Climate Change: Is Nigeria Well Prepare? Expert Opens Up
- President Bola Tinubu-led federal government to increase its campaign on climate change as the country was said not to be well prepared for the change
- Rashida Bamgbola, a clean energy consultant, extolled the commitment of Nigeria but noted that the country was not well prepared for it
- Bamgbola outlined the challenges confronting the implementation of Nigeria's policies on climate change
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Nigeria has been said not to be fully prepared for its campaign on climate change, particularly the transition to clean energy.
In an exclusive interview with Legit. ng, Rashida Bamgbola, a clean energy consultant, noted that Nigeria has shown commitment but was not well prepared for the change.
Bamgbola advocated for more campaigns against climate change and said climate change education should be introduced into the school curriculum.
She said:
"I don’t think Nigeria is well prepared to handle the adverse effects of climate change. For the country to be truly prepared, everyone both educated and uneducated needs to understand what climate change is, what causes it, and how to address it. Even children need to learn about climate change, but how many primary or secondary schools in Nigeria are teaching this?
"Although Nigeria has shown commitment through policies like the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement, which aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, implementation has been a major challenge. The issues include corruption, lack of funding, weak enforcement, and hiring unqualified people who lack the knowledge needed to solve these problems."
expert laments poor campaigns for climate change
Bamgbola decried Nigeria's poor campaigns for climate change. She urged the government to partner with private organisations to ensure the effectiveness of climate change in Nigeria. She noted:
"Moreover, public awareness of climate change is very low. For example, how often does the government engage with social enterprises in Nigeria that are actively working to combat climate change?
"If the government is serious about implementation, they should collaborate with climate-smart businesses in Nigeria, invite them to the table, and partner with them to develop practical solutions or support them to develop their already existing solutions. Without such partnerships, progress will remain slow, and Nigeria will struggle to handle the growing challenges of climate change."
Tinubu govt names Nigeria's delegates on climate change
The President Bola Tinubu-led federal government has disclosed the number of delegates it sponsored for the climate change summit in Dubai.
In a statement by the Ministry of Information, seen by Legit.ng, the government noted that the overall delegates on its train to the Arab country included those sponsored by the government (Federal and State Governments) and others were not government-sponsored, which included (Private Companies, NGOs, CSOs, Media, academia, etc).
Opposition asks Tinubu to publish climate change delegate
Many Nigerians have criticised the government for the large number of delegations on President Bola Tinubu's train to the ongoing Climate Summit in Dubai, otherwise called COP28.
The opposition parties, including the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party presidential campaign council spokesperson, Yunusa Tanko, had earlier called on the All Progressives Congress (APC), led federal government to publish the names of the delegate-sponsored summit.
Given the country's hard economic conditions, the PDP and Labour Party have condemned the earlier list in circulation, describing it as insensitive.
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Source: Legit.ng
