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Ban Ki-moon: Disaster planning must accommodate older people’s limited mobility

Michael Simire
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Ban Ki-moon: Disaster planning must accommodate older people’s limited mobility

United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, has said that planning for disaster should take account of the reduced mobility experienced by many older persons. He spoke on Monday in Abuja, Nigeria’s federal capital city, in commemoration of this year’s International Day for Disaster Reduction, which the UN boss described as an opportunity to recognise the role of older men and women in fostering resilience.

The theme for this year’s celebration is: “Resilience is for life”.

Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary General
Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary General

“We have to enable them to prepare for a potential disaster, reach safety and protect themselves. The needs of older persons should also be taken into account in early warning systems, social protection mechanisms, evacuation and emergency response plans, and public awareness campaigns,” declared Ki-moon, who was represented by Daouda Toure, Resident Coordinator, UN Systems in Nigeria and Resident Representative, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

His words: “As a human family, we are growing older. Globally, approximately 700 million people – 10 per cent of the world’s population – are over the age of 60, and by 2030, there will be more elderly persons than children for the first time in history.

“When a natural disaster hits, older persons suffer disproportionately high levels of death and injuries. This tragic trend must be reversed through plans, services and support that ensure we address the vulnerabilities facing older persons while optimising their contributions to our collective safety and wellbeing.

“At the same time, it is important to recognise that older persons have strengths that can serve the community at large. Their years of experience can help in reducing risks posed by disasters. We should involve them in disaster risk management as well as related planning and decision-making processes. Older persons can also meaningfully enrich our critical global discussions on addressing climate change and achieving sustainable development. On this International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction, let us remind ourselves that building resilience to disasters has no time limit in one’s life; it starts in youth and grows more important as we age.”

Daouda Toure, Resident Coordinator, UN Systems in Nigeria and Resident Representative, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
Daouda Toure, Resident Coordinator, UN Systems in Nigeria and Resident Representative, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Toure, in his own presentation, points out: “We are seeing the devastating effect of climate change, and how this causes natural disasters, which have potential to threaten hard won gains in development and potentially reverse progress on the MDGs. Thanks to a range of development gains, such as better health care and access to clean water, for example, over the past several decades, the median age of the world’s population has increased significantly and will continue to do so. Therefore, on the one hand we live in an increasingly disaster-prone world, and, on the other, many of those directly impacted are the ageing.

“Together with children, older people are among the most susceptible and vulnerable social groups when disasters strike. As a group, the elderly are often among the most neglected in disaster relief programmes, even though they are among the most at risk. There are reports that the vulnerability of the elderly is increasing, with the proportion of older people in developing countries set to double to 850 million by 2025.

“There is therefore a need to include older people in disaster risk reduction. Through their experience and knowledge, they have a tremendous contribution to make and a critical role to play in building resilience. We cannot overlook the importance of their personal experiences and also their needs.  While still trying to provide for their needs, we also need to capitalise on their knowledge, mature wisdom and special skills. In many cultures, their words of wisdom are usually like golden resources to communities in which they live.”

Director General, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Muhammad Sani-Sidi, said all hands must be on desk to ensure more awareness is created on the positive attributes of aged people in planning and decision making during disasters.

Director General, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Muhammad Sani-Sidi
Director General, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Muhammad Sani-Sidi

He said it is imperative to include older people in disaster risk reduction and recognise the critical role they can play in resilience–building through their experience and knowledge.

“This year’s campaign seeks to highlight the positive attributes of aged people in planning and decision making for disaster resilience, in making communities safer before, during and after disaster hit their villages, towns and cities,” he noted, even as he lamented that the aged receive very little attention in developing nations.

Sani-Sidi went on: “This may be due to a widespread belief that few older people exist in developing countries or that traditional structures provide support to older people. There is also a mistaken presumption that older people are economically inactive. Ageing issues have a low priority in government business. When they are considered, they are seen as welfare issues, in which older people are regarded as a burden on society and passive recipients of care.

“Lack of public awareness and information about older people’s contributions, circumstances, issues or needs creates negative images of ageing. Although knowledge of older people’s issues is growing, these images and assumptions persist, increasing the invisibility’ and marginal position of older people. In an emergency, where service provision and allocation of resources may be uneven, this invisibility often results in older people being deprived of critical life-saving resources”.

He said it is imperative for agencies to utilise or enhance the capacities and contributions of older people.

“Their long experience, influence on decision-making, and control of economic assets makes older people well placed to take leadership roles in emergencies, encourage conflicts resolution and community justice and foster problem solving, especially if regular leadership structures are disrupted. Older people play roles as care givers and resource managers,” he noted.

The public presentation of the National Disaster Recovery Strategy and Framework (NDSRF). Daouda Toure, Resident Coordinator, UN Systems in Nigeria and Resident Representative, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), is on the right
The public presentation of the National Disaster Recovery Strategy and Framework (NDSRF). Daouda Toure, Resident Coordinator, UN Systems in Nigeria and Resident Representative, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), is on the right

One of the highlights of the event was the public presentation of the National Disaster Recovery Strategy and Framework (NDSRF), which the UNDP supported NEMA to prepare. It is the only available document that explores strategies by which the country can recover from disasters.

Ouattara, Sall, Neves open African Development Forum in Marrakech

Michael Simire
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Ouattara, Sall, Neves open African Development Forum in Marrakech

President of the Ivory Coast, Alassane Ouattara; President of Senegal, Macky Sall; as well as the Prime Minister of Cape Verde, José Maria Neves alongside hosts the Executive Secretary of the ECA and the Prime Minister of Morocco officially opened the 9th African Development Forum (ADF) on Tuesday in Marrakech, Morocco. The ADF is organised by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the leading think tank and policy advisory body for Africa.

Macky Sall, President of Senegal
Macky Sall, President of Senegal

Welcoming the guests, Prime Minister of Morocco, Abdelilah Benkirane, expressed his delight that the ninth African Development Forum was being held in Morocco. Reading a message from the king, His Majesty Mohamed VI, Benkirane added that Africa is emerging as a new pole of global growth.

“For this trend to be consolidated, however, we need to make sure there is an overhaul of African economies, with a clear shift towards technology-intensive, high value added activities. To rise to this challenge the financial aspect is of great importance,” stated.

The ECA Executive Secretary, Dr Lopes, noted a refreshing new mindset and type of leadership, both positive in its thinking and pragmatic in its actions. Greeting his special guests he noted the “new trend in Africa where policy thinkers and policy doers are becoming one.”

“We are witnessing a considerable sea of change in attitudes and mentalities, with leaders that are reformers and practitioners that are dreamers,” he declared.

Prime Minister of Cape Verde, José Maria Neves
Prime Minister of Cape Verde, José Maria Neves

Focusing on the Forum’s themes he acknowledged that African governments had taken an active role in changing the investment landscape, pointing out that this shift is associated with evidence-based policies. Since he has taken the helm of the ECA, he has put an emphasis on proving more concrete and meaningful data to help drive policy advice.

One of the thematics at this year’s Forum is new forms of partnerships, a point reiterated by Prime Minister Neves, saying, “Development aid is not enough so we need to mobilise financial resources to implement our economic policies.”

This was reiterated by President Sall, who said, “Traditional solutions in funding development is no longer relevant to the scope and need of the continent. The aspiration of African people is not only to fight poverty, it is to drive sustainable growth that will create employment and prosperity…What is possible in all other continents is possible in Africa.”

President Ouattara underlined the need for more accountability and transparency in international capital flows. “I am glad to participate in this Forum. Africa is on the road to being the next emerging continent in the world. However, I have some concerns. Too many transactions are taking place outside the taxation system. This has to be addressed,” he stressed.

President of the Ivory Coast, Alassane Ouattara
President of the Ivory Coast, Alassane Ouattara

This year, the Forum is focusing on Innovative Financing for Africa’s Transformation. More specifically the forum will look at ways of mobilising domestic capital. A report by the ECA stated that over $200 billion lay in Central Bank reserves much of which can be used to leverage capital to stimulate investment. More is lost to illicit financial flows than is received in Overseas Development Assistance (ODA).

The discussions are driven to help shape and drive policy. Speaking to the organisers, a strong emphasis was put to ensure that conclusions and recommendations from the Forum will help policy makers and government officials work towards a more efficient way to raise funds and identify new channels of funding for infrastructure, health and education, driving social as well as economic growth.

Lateral thinking, smarter controls regarding tax collection and smarter policies to facilitate investment were all being encouraged to unlock capital and also to drive better accountability and transparency.

The ADF is a flagship biennial event of the ECA, and offers a multi-stakeholder platform for debating, discussing and initiating concrete strategies for Africa’s development. The Forum looks to establishing an African-driven development agenda that reflects consensus and leads to specific programmes for implementation.

This year’s theme focuses on: domestic resource mobilisation; illicit financial flows; Private equity; new forms of partnerships; and, issues in climate financing.

WaterAid: Ebola, others are reminders of importance of handwashing

Michael Simire
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WaterAid: Ebola, others are reminders of importance of handwashing

The spiralling Ebola outbreak in West Africa is an important reminder of the crucial role played by good hygiene and handwashing in protecting human health, says international development charity WaterAid on the commemoration of 2014 Global Handwashing Day.

WaterAid Nigeria’s Country Representative, Michael Ojo
WaterAid Nigeria’s Country Representative, Michael Ojo

Handwashing has most recently topped the global agenda particularly due to its role in helping prevent the spread of the Ebola disease. This year’s Global Handwashing Day presents a unique and critical opportunity for strengthening handwashing awareness, habits and infrastructure. Now more than ever, it is crucial that we all understand and spread the word about how important handwashing with soap is as an effective and affordable way to prevent diseases.

Good hygiene and handwashing are critical in helping to prevent the transmission of many infectious diseases that are devastating communities across Africa, including Ebola, cholera, diarrhoea, and pneumonia. However, in many parts of the continent, services such as sanitation, adequate water and soap supplies, and knowledge of appropriate hygiene practices are missing.

In Nigeria, 36% of the population are without clean water and 72% lack access to improved sanitation; making washing hands and keeping clean a huge challenge. Whilst information about the crucial importance of handwashing in stopping the spread of the Ebola virus is now being promoted across affected regions, many communities and individuals still do not understand or continue to disregard the link between simple hygiene practices such as handwashing with soap and the huge benefits it offers.

The cholera outbreak that has continued to plague neighbouring Ghana and pocket outbreaks of the disease in Nigeria further serves to highlight the poor levels of water and sanitation services that prevail in many African countries. Such conditions not only aid the spread of disease but make it harder for healthcare services to contain infections from spreading.

Ebola virus
Ebola virus

Speaking on Global Handwashing Day (15 October 2014), Dr. Michael Ojo, Country Representative of WaterAid Nigeria stated: “With half the hospitals in Africa without a suitable supply of clean water; 35 per cent of Africans without clean water and 70 per cent without basic sanitation, tackling and preventing disease outbreaks become a major challenge.

“While thankfully the Ebola outbreak has been contained in Nigeria, the disease has already affected many and continues to remain a critical threat in other countries in the West Africa region and therefore to Nigeria. In addition, an estimated 234,000 people will die this year in our country because of diarrhoea and pneumonia, both of which we can help to tackle through handwashing with soap. While Global Handwashing Day is a great opportunity for us to get the message out that we can help to protect ourselves and our families through regular handwashing with soap, we also have to repeat these messages and ensure that people are acting upon them each and every day if we are to tackle these and other public health emergencies.

“Already, thousands of our precious children continue to die needlessly from entirely preventable diseases that are water-borne or as a result of lack of access to sanitation and poor hygiene practices. Now, we have the added global threat of Ebola. It is not business as usual. The simple act of washing hands with soap at critical moments – such as after using the toilet and before handling food – remains a key cost-effective and life-saving intervention in preventing all of these diseases and deaths.”

The World Bank has stated that handwashing with soap is the single most cost-effective health intervention. The UK Department for International Development has highlighted that its effectiveness compared to cost ranks higher than combating malaria, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS.

Sunny Neji, 2face Idibia perform at Global Handwashing Day

Michael Simire
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Sunny Neji, 2face Idibia perform at Global Handwashing Day

With the support of Carex Hand Wash Soap and Etisalat, as well as performances by music artists, Sunny Neji and 2face Idibia, the Concern Universal’s Global Handwashing Day campaign is shaping up to be one of the largest and most impactful in the Day’s history.

2face Idibia
2face Idibia

Diseases resulting from poor hygiene are the leading causes of death in children – with diarrhoea alone killing one in five Nigerian infants. As many as 50% of these deaths can be prevented by simply washing hands with soap. In response, each year on 15th October, over 200 million people around the world come together to celebrate Global Handwashing Day and to promote hand washing with soap.

To maximise the Day’s impact in Nigeria, Concern Universal has teamed up with some of the county’s best known musicians and companies to run a month-long campaign that will feature special events and musical performances, text message and media coverage and will empower thousands of children to transform their schools, families, and communities.

Two impressive theme songs by Sunny Neji have 2face Idibia have been written and recorded exclusively for the campaign – and can be accessed on our Facebook and YouTube sites. They will feature on TV and radio before, during and after the Day. There will also be interviews with these famous sons of Cross River and Benue states explaining what inspired them to write and record their own songs about hand washing.

Tim Kellow, Nigeria Country Director, Concern Universal, says: “We want their creative and life-saving messages to reach as many people as possible, so we encourage you to share the links through your contacts and networks (WhatsApp etc). If you would like to use these songs in your own Global Handwashing Day events, or for school activities or hygiene promotion events, please let us know.”

Sunny Neji
Sunny Neji

To reinforce the campaign’s simple and life-saving message and help secure genuine behaviour change, our communication partner Etisalat will send three separate text messages on the importance of handwashing with soap to all of their customers in Nigeria during October – one on 15th October itself, and one a few days either side. Kellow wants recepients to share these text messages with those that they care about or use them as the basis of communication on the Day. Text messages will also be sent that promote the campaign theme songs and offer people the chance to download them as call-back and ring tones.

The campaign will culminate in a week-long celebration that kicks-off on October 15th at an event in Bekwarra LGA, Cross River State, featuring an exclusive performance by Sunny Neji, and ends on October 22nd at an event in Logo LGA, Benue State, featuring 2face Idibia. The celebrations, hosted by campaign sponsor Carex Hand Wash Soap, will spread awareness of handwashing with soap by transforming hundreds of school children into ‘hygiene heroes’ – vehicles of change in their communities.

Each event will feature over 500 children from 25 schools in rural communities that are part of the Rural Sanitation & Hygiene Promotion in Nigeria (RUSHPIN) project that Concern Universal coordinates. The children will be engaged in creative activities and, inspired by the songs written by their heroes, will compete against other schools to perform their own handwashing songs and win Carex prizes.

“This campaign promises to be one of the largest and most creative Global Handwashing Day to date, and has already generated substantial publicity on our Facebook page – Concern Universal Nigeria – which is the best way to receive and share campaign updates throughout your networks,” discloses Kellow.

Experts to brief media, specialists on IPCC report

Michael Simire
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Ahead of the approval of the Summary of Policy-Makers (SPM) and adoption of the Synthesis Report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) by month ending, journalists and environmentalists in Nigeria and beyond will be briefed by a panel at a virtual session on Saturday.

Rajendra K. Pachauri, Chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
Rajendra K. Pachauri, Chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)

The video press briefing, organised by the Global Campaign for Climate Action (GCCA) and the Earth Journalism Network (EJN) in conjunction with EnviroNews Nigeria/Development Communications Network, will feature a panel including Prof Olukayode Oladipo (renowned climatologist), Kaisa Kosonen of Greenpeace and Alister Doyle of Reuters.

The video session, which will utilise the “GoTo Meeting” conferencing software, will hold by 12 noon Nigerian time on Saturday, October 18, 2014.

During the session, Prof. Oladipo will give insights on the AR5 (the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report), and related reports and their implications to Nigeria and the developing world.

Kosonen is the Greenpeace lead on AR5 and has been to all the three Working Groups. Apart from explaining what the science means (for politics, business and community), she will talk about the science-policy interface in the IPCC process and how governments own these reports.

Doyle is happy to share his experience in covering IPCC, finding stories and angles that work for an outlet like Reuters (and the many others who run Reuters stories), making the science accessible, and selling it to its editors.

The IPCC’s Synthesis Report is the capstone of an assessment report, which distills, synthesises and integrates the findings of the working group contributions into a concise document.

This integrated approach allows the Synthesis Report to draw together the assessment of past changes in climate as well as projections for the future from the three working group reports already released as well as the two Special Reports brought out in 2011.

It covers both adaptation and mitigation to provide an overview of possible risks and solutions. A synthesis approach allows authors to highlight contrasts and make comparisons between findings from different working groups. These comparisons provide critically important information for policymakers.

The process will be rounded up with a formal presentation of the report on November 2 in Copenhagen, Denmark by the Chairman of the IPCC, Rajendra Pachauri. Other panellists at that session will include United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) Michel Jarraud, and the Secretary of the IPCC, Renate Christ. Authors that have contributed to the report will be present.

However, the GCCA/EJN video press briefing in Nigeria is intended to prepare journalists and interested practitioners for SPM and Synthesis report release. Persons wishing to participate in the briefing can register at: http://goo.gl/forms/H5KWKPCYU1.

Eggheads explore emerging African Urban Agenda

Michael Simire
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Eggheads explore emerging African Urban Agenda

Efforts to tackle the growing challenge of urbanisation on the African continent is being revisited as settlement development practitioners gather for three days in Lagos from Monday, October 13, 2014 to explore the emerging African Urban Agenda.

Dr. Leke Oduwaye, Professor of Urban & Regional Planning, and Dean, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, University of Lagos, Akoka, Nigeria
Dr. Leke Oduwaye, Professor of Urban & Regional Planning, and former Dean, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, University of Lagos, Akoka, Nigeria

The Department of Urban and Regional Planning of the University of Lagos in Nigeria will host professionals and students from around the world in a conference to discuss the continent’s human settlements trials.

The conference, with the theme: “The Urban Agenda for Africa: Realities, Challenges and Potentials”, is aimed at providing a multi-disciplinary and multi-stakeholder platform to discuss and debate the subject.

The conference is expected to be attended by distinguished guests, presenters and audiences from both within and outside of academia. Four key-note addresses will be delivered by: High Commissioner of South Africa Nigeria, Lulu Louis Mnaguni; Prof. Tunde Agbola, Chair of the Association of African Planning Schools; Mr. Ibrahim Aliko of telecommunications services provider Etisalat; and Ibrahim Dikko of the Dar al Handasah Group. Prof. Vanessa Watson of the University of Cape Town, Co-Chair of the Association of African Planning Schools, will make a video presentation.

Also, there will be a special panel session on urbanisation, trends and patterns in Nigeria titled “Urban Research Nigeria”. This panel will be chaired by Dr. Bunmi Ajayi, a renowned urban planning professional in Nigeria, with Prof J.B. Falade formerly of the UNDP and UN-Habitat as the discussant. The presenters of this session will be Dr. Robin Bloch and Nikolas Papachritodoulou, both from from ICT International; Dr Andres Rigon, who is affiliated with the Development Planning Unit; and Dr Jessica Lamond from the University of the West of England.

A PhD colloquium is also one of the major events of the conference and it is sponsored by the Heinrich Böll Foundation in Nigeria.

Over 60 peer reviewed academic papers are scheduled for presentation in parallel sessions during the three-day conference. The conference dinner speech will be delivered by the Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Mrs. Orelope Adefulire.

This year, two separate gatherings in Chad and Columbia examined the urban agenda issue. In February in N’djamena at the fifth session of the African Ministerial Council on Housing and Urban Development (AMCHUD), African ministers tabled housing finance and related topics for discussion.

The meeting, which had “Case Studies in Financing Human Settlements in Africa: Appropriate Legislative Frameworks and Innovations in Implementation” as its theme, essentially:

  • Developed an enhanced operational compendium for legislative framework and innovative practices for human settlements financing;
  • Defined ‘Africa Urban Agenda 2063’ that will also serve as an input into the African Union’s ‘Agenda 2063 as well as to the Post-2015 Agenda and to Habitat III; and,
  • Adopted the N’Djamena Declaration on Financing Human Settlements in Africa

Similarly, the seventh session of the World Urban Forum held in April in Medellin.

Both forums held in the wake of mounting efforts towards the articulation and adoption of a New African Urban Agenda, which is required to tackle the growing challenge of urbanisation on the continent. These processes, it was gathered, will lead up to the landmark third United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development, billed to take place in 2016.

Nigeria, which is leading preparations under this initiative in Africa, had last year demonstrated its commitment to the process with a pledge of $3million spread over three years, to drive participation by African countries.

Bodo spill: London court blocks Shell oil deal

Michael Simire
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Bodo spill: London court blocks Shell oil deal

The High Court in London on Thursday blocked an agreement between the oil giant Shell and the UK law firm CW Law in relation to over 7,000 claims of Nigerians, which the Marble Arch based law firm claimed it represented, in a dispute over oil spills in Nigeria.

Aftermath of oil spill in Bodo. Photo: Leigh Day
Aftermath of oil spill in Bodo. Photo: Leigh Day

Mr Justice Akenhead, the President of the Technological and Construction Court, blocked the deal and upheld an injunction against CW Law which prevents them, or anyone representing them, to make contact with the people of Bodo in furtherance of the settlement agreement.

The judge made it clear that Leigh Day are proceeding with the case to trial in the High Court next year and that many thousands of claimants are entitled to damages under the Oil Pipelines Act which could be substantial.

In Thursday’s verdict, the judge also said there may have already been a major breach of an existing interim injunction against CW Law. He said that Leigh Day had strong evidence that representatives of CW Law had breached the order by continuing to seek to sign up claimants whilst the order was in place.

Leigh Day now has three working days to set out to the Court which breaches of the order they would seek contempt proceedings on. CW Law will have 10 working days to respond and provide full evidence of the instructions they have from claimants to represent them.

CW Law was accused, by law firm Leigh Day, of unlawfully entering into settlement talks with Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) on behalf of many villagers of Bodo, in the Niger Delta, who they didn’t represent and who were not clients of the firm.

The settlement agreement between CW Law and Shell, given as evidence in Court on Thursday, sought to settle the claims for £150 each with an additional £390 per claimant going into a Trust. The Agreement also included an incentivised costs structure for CW Law which would see them paid more, by Shell, the more claimants it signed up to the scheme.

Bodo villagers
Bodo villagers. Photo: Leigh Day

With a population of 14,000 people, the great majority of the villagers are represented by London based law firm Leigh Day in one of the largest environmental legal cases in history following two massive oil spills in 2008 from pipelines operated by oil giant Shell.

Leigh Day has spent three years gathering witness statements and verifying its list of clients on the ground, in Nigeria, to fight the case against Shell in the UK Courts.

In August 2014, Leigh Day learned that SPDC had entered into a settlement with CW Law, English Solicitors, who claimed to represent 7,400 of the villagers.

Leigh Day visited Bodo and spoke to the Chairman of the Council of Chiefs & Elders in Bodo, the Chiefs of the Council and the Village Heads of the 35 villages that make up Bodo and confirmed that they had not heard of CW Law or the Nigerian lawyers Egbegi & Co, who claimed to be working with CW Law.

Speaking after the judgment, the Senior Partner of Leigh Day, Martyn Day, said:”We are very pleased that the Judge agreed to block the deal between Shell and CW Law as far as our clients are concerned.

“This paltry deal may have been lucrative to the lawyers involved but it would have meant peanuts ‎for those of our clients caught by it. The Bodo Creek is damaged for decades to come. We will only resolve the claims when Shell is prepared to pay properly for the damage it has caused.”

Bodo oil spill and fire. Photo: Leigh Day
Bodo oil spill and fire. Photo: Leigh Day

Shell is accused of two leaks from its pipelines in 2008/09, which devastated the environment surrounding the community of Bodo, in Gokana Local Government Area, Rivers State, Nigeria.

Bodo is a fishing town. It sits in the midst of 90 sq km of mangroves swamps and channels, which are the perfect breeding ground for fish and shellfish.The Bodo community is a rural coastal settlement consisting of 31,000 people who live in 35 villages. The majority of its inhabitants are subsistence fishermen and farmers. Until the two 2008 spills Bodo was a relatively prosperous town based on fishing.  According to Leigh Day, the spills have destroyed the fishing industry.

Expert evidence indicates 1,000 hectares of mangroves have been destroyed by the spills and a further 5,000 hectares have been impacted.

The United Nations, Amnesty International and the Nigerian government have all expressed disappointment with Shell’s lack of action in the region. Impoverished local fishermen have been left without a source of income, and have received no compensation.

The Ogoni fishing and farming communities have accused Shell of applying different standards to clean-ups in Nigeria compared with the rest of the world. Amnesty has described the oil spill investigations ‘a fiasco’.

‘Africa can feed Africa without GMOs’

Michael Simire
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‘Africa can feed Africa without GMOs’

Experts at the Africa Climate Change conference in Marrakech, Morocco have restated Africa’s capacity to feed itself now and in the future without genetically modified organisms.

Mrs Olushola Olayide of the African Union Commission
Mrs Olushola Olayide of the African Union Commission

They however warned that it would require increased investment in climate change research, development and innovation to make technology accessible and affordable for farmers, to enhance opportunities for easy access to agricultural finance and insurance, to facilitate trading and access to markets at all levels, and to create an enabling environment for private sector investment in the agricultural value chain.

Mrs. Olushola Olayide, a representative of the Africa Union Commission at the conference, stated that the absence of an AU official position on GMOs does not manifestly translate into an endorsement of the organisms as “the continent has recorded good success stories in local food production and conservation methods in Benin and Malawi and, with these efforts being upscaled currently, Africa will comfortably feed Africa.”

For Dr Abdalla Hamdok, the Deputy Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the GMO issue is “a debatable one as they are problems in addressing biodiversity and loss but its potential to create enhancement in productivity cannot be discountenanced.”

 

Civil society concerns

Mithika Mwenda of the Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA), representing over 800 African civil society organisations including  small scale farmers, faith based organisations and indigenous peoples at the Marrakech conference, declared emphatically that Africa can only feed Africa when words are translated into action, put in place mechanisms and frameworks aimed at putting more money into agriculture in line with the Abuja Declaration, and ensure extensive implementation of the CAADP framework as well as integrate climate change adaptation strategies into agriculture.

According to Mwenda, African civil society is concerned about GMOs because the interest of the multinationals promoting them is at variance with the long-term interests of African farmers. “GMOs constitute a threat to the survival of small holder farmers across Africa as it will create more poverty and food insecurity,” he said.

 

FAO warning

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations recently warned African countries against the use of genetically modified organisms as they are not needed to improve food production and are unsuitable for many countries in Africa.

While issuing the warning, Jose Graziano da Silva, FAO Director General, added, “Our position as FAO is not that we are against GMOs but we are saying we don’t need them now to eradicate hunger.”

He further expressed concerns about the impact of GMOs on the environment as “we don’t know what will happen to areas of production and the crops.”  “It is risky for continents whose crops have GMOs; we want to ensure that proper security measures related to environment contamination are taken.”

 

Expensive technology

A report on the conclusions of the 2008 International Assessment of Agriculture Science and Technology (IAASTD) underlined the fact that GM is not a suitable technology for alleviating hunger because it does not benefit small and subsistence farmers, and it is these farmers that provide 70% of the world’s food.

The IAASTD report emphasised that agro-ecological approaches were the most appropriate technologies to tackle food security and hunger. Techniques focused on building organic matter in soil to help in drought situations, utilising mixed cropping and rotations, and the use of agro-forestry are showing they can deliver increased yield and greater resilience. These techniques are not reliant upon expensive inputs like fertilisers and pesticides that GMOs rely on, and that small farmers can ill afford.

GMOs are organisms whose genetic material have been altered  using genetic engineering techniques and those modified  include micro-organisms such as bacteria, yeast, insects, plants, fish and mammals.

By Atayi Babs

‘Africa is ready for Green Climate Fund’

Michael Simire
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‘Africa is ready for Green Climate Fund’
Dr Abdalla Hamdok
Dr Abdalla Hamdok

Africa’s readiness to receive and deploy funds towards projects aimed at increasing the continent’s climate resilience capacity has been confirmed.

Speaking at the fourth edition of the Climate Change Development in Africa (CCDA-IV) conference in Marrakech, Morocco, Dr Abdalla Hamdok, the Deputy Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), declared that Africa is indeed ready for the Green Climate Fund (GCF).

“In view of the fact that Africa is at the receiving end of problems of flood and drought, Africa is quite ready to benefit a lot from alternative development as well as chart the path that embraces green technology,” declared Hamdok.

Reinforcing the continent’s capacity to equitably manage the GCF funds through institutional frameworks such as ClimDev Africa at the African Development Bank, the ECA Deputy Executive Secretary believes that, with Africa’s 55 countries, the $100 billion pledge should be considered as the minimum.

The GCF represents a potential watershed moment for climate finance in Africa. To date, the flows of climate finance of the continent have been inadequate in comparison to the continent’s needs.

Africa is widely acknowledged as the region in the world most vulnerable to climate change, while its recent impressive economic growth has placed an increased focus on the resources required to ensure that emissions do not grow correspondingly.

By Atayi Babs

Morocco welcomes PACJA, pledges support

Michael Simire
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Morocco welcomes PACJA, pledges support

Following the successful launch of the Moroccan chapter of the Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA) at the sidelines of the African Climate Change conference in Marrakech, Morocco, the government of the Kingdom of Morocco has welcomed the initiative.

Sam Ogallah (left) with Ms Hakima El Haite
Sam Ogallah (left) with Ms Hakima El Haite

While commending the organisation for its extensive advocacy on climate justice for Africa, the Minister Delegate to the Minister of Energy, Mining, Water and Environment, Morocco, H.E Ms. Hakima El Haite, pledged the support of the Moroccan government towards ensuring effective collaboration with civil society using the credible platform already provided by the new PACJA chapter.

Sam Ogallah of appreciated the support of the Moroccan government and called for greater collaboration with governments in North Africa as the march towards a new global treaty beckons in Paris.

The PACJA Coordinator for North Africa who doubles as the head of the Moroccan chapter, Said Chakri, pledged to deploy the network’s extensive contacts in driving the attainment of climate justice objectives across the region.

By Atayi Babs

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