March 21, (THEWILL)-
Stakeholders and experts on climate change have urged development partners to increase funding to support alternative energy to discourage the felling of trees and other environmental challenges in the state.
Speaking at a forum, organised for the development of advocacy strategy for the Borno State Climate Change Programme in Maiduguri, the state capital, an environmentalist and Dean School of Environmental Technology, Ramat Polytechnic Maiduguri, Dr Gabriel Akeh, said the issue of affordability and accessibility of alternative energy, formed part of the discussion at the session.
He stressed the need to scale up awareness about the new action plan underway to mitigate the impact of the environmental challenge in the state.
“We are looking at affordability and access to combat climate change.
“This will discourage people from cutting trees because the trees are supposed to act as sinc for the carbon dioxide, which is released into the air each time we cut a tree”, he explained.
He said the increasing use of dirty foil, traditional or solid foil including firewood and charcoal, makes women inhale a large amount of smoke which endangers their health
General Manager, Borno State Environmental Protection Agency (BOSEPA), Malam Abubakar Suleiman, said the increasingly harsh weather in the state in recent times underscores the impact of climate change.
“It is a global challenge and we can feel it in Borno. We are experiencing very harsh weather in Borno in recent times”, he noted.
He said the state now has a “robust Action Plan”, called Borno State Climate Change Action Plan. He, however, noted that the implementation of the action plan cannot succeed without the cooperation of members of the public, especially the local people.
He said the state governor directed the Ministry of Environment to produce 10 million seedlings last year. He warned that his agency would sanction anyone engaged in indiscriminate tree-cutting.
Advocacy and Communication Officer for the Borno Climate Change Programme, Mr Unicoo Kalu, explained that the programme aimed at building the capacity of state officials to respond to climate change issues.
He said the programme has three components including a Plan stage, which focuses on helping the state to build a Climate Change action plan to divide responses to the challenges.
Others, according to him, include Community Residence groups and developing a climate change agricultural toolbox; plans and strategies on farming that are climate resilient.
The project was funded by the European Union, and implemented by the International Centre for Energy, Environment, and Development (ICEED), in partnership with the Borno State government.
