Nigerian universities, established two centres of excellence at the University of Benin and University of Nigeria and also provides sabbatical opportunities for Nigerian university professors and senior lecturers.
In 2014, $14.8 million was invested in scholarships and other education programmes by the SPDC JV and Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo).
The ACT Alliance has called for increasing urgency to address the impacts of climate change. The network of over 140 church and faith based organisations spoke at the weekend in New York as world leaders set out to acknowledge the links between climate change and poverty at the UNGA Post-2015 Summit.
ACT Alliance General Secretary, John Nduna. Photo credit: i.vimeocdn.com
Addressing a parallel event focusing on the role of faith-based actors in sustainable development, the international humanitarian and development network said that the SDGs must steer the world onto a sustainable pathway towards poverty eradication.
“Ending extreme poverty starts with addressing climate change, as a key pillar of our moral imperative,” said ACT Alliance General Secretary John Nduna, addressing faith leaders and political dignitaries. “Mother earth weeps for climate justice. As long as we human beings abuse mother earth, ending extreme poverty will be an illusion.”
“Climate change denies people and communities the ability to overcome poverty,” he continued. “Without rain in sub-Saharan Africa, people cannot grow their food or feed their families. When streets and fields flood in Asia, communities lose their livelihoods and lives. As the sea level rises in the Pacific, people are stripped of their land and risk statelessness. Our leaders must urgently and adequately confront climate change.”
ACT Alliance has engaged in work related to climate justice and sustainable development since 2010, from community mobilisation to high level political engagement.
“While we celebrate the incredible adoption of the SDGs,” said Nduna, “we must now urgently stand together, ready, excited and motivated begin working in partnership with one another for the effective implementation of these goals.”
The negotiations towards the new global development framework continues to build momentum towards the UN climate change meeting (COP21) which will take place in Paris, France, in December.
“The ambition that we see with the adoption of the SDG framework today must translate to concrete action in Paris at COP21,” said Nduna. “Sustainable Development and poverty eradication is largely dependent on the ambition of the climate agreement to be adopted in Paris. Progress on SDGs should encourage parties to come up with a strong, fair and equitable climate agreement.”
