State Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development of Ethiopia, Ato Sileshi Getahum, has urged Malawian delegates and those from other African countries to come up with good recommendations to enrich the continent’s position on climate change ahead of the next Conference of the Parties (COP) in the next few months.
Paris, France will host the 2015 Conference of Parties to the UNFCCC. Photo credit: afs.org
Getahum made this submission recently in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia during a three-day meeting aimed at launching the first-ever climate smart agriculture (CSA) alliance forum organised by the NEPAD Agency and the African Union Commission.
The forum is part of an integral part of Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) in relation to attaining the productivity, food security, prosperity and resilience goals as said in the 2015-25 Results Framework endorsed at the Malabo African Union (AU) Summit held in June last year in Equatorial Guinea.
Getahun also urged Africa to continue to pressurise industrialised countries to step up their efforts and save humanity from imminent catastrophe that climate change and variability are leading to.
“As we learnt from the recently published IPCC reports, no matter how well some of the parties to the Kyoto Protocol performed, to this day, global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have not stopped rising. Parties therefore must make substantial progress this time in COP21,” she said.
Getahun said this, therefore, needs a bold 2015 agreement which should include necessary means of implementation, capacity strengthening, appropriate technology transfer and the finance required to manage ecosystems to ensure food and nutrition security, sustainable development and poverty alleviation.
“With agriculture the mainstay of Africa’s economy, it is important that we invest in and practice climate smart agriculture. We need to show the rest of the world our adaptive capacity and remain positive that more development partners will come on board to help Africa upscale all the various CSA investments on the continent,” she explained.
But, in her remarks, Minister Councilor Ms Tove Stub of the Norwegian Embassy in Addis Ababa backed the launch of the CSA Alliance Forum, saying it shows that African countries are committed to championing positive agricultural production in view of climate change effects, a point NEPAD Director of Programmes and Coordination Estherine Fotabong alluded to.
Stub stated that Africa through NEPAD is the first continent to develop such an agenda which is also aimed at sharing knowledge, new farming technologies and developing policies to promote CSA.
“The launch of the CSA Alliance Forum is a crucial step to the African agenda of promoting CSA considering that agriculture remains central to development on the continent. In fact NEPAD is to chair a global alliance and this experience from this first-ever alliance on CSA will assist globally,” she said.
Speakers from Malawi indicated that Lilongwe has developed policies that are meant to move in tandem with initiatives of NEPAD and African Union on how to mitigate effects of climate change thereby boosting agriculture production.
With Malawi’s economy described as agro-based, experts and farmers are likely to use the session as a tool to boosting agricultural production considering that the model is in line with sustainable land and water management (SLWM) also championed by NEPAD.
Lagos-based estate valuer and legal practitioner, Solomon Olusola Fatoki, in this presentation a couple of weeks ago at a meeting of Archivers’ Table of Ikeja Club, examines the role of housing in national development, calling for a stable and enduring policy to address inherent challenges
A housing estate. Photo credit: lagos.all.biz
Next to food, clothing and security, housing is the next basic need to human beings all over the world. Man wants to have a roof over his head to protect him from rain, heat, wind and other elements of nature.
Housing provides shelter. Whereas shelter is a necessity of life, every government strives to provide housing for her citizens.
But, upon closer examination, it shows that the meaning of “Housing” transcends shelter. Housing has been used as a medium to reflect the owner’s social class.
There are various designs of housing especially in a complex and capitalistic country like Nigeria. What obtains in the South is different from the North as a result of social, cultural, geographical and religious inclination.
The Northerners have tall and flat roofed buildings with no or small openings to reduce the prevailing heat. The Southerners have compact buildings roofed with well-defined run-offs in readiness for the rain. All these imply that housing accommodate more than people.
Apart from the above attributes of housing, it is also a durable investment and an hedge over inflation. It is a valuable asset which projects the image of its owner. Furthermore, housing is a valuable consumer good, thus it provides supplementary income for the investors.
A large housing stock is important in a nation’s economy. A well housed working populace will put in its best and increase productivity which in turn increases the Gross National Product level. With satisfactory housing both in urban and rural areas and with job opportunities, mobility of labour will be greatly enhanced.
The Challenges
It is however saddening to note that despite the attributes of housing, its place is lamentable in Nigeria. Past efforts by governments at various levels to ensure adequate housing have met with huge failure rather than successes, gulping billions of naira in the process. Our government must have the political will to solve the problem of housing than the lip service being paid to it.
The country’s housing shortage is put at about 18 million by various government officials and experts. I wonder how we can achieve Housing-For-All in 2020 with this figure which keep rising.
Most of the laudable proposals for housing in our previous National Development plans and various policies have not achieve any meaningful goal till date.
Presently, our National Housing Policy lays emphasis on urban sector to the detriment of rural sectors. This should be corrected in future housing policy as larger percentage of our population still depends on agriculture for their livelihood and live in small rural communities.
A lot of Nigerians still live in houses with the worst housing conditions. Go to some parts of our major cities of Lagos, Ibadan, Port Harcourt and the satellite towns in Abuja, among others. A lot of people live in slum areas.
Aside the period of Alhaji Lateef Jakande in Lagos and few other efforts nothing significant has been done to reduce the housing needs of majority of the Nigerian masses. Houses being built by governments and her various agencies like the Federal Housing Authority (FHA), Lagos State Development and Property Corporation (LSDPC), among others are beyond the reach of average Nigerians.
The reasons for this range from bad planning, lack of effective housing finance and problems of land provision to lack of adequate infrastructural services, poor designs and construction, and lack of development of our local building materials, among others.
Possible Way Forward
There is need for a stable and enduring housing policy in Nigeria. This will go a long way in discouraging drift of people from rural areas into urban areas.
Problem of housing in both urban and rural areas in Nigeria is assuming alarming rate day by day. Whereas in urban areas, the problem is mainly quantitative, while in rural areas the problem is qualitative.
In order to have improved and increased housing stock, our governments should urgently address the following:
Need for adequate policy development and Initiation: There is need for people-oriented housing policy by the government. Such policy must encourage a balanced mixture of public and private efforts in housing provision.
Housing Finance: Another important factor that is essential to housing delivery is funding. There is need for adequate financial policies geared towards housing delivery. These could be through: (a) Well-funded Mortgage – The Federal Mortgage Bank which was largely responsible for housing loan provision has not performed to the expectation of the Nigerian citizens. So also are the Primary Mortgage Institutions (PMIs). (b) Involvement of commercial banks – Our commercial banks should have loanable funds for housing at lower interest rates. (c) Encouragement of mutual savings – This is an open-end investment system where the funds of the shareholders are invested for housing purposes only. Savings / Loan Associations, Co-operative / Thrift Societies should also invest in housing. Insurance companies are also encouraged to increase investment in housing. The various state agencies responsible for housing should be revived and revitalised.
Land Provision: There must an equitable land reform in the country. Such reform would make land acquisition by ordinary citizen easy and more secured than what we have now. The Land Use Act must be reviewed as already canvassed by the various stakeholders in the building industry. Cost of land acquisition and registration must be affordable. The menace of “Omo-onile” must be curtailed if we must have improved housing delivery.
Infrastructural Services: Housing requires infrastructural services such as road, water supply, electricity, communication facilities and waste disposals, among others. Government through her various agencies should provide these services. It will go a long way in opening up the neglected areas. Private individuals and investors could also assist in the provision of these infrastructures.
Design, Construction and Building Materials: Adoption of simple design and construction as well as local building materials by governments, private investors and individuals, will also make housing readily available to the masses of this country. Simple designs and constructions will also reduce wastages being witnessed by most of us.
One effective way to achieve the goal of affordable housing-for-all is to drastically reduce our dependence on foreign building materials by concentrating on the intensive development and promotion of local materials. These include burnt clay bricks, lime in place of cement, timber and fibre roofing sheet, which have been tested by various Research Institutes like the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) and Federal Institute of Industrial Research Oshodi (FIIRO) but not fully utilised till date.
Nigeria has about 24 brick plants which have almost closed down for lack of patronage. Government should reactivate them and also lead in using these materials. Bricks have been successfully utilised in Zimbabwe, Tanzania and Kenya. They have succeeded in bringing down cost of building and the reduction in the use of cement. We could also have mud houses with good foundation and columns for adequate strength, among other designs already developed by our research institutes, but not used.
Conclusion
The issue of housing-for-all requires dynamic and people-oriented government with a human face. The government must be prepared to ensure adequate policy, land provision, easy funding, infrastructural services and encourage use of simple design, construction and utilisation of local materials.
Finally, the Bible says in Psalm 127 that “Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watch-man waketh but in vain” – King James Version.
We shall not build ours in vain and God shall be the foundation of our building. Therefore, a pragmatic approach by us all is needed to solve our housing problem.
A panel of 35 experts convened by the Abidjan Convention Secretariat in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, gathered recently to examine how port and maritime activities affect biodiversity and ecosystems in the Convention region.
Participants at the meeting
The three-day workshop on the strategic assessment of environmental issues, policies and ports’ programmes in West, Central and Southern Africa was organised by the Abidjan Convention Secretariat with the financial support of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency; and in partnership with the Abidjan Port, the African Network of Ports for the Environment, and the Port Management Association of West and Central Africa.
The meeting was the first of its kind by the Abidjan Convention Secretariat and marks an important step in resolving environmental problems caused by shipping in the Convention area.
Regional Coordinator, Abidjan Convention, Abou Bamba, told the participants that while the “exponential traffic” through the ports was a marked sign of progress to be celebrated, “we must not forget the associated environmental risks that this brings.”
He said visible threats to the environment near ports included ship waste, oil spills, empting of ballast water, air and soil pollution, destruction of habitat and marine ecosystems. Therefore, it was incumbent on countries with ports on the Atlantic Ocean to revolve these pollution problems.
“There is a strong correlation between the ports’ environmental performance and its financial achievements,” he added.
Participants at the meeting came from state institutions, the private sector, research and civil society organisations from Africa, Europe and America. At the close of the forum, they validated a regional Action Plan and formalised a group of experts’ body to deal with the matter. Participants also devised measures to ensure increased efficiency of ports and maritime transport in the region.
The workshop was aimed at supporting the management and environmental performance of ports through education, awareness and research, and to share information on the environmental impact and maritime activities.
According to Bamba, the event was informed by decision (CP 11/1, 2.f) of the Eleventh Conference of Parties (COP 11) to the Abidjan Convention that encourages “the partnership between the Secretariat of the Convention and the regional ports institutions and organisations which aims to evaluate the environmental performances of ports and identify the challenges to be addressed in the Convention”; and also by the vast uptake of shipping activity along Africa’s Eastern and South-Eastern Atlantic area that has increased the likelihood for increased environmental degradation of the marine and coastal environment.
The number of ships calling at West, Central and Southern African ports have jumped from 15,000 annually in the 1990s to more than 20,000 at the beginning of 2,000. The surge in shipments poses an increased risk from ship waste, oil spills, untreated ballast wastewater discharge, dredging and disposal of dredged material, air pollution, traffic congestion, noise, hazardous waste discharge, and the resultant erosion of water quality and loss of marine and coastal habitat.
“These would translate into serious implications for the maintenance of biodiversity and ecosystems in the region and erode its economic gains that have resulted from surging international trade through shipping,” he stated.
One of the most dominant themes in Nigeria’s socio-political debate has been the issue of rising corruption amidst a proliferation of anti-corruption programmes. Since its independence from Britain in 1960, Nigeria has grappled with the challenge of taming corruption. Many regimes have been toppled from power after being accused of tolerating corruption, or even engaging in it. Yet the scale and complexity of corruption appear to grow with each succeeding regime.
Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, President of Nigeria
From a handful of incidents in the early post-independence period (1960-1966), to widespread in the 70s and 80s, the vice gradually became systemic and institutionalised during the 90s, when successive authoritarian and unaccountable military regimes tolerated or even adopted it as a policy of statecraft. Since returning to a democracy the phenomenon appears to have become even more widespread.
Some of the most common forms of corruption experienced in Nigeria today include acceptance of gratification and other forms of inducements, influence peddling; embezzlement of public funds and conflict of interests, for example, in the award of contracts by pubic office holders to cronies, family members and personally held companies. Corruption has also found expression in recruitment, appointment and promotion of public officers, misappropriation and conversion of public property, procurement scam, leaking of tender information, diversion and misappropriation of funds through manipulation or falsification of financial records, payment for favourable judicial decisions, electoral and examination malpractices among others. In recent times, no institution or sector of the country has been spared of corruption including religious bodies, educational institutions, judiciary, military, and the private sector.
Evidence of corrupt practices is not difficult to find in Nigeria. Many corrupt practices have been extensively reported in the local media. Others can be found in reports of a multitude of official inquiries established by governments at all levels. Many academic studies have also been carried out on the subject. In the last 10-15 years, Nigeria’s anti-corruption agencies have also investigated and prosecuted several corruption cases shedding further light on the nature and levels of corruption in contemporary Nigeria. Thus, it will seem that Nigerians have good cause to worry about the level of corruption and its effect on their society. Indeed, corruption is not only seen as endemic in Nigeria but is also widely considered in development circles as the most obstructive force hindering the country’s development.
The centrality of corruption to Nigeria’s socio-political discourse has fostered two positive realities. On the one hand, it has spurned hundreds of scholarly research and studies. The findings illuminate different aspects of the phenomenon including its nature, causes, consequences and possible remedies. On the other hand, the discourse has also encouraged successive Nigerian governments to conceive and implement several policies and programmes aimed at addressing the problem of corruption in Nigerian public life. Some of these interventions include the enactment of numerous anti-corruption legislation, establishment of several anti-corruption agencies; and the signing of relevant international treaties and protocols.
Despite these commendable efforts, there remains a growing concern that Nigeria is not making much progress in its efforts to significantly reduce corruption. One of the major reasons for this is perhaps the poor integration of available research products into the design, implementation and review of anti-corruption intervention by both government and other stakeholders. Indeed, while an increasing number of scholars have studied the phenomenon and published extensively on the same, there is little evidence that products of anti-corruption research come to the attention of policymakers and ultimately influence policymaking in Nigeria. This has in turn contributed to the failures of successive anti-corruption projects in Nigeria.
In order to close this observed ‘research-policy gap’ and further facilitate the ongoing campaign for a corruption-free Nigeria, the Anti-Corruption Academy of Nigeria (ACAN), the research and training arm of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), and the United Nations Office for Drug and Crime (UNODC) are jointly organising an international conference on the theme, Anti-Corruption Research and Policymaking in Nigeria: 40 Years After the Theory of Two Publics.
The period indicated in the theme is symbolically marked against one of the well-known theories of corruption developed from the Nigerian experience. The theory developed by Professor Peter Ekeh is published in the 1975 edition of the Journal of Comparative Studies in Society and History as “Colonialism and the Two Publics in Africa: A Theoretical Statement”.
The conference, scheduled to hold October 26 t0 27, 2015 in Abuja, aims to bring together researchers and policymakers concerned with corruption and anti-corruption programmes in Nigeria to brainstorm on the opportunities and strategies for the interface between research and practice. Leading experts in the field from within and outside Nigeria will be invited to deliver papers and take part in the discussions.
In terms of objectives, the conference is designed to assure a broad multidisciplinary coverage of anti-corruption research and challenges involved in enhancing the integration of available knowledge or research based evidence into policymaking. In more specific terms, the conference will help to:
review the production, dissemination and use of research in anti-corruption policymaking in Nigeria;
highlight policy implications of research relevant to the causes, nature, consequences and remedies of corruption as it relates to Nigeria;
share experiences and good practices on strategies for improving the infusion of research products into anti-corruption policymaking;
identify challenges to the interface between research and anti-corruption policymaking in Nigeria; and,
enhance networking among anti-corruption scholars and practitioners working on corruption within the Nigerian context.
Conference sub-themes include:
Review of Nigerian anti-corruption legislation, policies and programs in light of theories of corruption;
Measuring the prevalence of corruption in Nigeria: contested narratives; building blocks for further research; evidence driven policy making etc;
Corruption prevention and enforcement strategies of major anti-corruption agencies and institutions;
Anti-corruption policies and programmes of private sector organisations, CSOs and development/international agencies;
Influence of research in the development of national anti-corruption policies and legislation;
Leveraging anti-corruption research for civil society advocacy and programmes;
Impact of corruption research on the policies and programmes of international development agencies;
Review of the mandates, activities and output of the Departments of Research, Planning and Statistics of anti-corruption institutions; and
Comparative analysis on anti-corruption research and policy making experiences.
Conference organisers are seeking papers related to any of the sub-themes listed above from interested academics, staff of civil society organisations, development agencies, and operatives of anti-corruption agencies.
National Coordinator of the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC), Otunba Gani Adams, has said the next phase of the struggle in Nigeria will be the implementation of the report of the National Conference held last year.
Adams, who is also the Convener of the Oodua Progressive Union (OPU), an association of the Yoruba and people who believe in the Yoruba cause in the Diaspora, said this in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Tuesday, May 12, 2015.
Gani Adams. Photo credit: nigerianmonitor.com
Adams, who was a member of the Confab, said the report of the conference, convened by outgoing President Goodluck Jonathan, contained far reaching decisions that are capable of turning around the fortunes of the country if genuinely and sincerely implemented.
He said despite the fact that Jonathan who convened the Confab was leaving power, it would be uncharitable for the report to be thrown away.
He said: “Throwing the report away will amount to throwing away the baby with the bath water.
“We have a report put together by men and women from diverse backgrounds but with sincerity of purpose to move the country forward.
“My observation throughout the conference was that once we entered into the venue, we put our differences, nuances and biases behind us and discuss as people who truly have the interest of Nigeria and Nigerians and heart.”
Adams said perhaps the most critical aspect of the conference report should be the implementation of true federalism in the country.
One of the critical recommendations of the report of the conference, which gulped over N7 billion, was the institutionalisation of federalism in the country.
Adams said in Dubai on Tuesday: “Even if that happens to be the only aspect we implement, others are going to fall in place naturally.
“We as Yoruba race will push vigorously for the implementation of the report of that conference.
“It is, perhaps, going to be the next phase of the struggle in Nigeria as the incoming government of General Muhammadu Buhari will be encouraged to implement the report, which is capable of putting Nigeria back on track fully.”
Adams is scheduled to meet with members of the OPU in the UAE and neighbouring countries while in Dubai.
This article was prompted by the fall-out of what Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State said at a lecture he delivered at the Yoruba Tennis Club’s Annual Business Luncheon and Lecture on May 8, 2015 at the Club’s house, Onikan Lagos.
A sizeable shopping mall alleged to have inadequate setbacks is under construction just a few metres away from a major roundabout along the Epe-Lekki Expressway in Lagos. Photo credit: businessdayonline.com
Delivering the lecture titled “The Nigerian Agreement” as guest speaker at the club’s Annual Business Luncheon and Lecture, the governor harped on the need to set the right agenda about what should constitute the responsibility of the government and the governed (the citizenry) in our democratic setting. Aside the responsibility of government to provide security, fight corruption and fix the economy, Governor Fashola believed that the citizens must also set, for themselves, their own agenda anchored on their expectations of what good governance is all about. The governor then pontificated on the various ways to achieve this. The one that is pivotal to this writer among what he suggested was his admonition to the citizenry that “such agreement should include voluntary compliance to Law and Order” and other suggestions which he broached at length during the lecture.
This piece focuses on compliance with the rule of law as it affects urban planning in Lagos State, where the chief culprits of law breaking are the government itself and majority of the citizenry and, by extension, the urban planners who are often in collusion with the public to violate planning regulations, given their penchant and bad reputation for underhand dealings (euphemism for corruption). We shall expatiate further with a few examples to buttress the point being made.
That Lagos is now a full-fledged member of league of mega cities (cities with a minimum population of 10 million and above) around the world such as Tokyo, New York, Beijing, Mumbai and Cairo is not a matter of debate. But the primary concern is the million-dollar question: Is Lagos Mega City functioning properly the way a mega city should function? What most residents of Lagos often complained about, which points to its dysfunctionality, are the issues of perennial traffic congestion, shortage of water supply, environmental pollution (waste, noise and air) overcrowding, insufficient recreational facilities, slum proliferation and concern for security of life and property.
A city can only be functional, liveable, productive and sustainable based on the way it is planned and managed by competent and responsible authority. And to make this possible, it is the tripartite responsibility of government which prescribes the law about governance, the planners who craft the visions for the city in the form of development plan or master plan as well as the citizenry who should comply with the provisions of the law in order to achieve urban sustainability.
Unfortunately, the Lagos Mega City is being deprived of this urban planning ethos by its own government through the misguided efforts of its officials and cavalier attitude of the residents concerning what their roles should be in the planning process. Planning practice in the State of Excellence is contrary to what it should be. Planning is about creating a sense of place and making connections. It is also people-centred – the community members, the officials and others who support planning and, last but not the least, the planners who craft the visions that create livable, productive and sustainable cities.
Despite Governor Fashola’s valiant efforts to revamp the Lagos Mega City region towards the path of livability, functionality and sustainability, the same government openly violates its own planning regulations at its whims and caprices. For example, there is a provision in the State’s Urban and Physical Planning Law that stipulates the setting up of Urban and Regional Planning Tribunal, which is the body to preside over disputes arising from planning activities in Lagos State. The state, under the watch of the governor over seven years, did not bother to set this body up, despite its importance in the effective and equitable operation of the state’s planning machinery.
The citizenry who are aggrieved by the anti-planning activities of government officials have no place to go to obtain justice against the excesses of town planners. On the contrary, when people violate town planning regulations, the officials are quick to apply the sledge hammer on erring citizens. Sometimes, buildings are demolished on the excuse of land use violation, whereas there are instances where the Lagos State Government equally run afoul of development control regulations. The sitting of a ferry terminal at a site earmarked as a play ground for the residents of Osborne Foreshore Estate Phase II, Ikoyi without due consultation with them (as the state’s planning law stipulates), is a perfect definition of abuse of due process. The state government does not seem to be guided by the axiom that: He who seeks equity must come with a clean hand.
Governor Fashola is an unrepentant advocate of rule of law. But there are proven cases of his government being selective in enforcing its own law(s), especially urban and physical planning law and development regulations. There are many law suits in court against the Lagos State Government by property owners who felt aggrieved by the violations of their rights due to the rascality of Lagos State town planning officials. If gospel according to Governor Fashola, as he canvassed in his lecture under reference, that the citizenry should voluntarily comply with law and order, then, charity should begin at home and the citizenry would follow suit. It is not enough to admonish that the residents should be law abiding, while the custodians and enforcers of the law are law breakers, as typified in the examples cited in this piece. Therefore, it goes without saying that government must walk the talk.
The Lagos Government officials who are saddled with the responsibility of monitoring compliance with development regulations in the state are the chief violators of the law they are supposed to enforce. Town Planners in Lagos are not in the good books of the citizenry. Their connivance and underhand dealings with the members of the public to break planning law is an open secret in the public domain; and a source of constant conflict with Lagos residents, especially property developers who have cause to interface with the planning officials. Lagos State planners are known to approve anything under the sun based on the bargaining power of those who seek their services. If the stake is high, your plan is approved in a jiffy. If the stake is low, you cause their wrath and, if you dare them, you do so at your peril. Your property will be demolished, instead of being advised to amend your plan in order to make it approvable.
Most are arm chair town planners who sit in the comfort of their office to carry out their planning duties. They seldom conduct site inspection to ascertain the compatibility of land uses and, as a result, they create land uses that are inimical to investment. If not, how does one justify the location of a petrol station right in the middle of a residential area such as the one located on Rear Admiralty Way in Lekki Phase I, which went up in flames last March when a petrol tanker had an accident during the process of discharging fuel within the premises of the station, injuring some people? Or the rampant location of crowd-pulling establishments such as banks, churches and shopping malls in areas with minimal parking space and where they would further aggravate the traffic problem in their vicinity?
For example, a shopping mall (bigger than The Palms in Victoria Island) is under construction just a few metres away from a major roundabout along the Epe-Lekki Expressway. The facility has inadequate setbacks and, consequently, the ease of traffic in-flow and out-flow from the shopping mall have been compromised. Time will tell when the consequence of this planning gaffe begins to manifest after the mall starts operating. The traffic jam would be better imagined.
While all these development infractions persist, the planning authority looks the other way. Erring officials are never sanctioned against the wanton abuse of the very soul of planning by planners in the employ of the Lagos State Government. Such lack of disciplinary actions against offending officers further embolden them to behave the way they like with the aura of the “king-can-do-no-wrong.”
Citizens’ indiscipline and careless attitude to planning is another advertent mistake militating against good urban planning practice in Lagos State. The residents cannot be exonerated from blame for the neglect of their neighborhoods. In our clime, cities are not perceived as “communities” where the residents share common vision, values and concerns; and where life is regulated by co-operation for the common good, most especially the promotion of better quality of life: good schools, provision of urban basic services, recreation, job opportunities, security and nature conservancy. In Lagos State, most of her towns are not communities in the true sense of the word. They are “no-man’s land” where shared values are uncommon but instead, individualism/survival instinct reigns supreme. At the slightest opportunity, the citizens are ready to break the law, a behaviour that is becoming the norm in the society because of the seeming societal biased against the honest and obedient. The management of the city which ought to be a joint responsibility between the government and the governed is left in a fluid state. At its whims and caprices, the government plans for the people instead of planning with them. The citizens never have “our plan”; but government plan. Public participation in planning is perfunctory. It is practiced in tokenism in Lagos State.
Admittedly, laws are meant to guide the conduct of the citizens. Those who violate the law are reprimanded. However, compliance of the law by the citizenry has to do with the seriousness government attach to the enforcement of the law. If government use double standard, favouritism or has less regard for its own law, the citizens are more often disposed to breach than obey the law. Governor Fashola’s homily about the rule of law and voluntary obedience of law and order by the citizenry will gain more traction if the Lagos State Government leads by example; and by curbing the excesses of its town planning officials who flagrantly commit environmental crime without being brought to book. Once precedence is set in violation of planning law, it becomes a reference point for others to copy.
By Yacoob Abiodun (Urban Planner/ Former Secretary, Housing Policy Council, Abuja)
The impacts of climate change in Nigeria will vary in extent, severity and intensity, but the exact degree still remains uncertain. This is because a detailed and in-depth quantitative research into the vulnerability of Nigeria’s socio-economic sectors is yet to be undertaken. The general consensus is that all sectors of the country’s development and the natural ecosystems will be affected by climate change.
Prof. Emmanuel Olukayode Oladipo
Of course these impacts are not going to be felt overnight, and one could therefore argue that the structure of the economy will gradually change during the actual time period before the impacts are likely to be fully realised. Consequently, it is important to note that these potential impacts only serve as rough indications of what may likely happen if the current trends in temperature and rainfall changes persist, and if no adaptation and other adjustments take place. They serve as general guidelines for future policy directions and the imperative to take immediate action without waiting for the potential calamitous effects of climate change on the economy and livelihoods of the people to take place.
The following is a summary of what is at risk in Nigeria in the face of climate change, based on various studies:
Overall Economy: According to the DFID (2009) study, if no adaptation is implemented, between 2-11% of Nigeria’s GDP could potentially be lost by 2020, thereby hampering the national development goal of becoming one of the top 20 economies in the world. In this regard, climate change presents significant threats to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (or the new Sustainable Development Goals), especially those related to eliminating poverty and hunger and promoting environmental sustainability. It would increase vulnerability and hinder or reverse the development process.
Agriculture and Food Security: Agriculture is one of the sectors most sensitive to global warming in Nigeria. Under a “business as usual scenario”, agricultural productivity in the country could generally decline between 10 to 25 per cent by 2080. For some areas in the northern part of the country, the decline in yield in rainfed agriculture could be as much as 50 percent. According to some recent work, climate-induced declines in crop yields are expected to have significant longterm effects on the GDP of Nigeria, reducing it by as much as 4.5 percent by 2050. These modeling results assume—in accordance with Vision 20: 2020—that the share of agriculture in GDP will decline from 40 to just 15 percent. Climate change is also projected to affect food trade. For example, the long term net imports of yams and other vegetables are expected to decrease, but net imports of rice are expected to increase, by as much as 40 percent, unless significant transformation of the agriculture is carried out in a climate-smart manner.
Water: Climate change is an additional stress to water security in Nigeria. Climate change would result in increased variability in rainfall, predictably resulting in floods in some humid areas to the south in the country and decrease in precipitation in the savanna north. This may result in droughts and decrease in surface water resources in the north. A considerable proportion of the population is at risk of water stress, with less than 40% with potable water. Also, hydro-electric power generation suffers frequently from low in-flow into the dams, and water transportation along inland channels has also been negatively impacted. The situation is expected to worsen in the very near future (FMEnv, 2010). There are also possible changes in surface runoffs and groundwater flows in shallow aquifers that can be linked to climate variability, with implications for permanent and seasonal water bodies such as lakes and reservoirs. The rapid shrinking of Lake Chad from about 45,000 km2 in 1960 to less than 3,000 km2 in 2007 is attributed mainly to changes in the climatic conditions over the region towards increasing aridity in the extreme northeastern part of the country. The dwindling water resources of the sub-region, which has drastically reduced opportunities for sustainable agriculture, is a plausible contributing factor to the current conflicts and high degree of insecurity being witnessed in the area.
Floods and Droughts: Climate change would result in increased variability in rainfall, predictably resulting in floods in many parts of the country, particularly the humid areas, with devastating consequences. For example, the total value of destroyed physical and durable assets caused by the 2012 floods alone in the most affected states of Nigeria has been estimated to be about N1.48 trillion (about US$9.5 billion) or about 2% of its currently debased GDP of US$510 billion. While floods may further ravage the humid areas to the south, decrease in precipitation is expected in the savanna north. This may result in increased drought frequency and decrease in surface water resources, particularly in the north. Thus, the northern part of the country may increase its dependence on underground water sources.
Soil Erosion: Climate change-related heavier and steadier than normal rainfall that is expected in the southern part of the country will worsen soil erosion that is already of catastrophic condition in the sub-region. Recent increase in the number of reported severe landslides in southeastern States of the country is an attestation to the possible climate change-induced changes in erosion intensity.
Sea Level Rise: Global warming-induced accelerated sea level rise (ASLR) of 0.5 – 1m that is anticipated for Nigeria could worsen the environmental condition of the country’s coastline, which is already undergoing pronounced morphological changes as a result of natural extreme events such as sea surges and tidal waves. With specific reference to the Niger Delta, it is estimated that with an accelerated sea level rise (ASLR) of about 0.5m, about 35% of the delta could be lost. With ASLR of about 1.0 m by 2100 (French et.al., 1995) about 75% of the delta could be lost.
Energy: Climate change will have significant effects on the energy sector in Nigeria. In particular, rising temperatures would result in increased energy demand for air conditioning, refrigeration and other household uses. This will be very critical in this era of energy insufficiency in the country.
Tourism: Tourism, one of Nigeria’s fastest growing industries, could be negatively affected as many tourist attractions are located along the coastal zone of the country. Also, those tourist-attracting traditional festivals (e.g. Argungu festival on river Argungu in Kebbi State) may decline to the extent that climate change induces shrinkage of such rivers.
Ecosystems: The forest ecology and the ecosystems that are already under significant human pressure would be adversely affected. Persistent flooding and water logging due to accelerated sea level rise or extreme weather events could render forest regeneration more difficult. The savanna biome of northern Nigeria would be very vulnerable to any climate-change-related dramatic reduction in rainfall in the region. This could result wide spread degradation of habitats and the intensification of desertification.
How adequately or otherwise Nigeria is responding to these potential challenges will be addressed in future articles.
(People who are interested in additional technical details can read: (a) Cervigni, R., Riccardo, V., and Monia, S, eds. 2013. Toward Climate-Resilient Development in Nigeria. Directions in Development. Washington, DC: World Bank.; (b) DFID (Department for International Development), 2009: Impact of Climate Change on Nigeria’s Economy.; and (c) FGoN (Federal Government of Nigeria), 2013: Nigeria Post-Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) 2012 Floods).
By Prof. Emmanuel Oladipo (Climate Change Specialist and Adjunct Professor,Department of Geography, University of Lagos, Nigeria. olukayode_oladipo@yahoo.co.uk)
The community-based projects (CBR+) component of the Nigeria UN-REDD+ Readiness Programme, among other focal areas, shall design livelihoods initiatives that reduce poverty and support improved forest management. Similarly, the programme shall establish safeguards to ensure that improved livelihoods does no harm to the environment.
Participants at the Forum
This forms one of the numerous resolutions at the second meeting of the Cross River State (CRS) REDD+ Stakeholders’ Forum that held May 7-8, 2015 in Calabar, the CRS capital. The Forum was inaugurated last December as the ultimate platform to coordinate stakeholder participation and contribution to the programme implementation.
REDD, meaning Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation, implies an effort to create financial value for the carbon stored in forests, offering incentives for developing countries to reduce emissions from forested lands and invest in low-carbon paths to sustainable development.
Participants at the May 2015 REDD+ Forum, which sought to consolidate broad-based stakeholder engagement and contribute to the development of a REDD+ strategy, also agreed that there should be deliberate policy review to address the phenomenal forest policy disconnect between Federal and State Forestry institutions. They identified redefining functions as a critical gap to redress.
“There should be deliberate policy to both reduce and manage the lease of forest land for agricultural expansion. CRS and the REDD+ programme should facilitate a state-wide land use plan and local community land use plans to guide decisions around land use,” the gathering resolved, adding that forest valuation is fundamental to shaping REDD+ implementation, and that such valuation should consider both standing forests and the value of regeneration.
While stressing that stakeholder engagement strategy should strongly consider accountability within stakeholders to enable the supply of and demand for information, the delegated agreed that the REDD+ process should closely engage with stakeholders and develop agreements or relevant documents that clearly protect the rights and access of forest dependent communities to their forests.
The Forum likewise resolved thus:
“REDD+ implementation must develop and enforce strategy to empower forest dependent communities to provide consent freely based on adequate previous information. The FPIC principle should be effectively operated, with the consciousness that consultation should not replace consent.
“The CRS REDD+ Forum considers the CRS REDD+ Technical Committee as the principal medium for the facilitation stakeholders’ technical input in the REDD+ programme. The Technical Committee shall take responsibility for the coordination of all sub-committees in the programme. The Terms of Reference for the Technical Committee as developed will guide their technical contribution to the programme and accountability to stakeholders.
“Part of measures to address the problem of deforestation is capacity building for forest dependent communities to monitor and report forest change.
“The REDD+ programme will apply Knowledge Management as an essential means to share and capture lessons among stakeholders to strengthen capacity and improve knowledge about REDD+.
“REDD+ implementation should enable community organising such that representatives of stakeholders are held accountable and are able to report back to their communities.
“The REDD+ programme should effectively engage with institutional heads and REDD+ desk officers in relevant Government MDAs to ensure information and participation is strengthened.
“The recommendations from the Participatory Government Assessment (PGA) report should guide the development of safeguards that will help improve forest governance in CRS.”
Thematic areas of the CBR+ were listed to include:
Capacity Development to engage in climate change mitigation processes, including REDD+;
Sustainable Livelihoods; and,
Renewable Energy.
Hitherto, the Programme, which has CRS as a pilot, recorded achievements such as:
Finalising Nigeria National CBR+ Plan;
Producing draft call for concept note;
Reviewing CRS CBR+ Committee operations and membership; and,
Developing plan to initiate pilot/demonstration projects.
According to Odigha Odigha, chairman of the Cross River State Forestry Commission (CRSFC), on completion of the Readiness phases, the Investment and Performance phases of the REDD+ process will be implemented.
A somewhat cheering news to pro amalgam-phase-out campaigners emerged at the weekend from Europe as a public consultation process resulted in the rejection of the use of the product.
EU headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. Photo credit: www.christainsinpakistan.com
Dental amalgam is a tooth filling material that is approximately 50% mercury, which is believed to be a highly polluting neurotoxin. Nations around the world are working to phase out amalgam use, against the backdrop of the ratification of the Minamata Convention on Mercury, a global treaty aimed at protecting human health and environment from the adverse effects of mercury. Neurotoxins are substances that are poisonous or distructive to nerve tissue.
The European Union (EU), which is a signatory to the Convention, had asked the general public to comment on how to fulfil its treaty obligations. The European Commission launched an online public consultation that asked EU citizens: “Should we phase down amalgam use…or should we phase out amalgam use?”
Following the close of the poll and consequently the counting of the votes, 3,162 out of the 3,586 voters (representing 88% of the respondents) voted to phase out amalgam.
“That’s a lot of participation for a public consultation in the EU,” remarked Charles Brown, who is President, World Alliance for Mercury-Free Dentistry.
He commended Europeans for the development, even as he lamented that even though the United States had signed the mercury treaty, it was yet to conduct a public opinion poll on the issue.
His words: “Congratulations to all our European friends who voted and to everyone around the world who helped get out the vote!
“Over the past four years, Consumers for Dental Choice has worked closely with our European allies to put in place the building blocks that led to this vote:
The scientific backing: The EU governments’ scientific committees agree that amalgam in the environment can pose a risk while mercury-free fillings are safe.
The policy edge: The European Commission hired an independent consultant to examine all the policy options for dealing with amalgam. After an intense study, a round of public hearings, and substantial public input, that independent consultant urged the EU to “ban the use of mercury in dentistry.”
The public support: The consultant, the governments, and the scientists had their turn. Then the matter was put before the citizenry… and Europeans overwhelmingly want to phase out amalgam use!
“We’ve still got a lot of hard work ahead in the EU to make sure that the government responds to the voice of the people. But all options other than phasing out amalgam are slowly exiting the stage.
“As the EU moves forward toward mercury-free dentistry, the United States government is no doubt taking note… and seeing itself fall behind. If the United States intends to regain the lead on mercury issues, now is the time to act.”
Brown is also National Counsel, Consumers for Dental Choice.
Ahead of the December 2015 Paris climate conference where 196 parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) are expected to sign a binding agreement with legal force, West Africa may have taken the lead in preparing its negotiators and critical stakeholders for the all-important conference.
Abidjan, Ivory Coast …venue of the conference. Photo credit: africa-pictures.blogspot.com
The preparatory workshop, which held in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire from the 7th to the 9th of May 2015, had participants drawn from sub-regional and national authorities, intergovernmental organisations, civil society, indigenous peoples and the private sector.
Organised under the sub-regional auspices of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in collaboration with the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) and the Interstate Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS), the meeting attempted to comprehensively review the draft text of the new agreement with a view to demystifying the economic and technical issues involved in the negotiations as well unpack the geo-political implications for the sub-region.
“In addition to identifying common positions to be defended by Africa and more particularly West Africa at the forthcoming meetings in Bonn and Paris, this workshop evolved a strategy that will deliver a better deal for West Africa come December 2015,” said Bougonou Djeri-Alassani of the Environment Directorate of ECOWAS Commission.
Beyond strengthening the respective capacities of West African Negotiators, the workshop also assessed past negotiation sessions and chart a new course that recognises the sub-region’s peculiarities and vulnerabilities.
“The thrust of our negotiations must reflect West African priorities which include adaptation, mitigation, food security and increased climate resilience,” Medane Lecrome of CILSS added.
Speaking on behalf of the West African civil society at the workshop, Rev Tolbert Jallah of the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA) commended the organisers of the workshop for recognising the civil society as credible partners in the build-up to the Paris conference. He however warned that the battle for a fair, equitable climate deal for Africa is far from being won as “pitfalls and technical landmines have been effectively planted in the draft text to derail the process.”
“This recognition should be laced with opportunities that will unleash the full strength of the African civil society on the COP process,” Rev Jallah added, pointing out that 2015 is a crucial year for international climate change negotiations.
Since 1992, parties have come together under the UNFCCC to negotiate and formulate international climate policies that are then implemented nationally. The policies are meant to keep greenhouse gas emissions in check so that its impacts on the environment and people’s lives are minimal. However, over the years, the state of the climate has gotten worse and its impacts are felt throughout the world.
The meeting in Paris in December this year is supposed to produce a legally binding agreement to keep greenhouse gasses in check, help developing countries cope better and to ensure adequate financial and technical assistance.
