Chachavivi Women and Girl Child Development Foundation, has organized a two-day sensitization in two implementing communities in Kogi state.
According to the CEO of Chachavivi Women and Girl Child Development Foundation, Halima Oiza Sadiq, said the Community dialogue was aimed to create awareness on how to mitigate climate change and forest conservation and strengthening community structures to resist land grabbing in their communities.
The project is being implemented in Osaragada and Bakomba communities in Adavi and Lokoja Local Government respectively with technical support from the Ministry of Environment through the department of Climate and Forestry.
The Community Dialogue on Forest Conservation and land grabbing which was organized by Chachavivi Women and Girl Child Development Foundation was in partnership with Women Environmental Programme (WEP) Funded by WECF International.
According to her, the project is currently being implemented in 12 countries including Nigeria. The implementing regions in Nigeria are; South South, South West, South East and North Central to be implemented by six organizations with Chachavivi Women and Girl Child Development Foundation taking the lead implementation in the North Central with Kogi State as focus.
The Green Livelihood Alliance (GLA) Project with a focus on forest conservation and mitigation of land grabbing with the title ‘Forest for a just Future’ is one of the programmes of the Green Livelihood Alliance which aims at ensuring that tropical forest and forest landscapes are sustainably and inclusively govern to mitigate and adapt to climate change and fulfil human rights.
She noted that the different methods of Forest conservation like aforestation, reforestation, the use of improved seeds, the use of clean cooking stoves and others were mentioned while alternatives to firewood like sawdust, Animal Dung, and rice husk among others, were also mentioned as part of the methods they can adopt to mitigate climate change.
The group called on stakeholders especially the Government to see to it as part of their duty to society to preserve lives; man, plants and animals, and conserve the ecosystem in order to prevent hardship, scarcity of water, and food shortage in the nearest future through the following; Intense awareness creation on climate change through the land and forest officers.
Others are to enforce the building of houses with codes, encourage farmers through the extension workers to practice climate-smart agriculture and reinforce forest guards to the forest area to mitigate indiscriminate falling down of trees and burning of forests which end up depleting our Ozone layer that adversely affect our ecosystem.
She maintained that Management of Climate Change is a business of all and not for some selected people.
The Dialogue Meeting had in attendance various stakeholders including; Community leaders, woman leaders, Youth leaders, Farmers, Herders and Religious leaders.
Others are members of the communities (both indigene and non-indigene), the director of Climate and Director of Forest from the State Ministry of Environment and other key stakeholders relevant to the project.
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