Ministry, NGO Sensitise Stakeholders On Climate Change

Kano State Ministry of Environment and Climate Change in collaboration Agile Governance and Climate Change has held a stakeholders’ sensitisation forum for implementation of the state’s climate change policy.

The environment commissioner, Dr. Dahiru Hashim, said being a global challenge, climate change had altered the way people live, hence the need to localise solutions and policies to guide the state to meet up with the global intervention on the subject.

He said relevant stakeholders from the transport, health, commerce and energy sectors among others gathered to make a community-based and community-driven policy document.

“The policy document is going to guide us as a state to align with global best practices to ensure that people don’t get exposed to the effects of climate change.

“We are currently battling issues of deforestation, desertification rising temperature, low air quality among others which affects our health and environment,” he stated.

While expressing optimism on having a good document, he added that his ministry under the leadership of the state governor, Abba Yusuf, was also working towards reviewing the state’s bylaws to ensure it has a very good roadmap to achieving the set target.

Speaking earlier, PACE state team lead, Auwalu Hamza, stressed the need for collaborative and deliberate action in joining the global community in the drive for safer and more lively surroundings.

He congratulated the state government for the good initiative and said the session would unveil the steering committee and technical working groups with a secretariat for the implementation of the policy.

In his goodwill message, the state’s team lead of the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), Lafiya Programme, Abdulkadir Nasiru, said climate change remained a priority because of its direct impact on the health sector.

He said about 29% of Nigeria’s national health burden was linked to climate change, and urged the state government to take urgent action by ensuring it operates based on climate-resilient facilities.