Climate Watch: CSO urges Rivers to implement action plan on gender, climate change

Despite directly impacting our communities, health, and livelihoods, climate-related reports usually take a back seat to dominant news beats like politics and business.

Climate Watch aims to ensure you never miss important stories on climate change and actions being taken toward limiting its impact.

Here is a round-up of last week’s climate stories:

• The Oyo government on March 11 announced a ban on the usage of styrofoam and other single-use plastics (SUPs) across the state. Oluwaserimi Ajetunmobi, commissioner for health in Oyo, said the state government had inaugurated the food safety compliance enforcement task force to monitor compliance with the ban. The commissioner said the task force included members from the state food safety management committee, the police, the Association of Table Water Producers, and the Association of Canteen Workers, among others. Find out more here.

• The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on March 13 pledged to support Nigeria’s environmental roadmap. Elsie Attafuah, UNDP’s new resident representative, said Nigeria and other African countries are not doing enough on energy, climate change, innovations, plastic pollution, and biodiversity. The organisation also pledged to support President Bola Tinubu on his 18 priority deliverables in the renewed hope agenda. Read more here.

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• Last week, the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), a non-governmental organisation (NGO), trained journalists and members of civil society organisations (CSOs) on methane emission reduction in Nigeria. The event, organised in partnership with the Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI), brought together stakeholders from the government and extractive industry. Ifeanyi Chukwudi, CJID project manager, harped on the need for Nigeria to move beyond discussing the transition to clean energy and focus on how the transition can be achieved. Read more here.
• The Kebetkache Women Development and Resource Centre, a Rivers-based civil society organisation (CSO), has urged the state government to implement the national action plan on gender and climate change. Confidence Otikor, the project officer, spoke at a policy engagement with stakeholders in Port Harcourt, the state capital, on Saturday. Otikor urged the government to embrace gender-responsive budgeting to cushion the effects of climate change on the people. She said implementing the action plan will help address the challenges encountered by women in communities prone to environmental challenges. Otikor urged non-governmental organisations (NGOs) always to create awareness about issues affecting women.