The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Felix Omatsola Ogbe, on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, inspected the ongoing training of 305 youths in specialised oil and gas industry skills at the Centre for Marine and Offshore Technology Development (CMOTD), Rivers State University (RSU).
Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Felix Omatsola Ogbe (in black), with officials of the Rivers State University during the inspection
Sponsored by the NCDMB, the trainings cover seven technical areas, which include Automation, Instrumentation and Control, Mechanical/Process Piping and System Design/ Pressure Vessel and Heat Exchanges Design (PV-ELITE), Electrical Power Transformer Repairs and Maintenance, and Industrial/Practical Ship Design and Construction. Other specialist areas covered by the training include Oil Well Surveillance and Enhancement Analysis Training, Capacity Building on Big Data Analytics and International Class Welding, Fabrication and Qualification.
The programme is designed for four months and forms part of the Board’s Human Capacity Development initiative, curated to close identified indigenous manpower competency gaps. Participants were selected from the Nigerian Oil and Gas Joint Qualification System (NOGICJQS) which is the oil industry’s repository of human and technical competencies.
The Executive Secretary in his remarks charged the participants to make good value of the opportunity, emphasising that the skills they are acquiring are highly sought after in the oil and gas industry and beyond. He assured that NCDMB would continue to train Nigerians in key skills required in the operations of the oil industry and linkage sectors, and create employment opportunities, as part of the agency’s mandate, and to support the actualisation of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration’s aspirations for the economy.
Ogbe also visited the Advanced Marine Engineering and Offshore Engineering Research Centre, that was erected at the university by an international oil company as part of the Nigerian Content institutional strengthening initiative. The Executive Secretary promised that the furnishing and partitioning of the building would be executed, so the building can be utilised for the intended purpose. He also promised to review the delayed completion of the staff quarters, which the NCDMB built for the university.
The NCDMB boss and his delegation were received by the Vice Chancellor of the University, Prof. Isaac Zeb-Obipi; the National Chairman, Nigerian Institution of Marine Engineers and Naval Architects (NIMENA) / Chairman, Management Board, CMOTD, Dr. Sylvanus Eferebo; Dean, Faculty of Engineering, Prof. J. Akpa; and other management personnel of the university.
Dr. Eferebo informed that Rivers State University is designated by the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) as the centre of excellence in marine engineering, because of the school’s specialty in the area of study and the existence of three centres in marine studies in the institution.
He also affirmed that 70 percent of trainers for CMOTD’s programmes are being contributed from the oil and gas industry and other sectors, while 30 percent are from the university. The essence, he explained, is to ensure that the trainings contain a high flavour of industry’s requirements and comply with COREN’s regulations for industry’s representatives to play key roles in the formation of engineers in Nigeria.
Around 91 per cent of renewable energy projects commissioned in 2024 was cheaper than fossil fuels, according to a study published on Tuesday, July 22, 2025.
Francesco La Camera, IRENA’s Director-General
The report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), found that the average cost of solar power was 41 per cent lower than the cheapest fossil fuel options, while onshore wind energy was 53 per cent cheaper.
UN Secretary General, António Guterres, hailed the findings as the dawn of a “new era.”
“The clean energy future is no longer a promise. It’s a fact,” Guterres said in New York at the presentation of the report. “No government, no industry, no special interest can stop it.”
“Countries that cling to fossil fuels are not protecting their economies they are sabotaging them,” said Guterres.
According to the study, the expansion of renewable energies not only brings progress in climate protection, but also has direct economic effects.
In 2024 alone, 582 gigawatts of new renewable capacity will be installed worldwide, “avoiding fossil fuel use valued at about 57 billion dollars,” it said in a press release.
According to the UN secretary general, a lack of investment in the industry would weaken countries’ competitiveness.
Those sticking to fossil fuels are missing out, he said, on the greatest economic opportunity of the 21st century.
Guterres also argued that countries would become more independent and less vulnerable by transitioning to renewables.
Energy crises such as the one experienced in Europe following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could be avoided with renewable energies, he said.
There are no price spikes for sunlight. No embargoes on wind.
Environmental stakeholders have raised alarm over ongoing carbon offset projects in Nigeria, calling them a dangerous form of modern exploitation that undermines local communities and ecosystems.
Carbon Offset
The stakeholders, comprising advocates and forest community leaders, voiced their concerns on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, in Benin during a dialogue organised by the Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF).
Carbon offsetting refers to compensatory actions taken by companies or countries responsible for greenhouse gas emissions.
These actions include paying for activities such as tree planting or forest conservation in other locations to “offset” or neutralise their carbon footprint.
While these carbon credits are traded in global markets, critics argue that the system is flawed, vulnerable to manipulation, and offers no real solution to the climate crisis.
In his opening remarks, Dr Nnimmo Bassey, Executive Director of HOMEF, said the carbon trading model was a ‘false solution’ that benefits foreign corporations while dispossessing local communities.
“Our people have always managed forests sustainably. When communities steward forests, they thrive. But once governments or corporations take over in the name of carbon protection, those forests become vulnerable,” he said.
Bassey disclosed that Nigeria had already lost over 90 per cent of its forest cover, with many so-called protected areas facing threats from illegal logging and mining.
He cited massive land grabs in Niger, Delta, and Cross River states, some as large as a million hectares, signed off under the guise of carbon offset projects.
A panel discussion session at the event
“These deals don’t benefit our communities. In Mozambique, families were paid just $100 for seven years to watch over trees. For the next 99 years, they were barred from farming or accessing forest resources. That is carbon slavery,” he said.
Bassey also criticised the alleged deceptive nature of long-term carbon contracts.
“A tree may live a thousand years, but it will still die. These contracts run for 20 years or more, claiming the carbon value, after which the trees can be felled, and the communities are left with nothing,” he added.
Also speaking, Rita Nwaka of Environmental Rights Action (ERA) challenged the global narrative that equates monoculture plantations with forests.
“Our forests are more than just trees. They provide food, medicine, livelihoods, and cultural identity. It is the communities, not corporations that are the rightful custodians,” she said.
She shared a story of a 78-year-old traditional midwife whose medicinal practice was lost after plantations destroyed the forest that supplied her herbs.
Another widow, she said, received just N14,000 as compensation for 15 acres of productive farmland.
Nwaka also condemned reports of militarisation and gender-based violence in areas affected by REDD+ and carbon trading projects.
She revealed that women had faced harassment and even shootings during peaceful protests against a palm oil firm in Edo.
“We say no to REDD+, no to carbon credits, and no to false solutions. These schemes prioritise profit over people,” she declared.
A Panelist, Orheke Prince, traced the origins of the carbon market to the Kyoto Protocol, faulting its framework for excluding the voices of communities directly impacted by such schemes.
“We were never part of the design. That’s why we are resisting it. Any solution that is not co-developed with us is a solution imposed against us,” he said.
The dialogue, themed “The Truth Behind the Carbon Offset Market”, drew participation from activists, forest dwellers, and scholars from across the Niger Delta.
Africa is increasingly becoming a destination for cheap, often toxic petroleum products – many of which are blended to substandard levels that would not be permitted in Europe or North America.
Dangote Refinery
This concern was raised by the President/Chief Executive, Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, during the ongoing West African Refined Fuel Conference in Abuja. The event is organised by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and S&P Global Commodity Insights.
Dangote revealed that, due to the continent’s limited domestic refining capacity, Africa imports over 120 million tonnes of refined petroleum products annually, at a cost of approximately $90 billion.
While appreciating the management of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) for making some cargoes of Nigerian crude available to from start of production to date, he revealed that the company, monthly imports between 9 to 10 million barrels of crude from the United States of America and other countries.
He said: “As we speak today, we buy 9 to 10 million barrels of crude monthly from US and other countries. I must thank NNPC for making some cargoes of Nigerian crude available to us from start of production to date.”
Dangote further stated that despite producing around 7 million barrels of crude oil per day, Africa only refines about 40% of its 4.3 million barrels daily consumption of refined products domestically. In stark contrast, Europe and Asia refine over 95% of what they consume.
“So, while we produce plenty of crude, we still import over 120 million tonnes of refined petroleum products each year, effectively exporting jobs and importing poverty into our continent. That’s a $90 billion market opportunity being captured by regions with surplus refining capacity. To put this in perspective: only about 15% of African countries have a GDP greater than $90 billion. We are effectively handing over an entire continent’s economic potential to others – year after year,” he said.
While reaffirming his belief in the power of free markets and international cooperation, Dangote emphasised that trade must be grounded in economic efficiency and comparative advantage – not at the expense of quality or safety standards. He stressed that, “it defies logic and economic sense for Africa to be exporting raw crude only to re-import refined products – products we are more than capable of producing ourselves, closer to both source and consumption.”
Reflecting on the experience of delivering the world’s largest single-train refinery, Dangote also highlighted a range of challenges faced, including technical, commercial, and contextual hurdles unique to the African landscape.
Africa’s wealthiest man described building refineries such as the Dangote Petroleum Refinery as one of the most capital-intensive and logistically complex industrial facilities ever constructed. The Dangote refinery project, he said, required clearing 2,735 hectares of land (seven times the size of Victoria Island), of which 70% was swampy, requiring the pumping of 65 million cubic metres of sand to stabilise the site and raise it by 1.5 metres, over 250,000 foundation piles, and millions of metres of piping, cabling, and electrical wiring among others.
“At peak, we had over 67,000 people on-site of which 50,000 are Nigerians, coordinating around the clock across hundreds of disciplines and nationalities. Then, of course, came the COVID-19 pandemic which set us back by two years and brought new levels of complexity, disruption, and risk. But we persevered,” he noted.
The refinery also required the construction of a dedicated seaport, as existing Nigerian ports could not handle the size and volume of equipment required. This included over 2,500 pieces of heavy equipment, 330 cranes, and even the establishment of the world’s largest granite quarry, with a production capacity of 10 million tonnes per year.
“In short, we didn’t just build a refinery – we built an entire industrial ecosystem from scratch,” he said.
Despite the refinery’s technical success, Dangote identified significant commercial challenges, particularly exchange rates which have gone from N156/$ at inception to N1,600/$ at completion, and challenges around crude oil sourcing. Although Nigeria is said to produce about 2 million barrels per day, the refinery has struggled to secure crude at competitive terms.
“Rather than buying crude oil directly from Nigerian producers at competitive terms, we found ourselves having to negotiate with international trading companies, who were buying Nigerian crude and reselling it to us—with hefty premiums, of course.”
Logistics and regulatory bottlenecks have also taken a toll. Port and regulatory charges reportedly account for 40% of total freight costs, sometimes costing two-thirds as much as chartering the vessel itself.
“Refiners in India, who purchase crude oil from regions even farther away, enjoy lower freight costs than we do right here in West Africa because they are not saddled with exorbitant port charges,” Dangote said.
He added that, in terms of port charges, it is currently more expensive to load a domestic cargo of petroleum products from the Dangote Refinery, as customers pay both at the point of loading and at the point of discharge. In contrast, when they load from Lomé, which competes with them, they pay only at the point of discharge.
Dangote further criticised the lack of harmonised fuel standards across African nations, which creates artificial barriers for regional trade in refined products.
“The fuel we produce for Nigeria cannot be sold in Cameroon or Ghana or Togo, even though we all drive the same vehicles. This lack of harmonisation benefits no one – except, of course, international traders, who thrive on arbitrage. For local refiners like us, it fragments the market and imposes unnecessary inefficiencies.”
Dangote, stating the challenge with diesel production in Africa, noted, “to give one example, the diesel cloud point for Nigeria is 4 degrees. Without going into the technical details, this means that the diesel should work at a temperature of 4 degrees centigrade. Achieving this comes at a cost to us and limits the types of crude we could process. But how many places in Nigeria experience temperatures of 4 degrees? Other African countries have a more reasonable range of 7 to 12 degrees. This is a low hanging fruit which could be addressed by the regulators.”
He also cited the growing influx of discounted, low-quality fuel originating from Russia – blended with Russian crude under price caps and dumped in African markets.
“And to make matters worse, we are now facing increasing dumping of cheap, often toxic, petroleum products – some of which are blended to substandard levels that would never be allowed in Europe or North America,” he said.
Dangote called on African governments to follow the example of the United States, Canada, and the European Union, which have implemented protective measures for domestic refiners.
The United States would withdraw from UNESCO by the end of 2026, the government said on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, two years after rejoining the United Nations’ cultural agency.
US State Department spokeswoman, Tammy Bruce
“Today, the United States informed Director-General Audrey Azoulay of the United States’ decision to withdraw from UNESCO,” State Department spokeswoman, Tammy Bruce, said in a statement.
“Continued involvement in UNESCO is not in the national interest of the United States,” it added.
U.S. President Donald Trump ordered a review of the country’s involvement and funding in the United Nations in early February, just days after taking office for a second term.
At the time, Trump said the UN had “tremendous potential” but “it’s not being well run.”
The UN Educational, Scientific, Cultural and Communication Organisation (UNESCO) is tasked with promoting cooperation across those sectors and is best known for its World Heritage list, which includes sites recognised for their special cultural, historical or natural significance.
In the statement, the State Department accused the organisation of working “to advance divisive social and cultural causes and maintains an outsized focus on the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, a globalist, ideological agenda for international development at odds with our America First foreign policy.”
“UNESCO’s decision to admit the ‘State of Palestine’ as a Member State is highly problematic, contrary to U.S policy, and contributed to the proliferation of anti-Israel rhetoric within the organisation.”
Trump first pulled the U.S. from the cultural agency during his first term in 2018, before the country rejoined under the Biden administration in 2023.
World Heritage Sites in the United States include Yellowstone National Park, Statue of Liberty and the 20th-Century Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright.
A powerful wave of global actions is set to take place this September as movements across the world unite in historic global days of action. Under the banner Draw the Line, communities will mobilise in towns and cities to draw the line against injustice, pollution, and violence, and for a just transition and a future built on renewable energy, fairness, and peace.
The #RiseforClimate rally. Draw the Line is s global rallying cry supported by workers, youth, indigenous groups, and social movements
The call has become a global rallying cry supported by workers, youth, indigenous groups, and social movements. In a world marked by escalating climate disasters, rising authoritarianism, and deepening inequality, the message is clear: we must draw the line for people and the planet.
Draw the Line is a global action (September 15 to 28) with widespread mobilisations large and small peaking over the weekend of September 19 to 21, 2025. The call to action to Draw the Line: Rights, Jobs and Justice, is being co-convened by a network of global climate organisations 350.org, CAN-International, APMDD and War on Want, together with other local, regional and global movements across the world.
This announcement comes at the same time as a major climate address by the UN Secretary-General António Guterres in New York, where he declared the shift to renewable energy is already happening and emphasised the economic, social, and security benefits of a just transition away from fossil fuels.
Participants in Draw the Line are planning thousands of actions across continents, from red and green lines to long marches, strikes, festivals, community gatherings, and cultural events. Mass “line” formations, symbolic boundary markings, and bold artistic interventions will demand just transitions, climate finance for the Global South and fossil fuel phase-outs, among other demands.
Hundreds of events are to take place, including mobilisations in Johannesburg, New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Karachi, Lahore, Nairobi, Cotonou, Ottawa, New York City, London, Paris, Berlin, Suva, Melbourne, Jakarta, Manila, Tokyo, Dhaka, and Belem.
The September mobilisation comes just six weeks before world leaders gather in Brazil for COP30. Movements will call for a better world for ourselves, our children and our communities.
“A world with renewable, affordable energy for everyone. A world where we can speak up for our rights, where people and nature are safe, and where big polluters help pay to fix the climate crisis.
“Our future belongs to us, not to polluters and billionaires. This is our line to draw.”
The demands include:
Change the system through an equitable and just transition:
We demand climate action to centre workers and communities, a Just Transition requires putting people’s needs and voices front and centre on decision-making. Climate action should deliver dignity for working people and everyone hurt by the climate crisis and the unfair systems behind it. A global just transition needs to help every country thrive without harming our planet.
Power Up Renewables, Shut Down Polluters:
No new fossil fuel projects. No new projects, finance – public or private – subsidies and no new approvals, licences, permits, or extensions.
A rapid, fair, and equitable orderly phase out of decline in fossil fuel production in line with the 1.5C temperature limit must start now, with a global plan, like a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, in order to ensure that each country does its fair part with rich countries moving first and fastest.
Triple renewables by 2030 and make them socially owned, affordable, distributed and led by communities.
Justice and human rights must be at the heart of the energy transition. End colonial practices in renewable expansion.
Fund the Future, not the Crisis:
Tax their billions, break the fossil fuel and agribusiness oligarchies, make polluters pay: back national and global wealth taxes on the super-rich and a permanent increase of taxes on fossil fuel corporations. Economic and political power must be redistributed to serve people and the planet through progressive tax systems.
Climate finance is a right, not charity. It’s part of the reparations for a historic debt owed by the Global North for centuries of extraction and exploitation: we demand a real roadmap to get to the trillions not billions, with grants – not loans – to fund real solutions in the Global South. People living in harmony with nature must receive direct funding for their essential ancient knowledge in preserving biodiversity and climate justice, with fair, transparent, and immediate compensation for the harm they suffer.
Cancel illegitimate debts, end austerity so communities can build thriving futures. Public money must fund investments in green jobs, renewables for all, affordable housing, health and education services, public transport and locally rooted just transitions.
Divest from war to invest in social and climate justice. This means divesting from major arms companies and the asset managers and insurers (Big Finance) that supports and sustains them, and cutting global military spending – at least 10% of national military budgets – to redirect the funds to strengthen initiatives that prevent rather than perpetuate and profit from conflict and climate change (such as climate finance, social welfare, civil society, peacebuilding, gender equity).
Reclaim Democracy:
Protect people, not polluters.
Kick fossil fuel companies and their lobbyists out of politics. Decisions about our future should be made by people and communities, especially those most affected by climate change – not big companies. Indigenous peoples, who help protect the Earth, and frontline communities must have a real say in climate talks.
Climate action should provide dignity to workers, and everyone hurt by the climate crisis and the unfair system behind it. A fair global energy transition should help every country thrive without harming our planet.
Build Peace:
End war, violent conflict, and genocide.
Defend Human Rights, Freedom, and Peace.
Protect the right to protest, organise, and speak out.
Restore Our Relationship with the Earth:
Stop large-scale industrial farming. It makes climate change worse, drives deforestation, relies on burning fossil fuels and violates human rights. Instead, switch to fair agriculture that protects nature, respects land rights, and gives communities control over their own food.
United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, said in a special address on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, that the rising abundance and falling costs of wind, solar and other renewable energy sources present “the dawn of a new energy era” of cheap, clean power and an opportunity to meet the climate challenge.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres visits solar panels on the roof of the U.N. Headquarters. Photo credit: Mark Garten/Courtesy of the United Nations
“The fossil fuel age is flailing and failing,” Guterres said, adding that nearly all new power capacity built last year came from renewable sources. He said the economics of renewable energy had passed a tipping point making the clean energy transition “unstoppable.”
Guterres called on nations to fully embrace the potential of clean energy as they submit plans to meet greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets. He also challenged major tech companies to meet their surging demand for power for data centres with 100 percent renewable energy by 2030.
“By 2030, data centres could consume as much electricity as all of Japan does today,” Guterres said. “This is not sustainable, unless we make it so.”
Drawing on statistics from a report released on Tuesday by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), Guterres lauded the remarkable growth of renewable energy in the decade since the Paris Climate Agreement was signed in 2015.
Solar and wind power, once costly alternatives to electricity generated by burning coal or gas, are now roughly 40 to 50 percent cheaper than fossil fuels, the report found. Grid-scale batteries to store renewable energy – an important means of making the intermittent energy supply from sun and wind match times of energy demand – were scarce in 2015. Since then, the IRENA researchers found that global battery storage capacity has soared from just 2 gigawatts to 90 gigawatts.
Guterres said the abundance of affordable clean energy means that government leaders can be much more aggressive on emissions reductions, “using new national climate plans to go all-out on the energy transition.”
Countries that are parties to the Paris Agreement are required to periodically update their emissions reduction plans, called Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and new plans are due when the U.N. convenes the COP30 climate talks in November in Brazil.
Guterres said he will convene a high-level event during the U.N. General Assembly in September to highlight NDCs that deliver on global promises to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030 and reach global net-zero emissions by 2050.
Former President Joe Biden submitted the U.S. NDC late last year near the end of his term in office, but it was largely a symbolic move. President Donald Trump pulled the U.S. out of the Paris Agreement upon taking office in January.
Guterres did not reference Trump by name, but his remarks offered an unmistakable rebuke to Trump’s energy policies that gut support for renewables in favour fossil fuels.
“The clean energy future is no longer a promise, it’s a fact,” Guterres said. “No government, no industry, no special interest can stop it.”
Trump has dismantled climate-related research at federal agencies, placed additional barriers to solar and wind development and moved to end many regulations on greenhouse gas emissions from autos and the power sector, all while expanding mining and drilling access to public lands.
While Guterres wants Big Tech to commit to renewable energy to power the boom in AI data centers, Trump and his top-level officials used an event last week to urge more use of coal and natural gas to power AI. At a summit on energy and AI in Pittsburgh, Trump’s Energy Secretary Chris Wright, a former fracking industry executive, downplayed the seriousness of climate change and ridiculed Biden-era support for clean power as the “energy crazy train.”
Guterres said such continued investment in fossil fuels will drive up costs and create stranded assets in the long term.
“Countries that cling to fossil fuels are not protecting their economies; they are sabotaging them,” he said. He argued that dependence on fossil fuels leaves economies at the mercy of price shocks due to disruption to supplies and geopolitical turmoil, as happened with energy prices in Europe following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“Let’s be clear,” he said, “the greatest threat to energy security today is fossil fuels.”
In response to the UN Secretary General’s report, and the associated energy report, Climate Action Network says welcomes the meaningful mention of the need for a Just Transition.
“The renewable energy transformation is here, and it is unstoppable, as Mr. Guterres stated today, but without effort and political will, this power shift risks being unjust, exploitative and unsustainable,” stated the group.
Jacobo Ocharan, Head of Political Strategies, Climate Action Network International, said: “The Secretary-General was on the money when he said that the energy transformation must deliver equity, dignity and opportunity for all – this is the beating heart of what a just transition means. The just transition is about embracing the future and not being stuck in the polluting and unfair past, which is where the fossil fuel industry wants us trapped. COP30 can and must deliver on just transition with a path grounded in human rights, justice and equity. The brief mention of nuclear needing to be in the energy mix was a shame, but the focus overall was on the just transition to renewable energy.
“The call for international cooperation to support low-income countries that are highly dependent on fossil fuels is timely and welcome, especially as the world is in the throes of massive division and nationalism. Likewise, the calls to reform the global financial architecture and debt for developing countries are positive, while the creeping mentions of investment opportunities and private finance are a concern.”
A sweltering summer heat dome that is baking much of the southern and central United States in intense heat and humidity is expected to expand into parts of the Northeast later this week.
In the wake of a relentless stretch of flash flooding triggered by slow-moving downpours and thunderstorms in recent weeks, an analysis by AccuWeather® expert meteorologists has confirmed that 2025 is on track to become one of the worst years ever on record for deadly and destructive flash flooding.
Above-danger heat stress: A man cools off amid searing heat wave
Summer heat dome expands this week
A long stretch of blistering heat is in the forecast for millions across the South and Plains, while breaks from the heat and humidity will become much more frequent in the Northeast.
AccuWeather® expert meteorologists say a northward bulge in the jet stream will develop while high pressure builds. This heat dome is expected to be very persistent. While the core of the heat dome may meander east –to west and back in the weeks ahead, it may linger through a good chunk of August.
Many locations that have avoided 100-degree heat so far this year, including Dallasand Houston, Little Rock, Oklahoma City and Wichita, Kansas, will rack up a string of triple digits in the days ahead.
“The bottom line is that this has the look of a long-lasting heat wave with limited rainfall,” AccuWeather® Senior Meteorologist, Chad Merrill, said. “Kansas City, Missouri, has not hit 100 degrees since Aug. 25, 2023, but is positioned to do so on multiple days during the upcoming heat dome.”
Following rounds of downpours and storms in some areas, it will take additional time for the ground to dry out in some areas. Very humid and steamy conditions are expected in many places as moisture is drawn into the air.
“The zone from central Texas into the Ozarks in Arkansas and Missouri still has wet soil from recent rain. The humidity levels will end up highest in this area, leading to extremely humid conditions this week. AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures will peak around 110-115 degrees this week in this zone,” Merrill explained. “Many cities from Nebraska and Missouri to Texas and Louisiana won’t get relief at night with low temperatures to range from the mid-70s to the low 80s.”
AccuWeather RealFeel™ Shade values, while not quite as high as in the sun, will still be in the upper 90s and 100s.
Merrill said drought conditions could worsen in some areas where the heat dome will prevent thunderstorms and downpours.
“Drought will expand through the central Plains by mid-August and worsen in Kansas and Nebraska, where there are already pockets of moderate to extreme drought,” Merrill said.
Some tropical moisture can push westward from the Gulf and into parts of central and southern Texas and spill northward from Mexico and into the Deserts, Rockies and High Plains in the form of periodic thunderstorms.
Heat to surge into the mid-Atlantic and Northeast later this week
After a brief stretch of days with lower humidity and noticeably cooler air early this week, a bubble of heat will break off from a searing heat dome over the middle of the United States later this week and surge into parts of the mid-Atlantic and Northeast.
“The late-week scorcher heading into the East will be a quick whiplash,” Merrill said. “The timing is in sync with the late-June surge in temperatures, but this one won’t last nearly as long.”
A backdoor cold front, a cold front the comes down from the north in New England, looks to squash the heat by Sunday.
“While the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast have been no stranger to high humidity this summer, the mid-90s have only made an appearance once this month in Philadelphia,” Merrill said. “Detroit has only reached 92 degrees this month. New York City will reach well into the 90s Friday and Saturday, following only three days with highs in the 90s earlier this month. The short, hot and humid spell will be significant.”
The two-day stretch of hot and humid conditions will occur as the jet stream moves prior to discharging more cool air. AccuWeather® expert meteorologists say the pattern shift will bring fewer hot and humid days to the Northeast later this month.
A cool front will drop this weekend, pushing from the northeast and north, rather than the typical direction from the west and northwest. This setup will be similar to the backdoor cold front that ended the heat wave in late June. Backdoor fronts are named after their atypical movement from the northeast to the southwest. They typically cross the region during the middle of spring.
Temperatures may drop by 15-30 degrees in the wake of the front this upcoming weekend in some areas of the Northeast. Highs in the 90s will be replaced with highs in the 80s and even the 70s.
As each wave of cooler and less humid air collides with hot and humid air, rounds of thunderstorms are possible, including the risk of some severe thunderstorms.
Afro-descendant peoples in four Amazon countries show remarkable achievements in environmental stewardship, according to new research from Conservation International, published on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, in Nature Communications Earth and Environment.
Colombia and the U.S held the first Binational Summit of Afro-descendant Leaders in 2024, under the theme “Connecting the African Diaspora”. Photo credit: Ministry of Foreign Affairs
The study assessed Afro-descendant lands in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and Suriname, finding significantly lower rates of deforestation and larger quantities of both biodiversity and irrecoverable carbon (the carbon that, if lost due to ecosystem conversion, could not be re-sequestered for at least 30 years).
The paper is said to be the first peer-reviewed study to combine statistical, spatial and historical data together to quantify the critical role of Afro-descendants in protecting nature. It follows last year’s formal recognition by the Convention on Biological Diversity at the United Nations Biodiversity Conference (COP16) of the vital role Afro-descendant peoples play in biodiversity and supporting global conservation goals – and comes as Brazil prepares to host the UN Climate Summit (COP30) later this year, bringing global attention to the Americas’ role in tackling climate change.
“Afro-descendant peoples across the Americas have long served as environmental stewards without recognition or reward – most of their territories are not even formally recognised,” said Martha Cecilia Rosero Peña, Ph.D., Social Inclusion Director at Conservation International. “The evidence, however, is indisputable; the world has much to learn from their land management practices.”
Key Findings
The study focused specifically on recognised Afro-descendant lands in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and Suriname. Afro-descendant peoples in these countries hold management rights on 9.9 million ha of land (1% of the total 1 billion ha land area for the four study countries).
Afro-descendant lands significantly exceeded the norm for these countries in three prominent indicators of conservation value:
Deforestation rates for Afro-descendant lands were…
29% lower when the lands were within Protected Areas
36% lower when the lands were outside Protected Areas
55% lower when the lands sat at the edge of a Protected Area
More than half (57%) of Afro-descendant lands are among the top 5% globally in biodiversity, including 99% of all Afro-descendant lands in Ecuador
These lands contain high densities of irrecoverable carbon – over 486 million tonnes of it collectively – and its continued protection under Afro-descendant community management is essential to preventing the worst effects of climate change
The study’s findings highlight a critical gap. While nearly one in four people in Latin America identify as Afro-descendant, Afro-descendant peoples are largely underrepresented in global environmental forums, including UN climate and biodiversity summits, where policies, funding and leadership decisions are shaped.
“For centuries, Afro-descendant communities have managed landscapes in ways that sustain both people and nature, yet their contributions remain largely invisible in mainstream conservation,” said Sushma Shretha, Ph.D., director of Indigenous Science, Research, and Knowledge at Conservation International and the lead author of the paper. “This research makes clear that their environmental stewardship is not just historical. It is ongoing and it must be recognized, supported and learned from.”
Hugo Jabini, a human rights and environmental Maroon leader from Suriname’s Saamaka Afro-Descendant Tribe, said: “This study is very important to us, Saamaka people, as it highlights for the first time how, through our deep cultural and spiritual connection to the land, we have sustained vital forest areas. We hope this raises awareness, so that [political leaders] no longer see us as mere claimants of land.”
”Participation in international forums like COP30 can significantly enhance the visibility, representation and influence of Afro-descendant leadership in global environmental policy, contributing to more equitable and environmental governance,” added Jabini.
Conservation Legacy
Afro-descendant peoples – and the sustainable land management practices they use today – trace their practices to the ingenuity and experience of their ancestors who were forcibly taken from Africa through the transatlantic slave trade. Some escaped before being enslaved, while others fled slavery and established their own settlements in remote regions throughout the Americas.
In dense forests, marshlands and mangroves, they found refuge and, over generations, developed “escape agriculture” – innovative practices that sustained communities while remaining hidden from colonial forces. “It is important to note that those who remained on plantations also undertook these innovative practices, providing food for settlements,” said Rosero.
Many of these practices, such as “food forests,” blended traditional African knowledge to new environments and established resilient ecosystems that sustained these communities and became critical strongholds for biodiversity and carbon storage.
The study calls for action items similar to those still needed for Indigenous Peoples and local communities, whose environmental stewardship and land rights are similarly underrecognized despite a large body of scientific evidence:
Legal recognition of Afro-descendant territories to ensure their continued protection;
Increased research and funding to support Afro-descendants and their conservation work; and
Integration of sustainable land management practices used by Afro-descendant peoples into global climate and biodiversity policies.
“Afro-descendant communities protect critical ecosystems. This pioneering study quantifies their impact and shows that justice, secure land tenure, and biodiversity gains align. Global negotiations that seek real impact must place Afro-descendant leadership at the center, and the Permanent Forum stands behind them to secure that seat,” said Amb. Martin Kimani, Chair of the U.N. Permanent Forum on People of African Descent.
“Collective land titling for Afro-descendant communities is a proven effective mechanism for environmental conservation, contributing significantly to the preservation of strategic ecosystems across Latin America and the Caribbean,” said Angélica Mayolo, former minister of culture for Colombia and an MLK Scholar with MIT’s Environmental Solutions Initiative, who hails from the Afro-descendant hub of Buenaventura, Colombia.
“To build on this success, it is essential to advance the formal recognition of property rights in countries where this has not yet been achieved, such as Panamá, Costa Rica and Dominican Republic. Equally important is the development of innovative financing instruments and economic opportunities for Afro-descendant communities living in biodiverse regions under substantial socioeconomic pressure and vulnerable to climate-related risks.” said Mayolo.
The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is deploying advanced data and AI driven modelling to boost soil nutrient management, soil health and improve farmer productivity in West Africa, a region experiencing recurrent nutrient depletion due to unsustainable farming practices and injudicious fertiliser use.
Rice trials
Crops remove essential nutrients such as Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium (NPK) from the soil during growth and harvest. These nutrients are vital for crop development and need to be replenished through the natural decomposition process or the application of mineral fertilisers to avoid the deterioration of soil fertility which leads to poor yields.
Nutrient mining and inefficient fertiliser use
Farmers in West Africa and the Sahel region experience poor crop yields as they apply fertilisers inefficiently and without scientific understanding of the specific nutrient needs of their soils. To address this, the Regional Hub for Fertiliser and Soil Health Hub for West Africa, a collaborative initiative to promote soil health and sustainable fertiliser use in the region – is using data science and advanced modelling to develop site specific fertiliser recommendations for farmers to improve soil fertility management and productivity.
Launched in 2024 as a sub-program of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Regional Hub brings together diverse stakeholders who include IITA, International Fertiliser Development Centre (IFDC), OCP Africa, African Plant Nutrition Institute (APNI), University Mohammed VI Polytechnic (UM6P) and the World Bank through the Accelerating Impacts of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa (AICCRA) project.
The Regional Hub provides technical assistance for the development and implementation of ongoing, new fertiliser and soil health-related investments in Africa. One of its key functions focuses on developing site-specific fertiliser recommendations tailored to local soil conditions and crop needs using high-quality agronomic datasets and cutting-edge data science techniques. The fertiliser recommendations align with the principles of Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM) and the 4Rs of nutrient stewardship; right source, right rate, right time, and right place to support climate-smart, efficient, and sustainable agriculture across the region.
From Field Trials to Farmer Recommendations
Dr. Siyabusa Mkuhlani, Associate Scientist-Data Science at the IITA in Kenya, highlighted that the Regional Hub is developing site specific fertiliser recommendations using data and models such as Agwise.AgWise is a freely available, open-source tool that provides data-driven, localised, and climate-specific agronomic recommendations. It combines agronomic and geospatial datasets from field trials, market analyses, and open data sources to deliver tailored advice on optimal planting times, cultivar selection, fertiliser types and quantities, and good agronomic practices.
The Regional Hub has established and is managing multi-locational nutrient omission trials to generate data to input into models to develop site specific fertiliser recommendations. Trials are currently underway in Ghana, Nigeria, Togo, Sierra Leone and Liberia where key crops include rice, maize and cassava.
Data, a development imperative
“We need data,” says Dr. Mkuhlani. “This data helps in understanding of the current soil limitations, level of productivity, and how much nutrients are available in the soil for crop growth and development. Specifically, such data is in the form of nutrient omission, where N+P without K, or P+K without N or K+ N without the P, enables us to determine the extent of limit and deficiency of specific nutrients.”
“Using models, we are able to determine how much additional nutrients (NPK) to apply for a farmer to attain certain yield targets,” Dr. Mkuhlani explained. “This additional NPK needed varies per location per environment, in some locations soils are already rich and a little NPK can be applied while other soils are poor and need more NPK.”
Dr. Mkuhlani notes that in developing the site-specific fertiliser recommendation, farmer’s socio-economic information is used to determine how much NPK nutrients are needed for the farmer to achieve a certain yield, but at what cost. For example, to achieve the potential yield the fertilizer recommendations could cost $200, but a farmer indicates that they have $50 to invest, the model can determine the appropriate recommendation suited for the current investment.
It can recommend that a farmer buys 20 kgs of Nitrogen, 30 kg of Phosphorus and 10 kg of Potassium equivalent to $50 fertiliser. In short, the model will determine the target fertiliser application based on the available investment. In next season the farmer can increase their investment until they get to maximum potential yield assessed for their soils.
“These recommendations are not recommended as elemental NPK because it is difficult for my grandmother to understand, but instead the recommendations are made as bags of fertiliser types found in the region.
“The Regional Hub will be in operation for at least 10 years, rolling out site specific fertiliser recommendations in the West Africa and Sahel region. Legacy agronomic data has already been gathered for maize, rice and cassava in Nigeria, Ghana, Togo and Sierra Leone from repositories. We are therefore currently in the process of generating the nutrient management recommendations and the process is 25% complete.
“Our dream is for farmers in West Africa to be more productive and more profitable because they are more knowledgeable about the right fertiliser applications needed for their soils. We also expect to see an improved and capacitated agricultural extension system in the region as we are giving out these recommendations to extension officers who work directly with farmers, and they should be technically competent to train others,” said. Dr. Mkuhlani.
