Environment
The Nigerian Civil Society Framework on Paris Agreement and the SDGs (NCSFPAS) has called for a “gender enabled” Nigeria in the mitigation and adaptation of climate change.
Mrs Elizabeth Jeyiol, Chair, Gender Working Group, NCSFPAS, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Wednesday.
Jeyiol said the large-scale extraction of natural resources, climate change and environmental degradation across the country’s six geopolitical zones were advancing at an unprecedented pace, undermining the livelihoods of millions of women and men.
She said successful action on climate change in Nigeria depended on the engagement of women as stakeholders and planners in ensuring everyone had access to resources they need to adapt to and mitigate climate change.
Jeyiol said examples of such involvement rangeed from the role of women in building resilience against natural disasters to being key agents in supporting low-emissions development.
She noted that in Nigeria, food preparation was overwhelmingly done by women and this activity required household energy.
Jeyiol said that across the country, women use cook stoves that rely on solid fuels such as biomass (wood, charcoal, agricultural residues and animal dung) and coal as their primary source.
She told NAN the use of these dirty solid fuels contributed to harmful emissions of Carbon dioxide and black carbon (soot), destructive agents that perpetrating climate change.
“Indeed, women have a crucial role to play in supporting their families and communities and in implementing mechanisms to adapt to climate change and mitigate its negative impacts and they require the help and support of all in this regard.
“From rising sea levels to drops in farming yields and urban floods, the impacts of climate change are being acutely felt by women.
“Women make up a large percentage of poor communities in Nigeria that rely on natural resources for their livelihoods,” Jeyiol said.
She said the Climate and Sustainable Development Network and NCSFPAS have been in the forefront of adopting gender inclusive measures to tackle climate change.
Jeyiol said that these measures include both male and female perspectives and sex disaggregated data in situation analysis for proper planning of climate change mitigation and adaptation projects.
“Women’s knowledge in agroecology, agroforestry and renewable energies have been improved through different training programmes for adoption of sustainable agriculture, use of renewable energy and energy efficient cooking stoves that we have organised.
“These have not only empowered them for improved livelihoods but also served to mitigate climate change to a large extent. ”
She said Nigerian women, however, needed more representation in decision-making at all levels with gender analysis of all budget lines and financial instruments.
Jeyiol said this would help to implement innovative and sustainable responses and solutions to the environmental challenges that arise.
According to her, Nigerian women and girls play a crucial role in the fight against climate change, and it is essential to make sure that this role is not only fully understood, but incorporated into national and state development plans.
“A Nigeria where equality reigns is a gender-enabled Nigeria. We can actively choose to challenge stereotypes, fight bias, broaden perceptions, improve situations and celebrate Nigerian women’s achievements.
“Collectively, each one of us can help to create a gender-equal Nigeria.” (NAN)
– Apr. 22, 2020 @ 18:19 GMT |
Tags: adaptation CSOs call for gender enabled Nigeria in climate change mitigation
