With more flooding predicted across many states of the country this rainy season, a pro-environment group, Natural Justice, has called for concerted efforts at tackling the climate emergency in Nigeria.
Programme Manager at Natural Justice (Nigeria), Mr. Mike Karikpo, told journalists at a ‘media training on reporting the environment and climate emergency through a climate justice lens’ in Port Harcourt on Friday last week, saying the climate crisis facing the country has reached emergency proportions, which requires a response by all stakeholders.
Karikpo said: “As a people, we realise the situation we are in. But the problem is that we lack the will-power to make the changes that are necessary to respond to the climate crisis.”
He observed that the media plays key role of galvanising support for climate action by individuals, corporate organisations and governments. But governments at the various levels in Nigeria are not doing enough to tackle the climate emergency.
“The Federal Government has put in place climate change policies like climate change council and agencies who play a crucial role in getting environmental information together, analysing and sharing the information.
“The state and local governments have not done as much as expected of them, except for Rivers State that the House of Assembly has passed a climate change bill.
“We think it is important that we prevail on our state governments and local government areas to take action in putting climate change policies in place,” he said.
Secretary, Rivers State chapter of the West Africa Network for Peace Building (WANEP), Lawrence Dube, said the event was specifically designed to reposition the debate on environmental justice, through a climate crisis lens, so that the climate emergency in Nigeria can be properly understood, re-conceptualised and engaged.
This is particularly important, he said, given the occurrence of disasters like flooding, especially in the Niger Delta region, and the need to mitigate them through conscientious action by policy makers and advocacy by civil society.
Noting that the media has a role to play in the advocacy for climate justice, he stressed the need to protect the environment, especially with regards to the Niger Delta where natural resources extraction has caused havoc to the waters, air, forests, mangroves, biodiversity, adding that “if we don’t do that, then we are in big trouble.”
Mr Klem Ofuokwu, journalist and resource person, speaking on “Boosting your knowledge of reporting the planet”, urged journalists to enhance their reportage by increasing their knowledge on issues surrounding climate change.
Ofuokwu said it is important that the media understands it plays a critical role informing the public and also in building a critical mass of public opinion and mindset that are favourable to achieving effective social action in support of climate justice.
He urged participants to place emphasis on fairness, participation and inclusion for all while reporting the environment.
Mr Tekena Amieyeofori, in a lecture entitled ‘Reporting the environment from a rights-based perspective,’ described the environment as a life-support system, providing air, water and food, from the earth, for man’s sustenance.
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